Two is Terrific!

January 9th Leah turned 2-years-old. She has been practicing for a while so she makes a really good 2-year-old. Her actual birthday happened when we were visiting my sister in Pennsylvania. My sister has five boys ranging from 8 to 16 and Leah thought they were all awesome! She bonded most with the 8-year-old who she affectionately calls "Mate Dogg" (supposed to be Nate Dogg since his name is Nate). It was Nate's baptism that brought us there in the first place.
Mate Dogg seemed to be a family favorite since all it took to entertain Andrew was Mate Dogg and a shipping box.
Back to Leah's birthday, my sister decorated everything in pink streamers and balloons and Leah even got her very own Yo Gabba Gabba birthday cake which she loved so much she did not want to eat it. Her favorite present at Jennifer's was easily her princess purse. The picture says it all.When we got back to Washington, she had another party with her peeps here.The theme was Twinkle Twinkle Little Star - lots of stars, lots of yellow. We had a few games including an obstacle course that was a big hit. Kelsey and I made a seascape out of construction paper for a fishing game which I think is pretty much my best piece of art to date. I will be busting this thing out for many more birthdays to come. "But Mom, I'm sixteen!" "Shutup, we're playing the fishing game - look how creative this seascape is!!!"Here are some facts and tidbits about Leah now that she is 2-years-old:
She is three feet tall exactly, weighs 31.2 pounds and wears a size 8 shoe.
She has long thick hair that cooperates very well with being curled, straightened, braided, and more
She can sing the following songs completely by herself: Twinkle Twinkle and Row Row Row Your Boat
She loves to do the actions and sing most words to about a million other songs including Sunbeam, Eensy Weensy Spider, Old MacDonald, Snowman, Teapot, and many many many more
She has absolutely NO sweet tooth whatsoever and will take only a bit or two of anything sweet
On the other hand she loves salty snacks like salt and vinegar chips, extreme cheddar Goldfish, Pirate's Booty and more
She can walk three miles without asking to be picked up
We have yet to meet anyone (except Paul's Mom) who says they have seen a toddler with as much energy as she has
Despite her wild personality, she is the sweetest big sister you can imagine. She is tender and sweet with Andrew and has yet to do anything (intentionally) agressive to him...ever!
She shares a room with her brother and sleeps through his fussing without stirring
She can count to 12 and identify all the numbers in print
She knows her colors
She loves to jump and climb
She has a major crush on "Twist" from the Fresh Beat Band and gets embarrased when he smiles directly into the camera (which she must think he is doing for her)
She loves to play "Dance Central" with her parents on Kinect and imitate their moves

And last but not least....she is loved and adored by her family!!!