22 Months Old!

Dear Brenna,

Here we are, in 2012! This is going to be a big year for you. You'll be potty trained, give up your paci, become a big sister, and maybe even move out of your crib. I know you'll change so much in other ways too, because I've already seen so many changes in you just over the past few weeks. You're really growing up - which is exciting and heart-breaking all at the same time!

You really love to talk, and I catch you saying the funniest things lately. Some of the ones I remember most are:
"I love you sooo much" when holding your bear like I hold you.
"Who/What's that?" anytime you see a picture or see/hear an unfamiliar sight or sound.
"Daddy be riiight back" when Daddy is at work or outside with Maggie.
"Mommy gorgeous" as we walked down the aisle at Target. Hilariously embarrassing. You call Brady, Morgan, Whit, and Finn gorgeous, too, when we look at our Christmas cards on the fridge.
"Shew, had fun at Target" when we got in the car after a short shopping trip. I still can't believe you said this, but it sounded so clear and I can't think of what else it could have been, unless it was "Shew, it's cold at Target."
"Mommy potty!" when pointing to the bathroom at Target. Yep, Mommy is definitely pregnant!

You also LOVE to sing. You learned all the words to "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" over our Christmas trip. It's the cutest thing. You also know almost all of your ABCs - just the other day I was singing them, and after I said "LMNOP" you just sang the rest. You amaze us at how quickly you pick things up! You're also doing better with counting, instead of stopping at four every time.

You love to be outside swinging, pushing your lawnmower, or sitting in your lounge chair. Unfortunately it's been colder and we've been sick, so it hasn't happened as often as you'd like. Here's hoping for a mild winter. I get excited thinking about when we have our own house and you get to play all the time! I really hope we have a big yard and you have some little neighbors to play with!

You are currently on your second double ear infection in the past month. The last round of antibiotics gave you a yeast infection, so you've been on lots of medicine since before Christmas. Now we're all 3 fighting a cold/sinus infection/bad cough. Luckily you seem to not be too bothered by any of this! Your naps are shorter but that's about the only difference I've seen. Still sleeping great at night - thank you!!! Oh, and you weighed 24 lbs, 1 oz when they weighed you 3.5 wks ago (25 lbs, 1 oz this week with clothes on) - so you're growing great! You're still in mostly 18 or 18-24 month clothes and size 6 shoes.

You did great while we traveled for a week over Christmas. We spent 2 days at Nana's, then 3 days at Nanie's, then we went to visit Grandpa Halsey and stayed another day and a half at Nana's. You had a blast with your cousins and other family. You got lots of new toys and clothes! I think your favorites are your baby and stroller, your tricycle, and your kitchen/grocery set. Oh, and you love my new iPad. You've figured out how to go into iTunes and find your Elmo videos. You are like your daddy - you love technology!

I have so many memories from this month, but I want to share 2 from this week. One day I was working on dinner and you were in the floor playing quietly. I got suspicious so I looked to see what you were doing. You had one sock off and had it in your hand. You were holding the chicken from your grocery set - and you were pretending to wash the chicken in Maggie's water bowl. It was hilarious (and kinda gross)!! Then today I decided it was warm enough to go outside to swing for a little while. I told you we were going and your sweet face just lit up. We got our shoes on and headed out. You started running and grinning and swinging your arms. You were just so excited about a simple thing and it made my mama heart smile! Nevermind that you were "all done" swinging about 3 minutes later! This next year us going to be SO much fun!

I love you more every day!
Love, Mommy