Dear Addie,

You know so much already, at two, that I worry about what you will figure out in the years to come. As I sit on the couch, listening to you, over the monitor, chat with Giraffe and Raggedy Ann, I can hardly believe that it was only two years ago that I lay in a hospital bed, trying to concentrate on Scrabble while waiting for you to arrive.

How have two years passed already?

You are hardly a shadow of that tiny person who turned our world upside down. You can walk and run now. Often, you choose to gallop. You can jump and spin now. Often, you try to combine the two to make me laugh. You can color with crayons and tell me what color crayon you are using. Purple and Orange are your favorites. You can draw circles and use watercolors. You take care of your baby dolls, you tuck in your stuffed animals, you make sure that our herbs get watered. You pick dandelions, clovers, and wild flowers. You make us laugh.

You have opinions of your own. You like to help pick out your clothes in the morning and you decide whether or not to wear pigtails. You decide whether you want to put on your purple shoes or your polka dot sneakers. You tell me if you want a bubble bath at night or a shower in the morning. We often watch cartoons in the early morning hours, when we are just starting to function, but sometimes you request the news. You tell me, point blank, if you like what I have picked out to wear for myself or if you don't want to go to the grocery store.

You carefully watch older kids and tentatively try to do what they do. Because of your daring and curious spirit you know how to jump, how to slide, how to twirl in a swing. You are not afraid of water being splashed on you, or poured over your head, and you charge the the sprinkler head on. You want to try new things, and you challenge yourself to be adventurous. You can climb to the top of your play set by yourself. You can go up and down stairs by your self. You love closing the doors to rooms, sometimes accidentally locking youself or the cat inside. You try to balance on retaining walls and curbs and you scramble up everything you can: benches, chairs, couches, beds. Usually once you have scrambled up, you throw yourself off with a reckless giggle.

Each day your vocabulary is expanding, and you often say things I didn't even know you knew. You love milk, juice and tea. You love sweet treats, ice cream, and fishies. You beg for lollipops and popsicles. You know not to touch mommy's coffee or mommy and daddy's "grown up juice". You can use a fork and spoon, but you still prefer your hands to shovel food into your mouth. You like asparagus and blueberries. You love meat: sausage, metts, brats, hotdogs, steak, chicken, ham...all of it is super yummy. Like your mommy, you think cheese is the world's greatest invention, and ask for it frequently. You know the names of your aunts and uncles, grandparents, cousins and friends. Heck, you even know most of the names of mommy and daddy's friends. You definitely know Tool.

You find wonder in the smallest things. You love to toss bread to the birds in the backyard and watch them cool off in our bird bath. You still smile and point as planes fly overhead. You are fascinated by bees and bugs, but a little grossed out by worms. You love it when we pass the horses on our way to exercise and you loudly neigh at them. You think the fountain in the pond up street is amazing and you often whisper WOW as pass it. You still love the kitty with your whole heart. Sometimes you love her so much that she runs and hides - usually after you have given her a headlock hug, or dressed her up with necklace, or have attempted to use her as a pillow. You ask to go to the zoo about four times a week, and think the train is the greatest ride.

You love to sit on laps and read books. You have just started filling in words as we read. You like to sing, off tune and loudly. You love body slamming daddy, but not as much as you love cuddling him. You still let us hold your hand and want kisses on your boo-boos.

Today you fell asleep on my lap as I sang you Baby. I sat in the rocker a few minutes longer than I normally would. Instead of 8 pounds of baby, I held 30 pounds of toddler. Your hair is long enough for pigtails. Your legs are no longer full of rolls and your toes are painted pink.

That tiny person who turned my world upside down, is now a toddler who keeps it spinning, and interesting, and chaotic, and amusing and wonderful. You make my world uncertain, and exciting, and a fabulous place to be.

Happy second birthday to my baby...who is slowly becoming a big girl.