A Letter To My Girl On Her Second Birthday

Dear Fern,

Today is your second birthday! I can’t believe you’ve already been in our lives for two whole years. It seems like yesterday that we met you at the birthing center…I know it’s cliche, but it’s true. Time really does fly when you have a little one. You looked so different then…and still so much the same in many ways. As I perused through those early photos of you in my phone’s camera roll last night, I saw many of your expressions that I have come to know and love. Especially that serious little gaze you have when you’re deep in thought.

And look! This is you on your very first “birth” day! The preschoolers in my class at the time made you that birthday crown and specifically requested that you wear it on your birthday and I must say, it was pretty adorable.

This past year of your life has been truly magical. You have become such a little person! You started talking right around 18 months and you haven’t stopped since. Your language has seriously just exploded and you are constantly coming up with something new and you are so good at putting together pieces about the world around you.

Just last night you watched part of “The Sound of Music” for the first time and you were totally entranced by Fraulein Maria’s lovely voice. At bed time you made Daddy sing “Doe a Deer” to you at least ten times and after each rendition you would tell him “Just one more time Daddy. This is the last time.”

Speaking of singing…you LOVE to sing. You never stop. Currently your favorite songs include “Royal” by Lorde, “Roar” by Katy Perry, “Can’t Hold Us” by Macklemore, and “Under the Sea” from The Little Mermaid. You request to listen to these songs multiple times on a daily basis and usually we oblige, because it makes you so blissfully happy.

You also love sweets. I think part of that is just a toddler thing…kids love sweets. But, I think part of it is just a Fern thing. While we were at Disneyland last week you had your first ice cream cone all to yourself and you were in absolute heaven. You also ate your first churro. You were equally pleased with it. I’m pretty sure you get your sweet tooth from me, but I also hope that you learn to like broccoli a bit more too as time goes on.

This year you showed us your love for animals. You pretty much want to cuddle any furry creature you come in contact with. I even created a hashtag for you called #fernhuggingcuteanimals on Instagram, because I had so many photos of you hugging cute animals! It makes me happy how much you love animals and sometimes I wonder if you’ll always have such a love for them. It will be fun to see. You also love animals of the stuffed variety and even though I swore I would never let you have a million stuffed animals, I gave that up long ago. You completely adore them and carry them around everywhere. You pretty much always have at least one doll or stuffed animal tagging along with you at a given moment. You also sleep with at least 10 stuffed animals every night…more often it’s closer to 20 and you sing them (and yourself) to sleep almost every night.

As this year has unfolded you have proven that you have quite a girly streak. You love pink and purple and sparkles. You’re also really into ballerinas. I’m not quite sure why, because it’s not something you’ve seen much of, but you like them nonetheless. I’m pretty certain you think anyone with a fancy dress is a ballerina though. When you wear twirly dresses you like to spin and tell me “Mama, I’m a ballina!” Lucky for you I’m learning to embrace more girly things too and have a special “ballina” skirt for you to wear on your birthday today. Just for you my love.

This year we have also learned that you are tenacious and determined. You always (ALWAYS) know exactly what you want and you have no problem letting your desires be known. You don’t mince words about it either. Many times you’ll wake up and the first thing out of your mouth is your breakfast order. No good morning Mama. Just “I manna eat Mickey Mouse pancakes.” It always makes me laugh. You are quick to tell us if you would prefer a different color, a different cup, or a different whatever, but typically you don’t do it in a whiny way. You’re very decisive and just ask for it.

You’re also really into reading people’s emotions. Just the other day we saw a little pug while we were out and you said, “Mama, doggy is sad. Be happy doggy!” You don’t like anyone to be sad. I actually think it makes you uneasy when one of us is unhappy. The other day Daddy was pretending to be sad when you wouldn’t share something with him and you got pretty upset about it. It’s nice to know you’re so in tune and perceptive to others already.

You have a silly, little spirit that we just love and a little laugh I adore. You have a raspy, throaty little chuckle that matches your little voice. I thought you would grow out of it by now, but it’s still around and it’s my favorite. I hope it lasts forever.

I could go on and on about all the things I have learned to love about you this year, but I’ll end by just saying that I am so thankful and blessed to be your mama. I can’t wait to enjoy this next year of adventures with you my sweet Fernie girl!

Happy birthday my two-year-old!

Love,

Mama