One and a Half

Well, the terrible twos are almost upon us. Or maybe they are already here, since we have witnessed plenty of your open-mouth, high-pitched screams, with the eyes closed, and body parts flailing along the floor these past few weeks. Where did our sweet, calm baby go?

Your personality is making it's way to center stage, as you turn 18 months. If I had to guess what you will be when you grows up, it's Chief. Chief of whatever. It is your way and that's it.

And just like your sister you are very independent. Must be genetic. And if we try and take that away from you, you'll let us know that you do not approve (see first paragraph). So much for you being the "mellow one." LOL!

You also want whatever it is your sister has. You are not a happy camper if Kelsea gets something and you do not! Although this could be troubling in a few years, it's also advantageous for things like swim class. I think you are thriving at swim lessons partially due to having your sister in the next lane. Maybe this attitude will make potty training and crib-to-bed transition easier next year...

And just like your big sister you are very sweet and hand out lots of hugs and kisses. Your most favorite things are centered around bed time (bath and books). We are reading a boatload of books to you, when just a couple months ago you would push them away and opt to go to bed instead. You are still incredibly easy to put down to bed, and still take great naps during the day (thank goodness). You are an amazing eater, which might be why you are so tall, 33 inches (90th %) and 24 pounds (50th %). And as one can see from the last two photos, you are looking more and more like your Dad. The Laughrey gene pool wins again. :-)

Four and a Half

Summer is flying by, despite it feeling more like Winter here in "sunny" California. One month ago yesterday, our oldest baby girl had a half birthday. She was disappointed to find out her half birthday did not come with cake, candles and presents, but she's still pretty stoked about telling people she is 4 1/2. I think I convinced her our trip to Kauai later this month was her and Lorelei's half birthday present. That has to count for something?

A few things about you at four and half:

You love, love, love watching movies.

You adore playing at the beach, even when you are shivering from the fog and wind.

You enjoy building things at school. Your teachers tell us you spend lots of time building intricate towers. Today you built Disneyland.

You are becoming quite a good swimmer.

You love to play dress up more than anything else. Even if it's just trying on your own clothes.

You want to know why raccoons don't turn into butterflies.

You tell me stories of when you were "big", as if you lived an entire lifetime before you became a part of ours.

You are a wonderfully sweet big sister.

You want to be a mommy when you grow up and either a baby teacher or a baby doctor.

You ask a lot of questions about how you were born and how "Baby Jesus" made us.

You still sneak into our bed at night, and although I may not have quite as many good nights of sleep, I know that one day (too soon) I will yearn for a night of snuggling with my little girl.

You are growing up way to fast, in fact in all these photos I can envision you as a teenager. So for now we will simply enjoy your four-and-a-halfness!