Macy & Ruby Gracie: 22 Months Old

Dear Ruby,
The countdown is on! You will be two years old in a matter of weeks and we are looking forward to celebrating our very special girl and your second year of life! I swear I said I'd never do "one of those" cheesy character birthday parties back when I wasn't a parent. Now I can't wait to see your face when you see your party decked out Elmo style. I know you'll love it!

Your 21st month was a great one. There was a noticeable shift - I went from saying "Oh my gosh, will she EVER sit still??" to "Oh my gosh, it's been five minutes and she's STILL sitting and playing!!" And what a nice change it's been. I love seeing you enjoy your toys and books. Heck, I even love seeing you sit on the couch in the morning and actually watch an episode of Barney or Sesame Street. Needless to say this longer attention span prompted me to bite the bullet and decide to potty train (that's a whole separate post!) Bottom line, I am just a little less concerned for your future school teachers (and myself) now that I've seen that you can in fact sit for a few minutes anyways. Keep it up!

A few things we want to remember about you at 21 Months Old:

You FINALLY say your name. You talk up a storm and we couldn't understand why you wouldn't say Ruby. Before this past month every time daddy or I asked you what your name was you'd say "Baby!" Well, now when we ask you say "Ruby Baby" and it just absolutely kills me.
Bath time is your favorite. You love playing in the water and splashing around. You are getting good at taking your own clothes off and I always laugh when I watch you rip your clothes off when I announce that it's bath time. You can't get in quick enough!
You love, love, LOVE riding your bike. You received two bikes for Christmas and now that you are tall enough to ride them daddy's been working with you in the evenings. Sometimes when I watch you I can't believe I have a baby old enough to ride a bike!
Gigi and Tucka are still coming every Tuesday to watch you for a few hours. As soon as they walk in you start waving and excitedly excusing me by saying "Bye Mama!" because you know they are about to take you to the park. Good thing I am not easily offended! :-)
"Row, Row, Row your Boat" is one of your favorite songs. You call out (by name) anyone who isn't participating in singing. Yea - no one gets away without singing.
You love to cuddle on the couch with Daddy before bed. He plays the goodnight song on the Sprout channel and you cuddle up. Mommy got in on the fun the other night and you actually fell asleep on my chest which hasn't happened since you were a baby. Mama and Dada love those cuddles!
Your play house is back in action after months of being "under construction" again after our move. You have brand new hard wood floors and your kitchen is back up and running. You are thrilled. A couple weeks ago you walked into your house and I heard you say "Tick You Daddy" - this was so adorable to me because it was totally unprompted and daddy wasn't even home, you were just saying thank you out of pure appreciation (or if not you fooled me). I had to call daddy who was at work that very moment and tell him how much you loved your house. So sweet!

Yay Ruby!

I think you are finally getting over the tearing our your bow phase. Woo-hoo!

You are the official candle blowing helper.

You take this job very seriously and it brings you much joy!

We've been hosting a monthly Candlish family dinner and you just LOVE sitting with all the girls. Last month you grabbed Mimi's dinner roll right off her plate and I think she laughed for the rest of the night about it. Good thing you are so cute.