The Atkinsons

And then she was 2.

Olive turned two yesterday, and I'd be lying if I said I didn't shed some tears about it. I was taking a moment to reflect on her and my heart just filled with joy. She's everything I had hoped she would be from her adorable red hair and blue eyes to her sweet loving demeanor and unfailing sense of adventure. I think she really got the best of her Mom and Dad. I watch her and I am in constant awe. She is so aware of those around her, she is patient (as patient as a two year old can be) and gentle- she gets these qualities from her Dad. At the same time she just tugs at her Moms heart-strings when she jumps at any chance to run around outside, climb a tree, ride a bike, or hike through the mountains. This she gets from her free-spirited Mom. 

Olive has really changed a lot in the past few weeks, and I find myself constantly saying "what! I didn't know you could do that!" It's always been hard to gauge her comprehension because she didn't talk much but she is FINALLY starting to talk and it makes me so happy! She is in the "do it myself" stage, which I know is a healthy part of growing up but can be more than a little frustrating at times. Especially when it takes half an hour to get out of the house because we have to try to put on our own shoes and shirt and buckle our own seat belt, most of which we can't do ourselves and so she finally concedes and lets me help her- but only after she has given it a good through try. We are working on things like allowing mom to hold on to the handle bars of the bike so she can steer. (She forces me to steer by holding on to her bike seat, which I can actually do very well if we don't need to turn- and I've got to be honest it's kind of ridiculously adorable looking at her little hands all by themselves on those big handlebars thinking she is steering herself.) 

Miss Olive loves to sing sing sing- that hasn't changed much. She will make up words (and actions) to any song she hears. When we started to sing her happy birthday she just chimed right in with us! She wants me to read to her ALL the time, and we do often sit in her room for hours at a time going through each book. She loves to be "scared" by her Dad. Often at night we hide from him on our bed and she says "shhhhh" and then he comes and scares us and it's the best thing ever. She screams and laughs and laughs- oh just thinking about it makes me smile from ear to ear. She has started deciding that she will share with YOU, not you with her. If she wants to give you a piece of HER cookie or pizza or let you hold the remote she will ever so kindly do so (we are working on this one.) If you ask her to give a hug or a kiss to yourself or someone else she instantly drops what she is doing and quickly obliges. She is becoming her own person, and I grow so much watching her grow.

For her birthday we just went low-key. We spent the day doing her favorite things. She didn't know it was her birthday, she just knew it was the best day ever. She woke up to a room full of balloons and Mom and Dad came in and sang her happy birthday. She was so excited! Then she got to go see her birthday sign, which she quickly ripped down because she loved it so much she wanted to hold it and run around with it. She opened her present from my Mom, a doll and some accessories (which she loved) and a bubble machine from Mom and Dad- which has been ENDLESS entertainment since we opened it. I recommend it to any parent with a toddler- they are so cheap and man oh man do they love them! Then Olive's friend Amelia came over and gave her animal magnets that have also been played with non-stop and hauled all over the house. We spent the rest of the morning at the library and I read her every book she brought to me. We stopped by Jamba because Olive loves that place and we sat out front and enjoyed each others company and chatted as though we had all the time in the world. After a long nap I made her birthday cake (which included more than her fair share of taste testing the batter) and Kc's Dad and sister came over to celebrate with us. They got her a little stuffed doggy and when she opened it she said "it's a doggy!" and got so excited. Then we went to bed. It was wonderful. 

I love my family, and I can't wait to experience life with them and watch us all grow. Life feels beautiful.