18 Months

I am almost 2 months late on this one.  Once again, better late than never . . .

Dear Hurley,

These last 6 months just flew by me; you are a full grown toddler now, and you are more fun each and every day. At your 18-month checkup you were almost 20 pounds and 29 inches tall.

You know a lot of words now.  Your vocabulary consists mostly of Disney characters, names, and food items.  You love Mickey Mouse, Cars, and Toy Story and you know all of the characters by name.  You love to watch movies with your brother and you find playing pretend characters equally enjoyable.  We can hardly walk through a store without you spotting some sort of character-branded merchandise. 

You love music and enjoy dancing, especially when you are being held!  Your favorite song is "Stuck on You" by Sugarland.  We've had many days where you sit at the computer and view this music video over and over and over again.  Oh, did I mention that you REALLY know the word, "again?"

You love to eat, but much to our dismay, you are a very picky eater.  You LOVE candy and cookies, and spend much of the day following me around asking for a "snack."  We can get you to eat some fruit, but you adamently push away any vegetables.  At dinner, you are a meat and noodles type of girl.  If there are meat and/or noodles of any kind being served, we have to monitor your intake.  For breakfast, you love Mini Wheats and muffins, but eggs and waffles also make you very happy.

Your best friend is your brother. Although you sometimes disagree, you adore being around him. When Brooklen leaves for school, you cry and when he comes home, you can't wipe the smile off of your face! You also love to make a scene when your daddy comes home from work.  Usually, you start running around the house in circles, screaming at the top of your lungs to welcome him home.

You love toys.  Your favorite thing to play with is a doll.  You feed your babies, push them in the stroller, and you love to wrap blankets over their heads.  You also like to pretend you are making food with your kitchen set.  You usually insist on wearing your chef hat.  And, of course, since Brooklen likes puzzles, you have become pretty obsessed with those, as well.

You are strong-willed and opinionated.  Your favorite shirt is a graphic tee with a cat on it.  You usually throw a fit if you see your "cat" shirt and I won't let you wear it.  You also like to pick the bows you wear in your hair and the shoes that you want to wear each day.

You are certainly a brave little girl.  You pack a lot of physical energy into your tiny body, and you aren't afraid of anything.  One of your favorite things to do is to slide down our flight of     stairs on your belly or your butt.  You are fast;  you always get down quicker than I do!

You are definitely MY little girl.  Your daddy laughs at you because at least a few times a day, you can be found walking around the house cleaning.  You like to pull out the child-size broom and map, and you work your magic with a rag.  You also don't like getting messy.  If you get something on your hands or chair, you will not resume eating until we clean the mess up.

Oh Hurley, we love you so much.  You have brought so much joy to our little family and each one of us is absolutely SMITTEN by you.  We look forward to many, many, more memories with you.

Love,

Your Mom