I love this age. I love the person you are and I never get tired of spending time with you. You laugh randomly and often and it's contagious. You started waving and saying "hi" to everyone you see, spreading joy wherever you go. You happily flip through books or play dress up most of your waking hours. You love kitties and Christmas trees. You look for airplanes when you hear them, even when we're inside. You are our water baby—we cannot take you near a body of water without you wanting to get in. You blow bubbles in the ocean and the bath. You love the beach and can play in the sand for hours.

Your language has exploded. You eagerly try new words or make up your own. Grandpa is "boppy," Your name for me has transformed from "mama" into "meowmy" or "mimi." You say your own name clear as a bell. You are wicked smart and very capable. You like to hang from the bars at the park—I call you "little monkey" and you say "ooh, ooh!" —and you always gravitate towards the swings.

Your grandparents can't get enough of you, and we're going to miss them when we fly back to California at the end of the week. You love going on walks and playing music with grandpa and feeding the chickens and with grandma. We are looking forward to traveling with them to France this summer! Next week we are going to start our second session of Music Together, and we'll be going to toddler play group two days a week, and open gymnastics once a week. You are active and social and learning more every day.

eleven // ten // nine // eight // seven // six // five // four // three // two // one