Miss Violet had a birthday!

Since I'm awake at 2:00 in the morning, what better time to report on Violet's second birthday?? Of course it happened clear back at the beginning of July, but let's not get picky. We spent her birthday in Utah, and I didn't really touch a computer for a couple of weeks so I never got around to sharing the glory that is Violet at two years old. Oh goodness. This girl is a firecracker. A very very sweet and loving firecracker, but a firecracker nonetheless. And I love her for it.

When we flew to Utah, it was just a few days before Violet's birthday and she was able to sneak in one last free flight as a lap child. This was awesome, except that we were running behind for our flight and I ended up sandwiched between two people who were married but didn't want to sit next to each other because one really wanted the aisle and one really wanted the window. It was too bad because at that point I was 24 weeks along and my belly had expanded enough that there really wasn't much lap left . . . especially for a lap child who was basically a big old two-year-old. And forget about putting the tray table down or even attempting to get anything that was down on the floor--an aisle seat would have been my saving grace. Definitely an uncomfortable flight all around, but it was also really nice to have a few hours where Violet had my undivided attention and we just got to play, read, and snuggle with no other distractions.

And then the big birthday! We were at my sister Emily's house. It started out bright and early because Violet was still running on PA time, so it was just the two of us for a couple of hours. Somehow it didn't seem right to force the birthday girl to hang out in her crib (even though I knew she was tired), and she was also so dang cheerful and ready to celebrate a new year. We had a nice leisurely breakfast and she got to play with her two (!) new birthday balloons before going outside to play in the yard for a while. Later in the day we went swimming, and Violet was of course in heaven. Watching V and her cousin Lissy (three months younger) at the same time was quite the challenge, even in the kiddie pool, because they were both basically on suicide watch the whole time. No fear in the water and also totally incapable of keeping themselves alive on their own. We all had a blast.

Another great thing about Violet's birthday was that a lot of my family was able to come for dinner and cake to celebrate with us. After not seeing anyone in the family for nearly seven months (and some of them for over a year!), it was so great to hang out with everyone and have the girls enjoy all of their cousins, grandparents, and aunts and uncles again.

My sister Kristen made an AMAZING birthday cake that made both of the girls gasp with excitement. You see, Violet has three great loves in her life, affectionately known as Purple, Orange, and Blanket (or Ganket, as she said back on her birthday). We generally limit them to the crib, but she always sleeps with these two bears and a purple fuzzy blanket that she fell in love with when she was only five months old. She really was crazy excited to see them in cake form and just couldn't get over it. We had also remembered to teach her how to blow out candles, so she was in fine form when it came time for singing and cake and she loved every minute of it. She has been singing "Happy Birthday" nonstop for about three months now.

Oh, I love my little Violet. From the moment she was born, she has been absolutely sweet and loving and affectionate. She's always ready to cuddle and give hugs and kisses. She also started talking at a really young age, so by now she says anything in the world that she wants and gets out some pretty complex ideas and sentences. I still can't get over hearing the things that come out in her tiny little voice, and I love that she's always willing to try and attempt something, even when it's not perfect yet. I know she's my girl because she loves to read and eat, and I know she's Dave's girl because she will happily accept peanut butter or cheese at any time of day or night. She recently declared her favorite food to be EGGS!

Violet also loves music and dancing. She has a really good ear for music and can carry a tune like no other, and she's pretty much always singing something. She especially loves "You Are My Sunshine" right now. Yes, it's safe to say that I'm still smitten with Miss Violet. She is very two and has fierce and passionate tantrums, but she's also so full of light and excited about the world. Love this baby girl!