Natalie Faith - 2 Years Old!

My sweet baby turned two years old today! Oh how time flies when you're having fun!

 We spent the morning celebrating Father's Day with Ben, then lunch with Grandma, Great-Grandma, Great-Grandpa, and Uncle Brandon at Busy Corner. Natalie took a nice nap, then we headed to the pool to celebrate her birthday! She LOVES the water!

I made pancakes with bacon for dinner - a huge hit with everyone! Bobbi Jo helped Charlotte decorate Natalie's birthday cake - it looked great & tasted even better!

Natalie, you are SUCH a blessing! Your sweet heart, feisty personality, and hilarious sense of humor are just the best combination. You've gone through quite a vocabulary growth spurt lately and it's so much fun listening to you piece your ideas together in these little 3-or-4-word sentences. You're slowly transitioning to calling me "mommy," but i'd prefer if you would call me "Mimi" forever. :)

You love to play outside, climb, run, find bugs, practice your jumping, try to ride the tricycle, and do your best to keep up with your big sister. You have a very strong independent streak, but still like lots of cuddles, too. You love to play with babies, sing songs, read LOTS of books, watch Bo On the Go and Little Einsteins, and play dress up. The cats are finally starting to let you pet them, and I love the way your eyes light up when you find Marie - or "Mo" as you call her.

Your dad and I, and everyone who loves you, are so blessed to have you in our lives. We love you, sweet girl, and can't wait to see what the next year will bring!

Meowing at me in her new cat towel

*Natalie weighed 23.4 lbs (26th percentile) and was 34" tall (49th percentile) at her 2 year checkup.

Swim Lessons

As if I needed another reminder that my girls are growing up much faster than I'd like... Charlotte had her first swimming lesson this morning! She's always been uneasy in water - hates getting splashed, does not care for sprinklers, and she thinks getting her hair washed is just about the worst thing in the world.

But today. Today she was brave!!

Her instructor, Rob, could not be a better teacher for her. He knew just how to talk to her, anticipated and calmed (nearly) every anxiety trigger, and managed to keep a fairly stressful event in Charlotte's world light and happy! He cracked jokes, asked her questions, and made her feel very important. In 30 minutes, he was able to get her to do things in the water that Ben and I haven't been able to do without tears in over 3 years! I'm so excited to see the progress she makes in the next 4 weeks.

Treading water/doggy paddling

Natalie was JEALOUS. As soon as she saw Charlotte with her swimsuit on, Natalie wanted hers on. As soon as she saw the pool, she wanted to go "wimming." I'll have to bring some pretty hard bribes with me to keep Natalie content. Fish face selfies are only amusing for so long. ;o) Hopefully I can find an opening that fits our schedule for her to take lessons, too!