Dear Hadley,
Monday you turned thirty-two months old. And since you never miss a beat, you will probably have noticed I never got around to writing your thirty one month letter. I’ll be honest, the month got away from me. We were super busy making sure you had the best possible time, filling every minute with adventures, momentous occasions, and puppy kisses. So I am sure you will find it in your heart to forgive me.
Even though it’s summer time, I am doing my best to keep you on your regular routine. You are still taking a ballet class, going to Gymboree, and keeping up with our regular play groups. And man do you look forward to the activities that are geared toward YOU. You love that you have classes to attend, schedules to follow, and places to be. Anytime we drive by the Cedar Hills Rec Center (where you take dance) you always point out the window and shout, “Look! There’s my school!” with pure pride.
The big news last month was our new puppy, Lucy. You and Lucy have bonded in a way I never expected. I didn’t think you’d like the fact that you were no longer the baby in the house, but you simply adore her. Maybe it’s that you two are the littlest, maybe it’s that you are both blondes, whatever it is, it’s adorable. You are always looking out for her, playing with her, and even though she will (VERY) quickly be bigger than you, it’s obvious that you guys are best buds.
You want to be involved in every aspect of Lucy, from potty training, teaching her to walk on a leash, or even just playing, as you call it, Tug-A-Rope. If Lucy pauses at the door and even starts to utter a wimper, you throw open the sliding glass door, walk her outside (often in your pajamas and without shoes, but whatever) and before I have even slipped on my shoes I hear you cheering, “Good girl, Lucy! Good potty!” I think I owe a lot of her potty training success to your doting behavior. Now if only you would show as much interest in your OWN potty training, that would be impressive.
But that isn’t to say that you ALWAYS like Lucy to be around. As with any best friend, you often need time apart. And you are quick to tell Lucy to go away (with your words, or just by pushing her away if it comes to that) if you need some space. We also found out that you don’t deal with watching Lucy eat or seeing her poop. Both events will cause you to instantly start dry heaving, and if we aren’t able to distract you in time, you will vomit. Yeah. We learned that one the hard way.
Last month our family went to the Tigard Festival of Balloons. We got up at the crack of dawn to watch the balloons launch in the morning and stuck around to check out a few of the balloons. We waited in the Longest. Line. Ever. but your patience was rewarded because you were able to actually go up in a hot air balloon! It was tethered to the field, so the risk was minimal, but the experience was beyond anything you can imagine. I wasn’t sure how you would react to being that far off the ground, but you just looked around in amazement with the biggest smile plasted across your face. Needless to say it was an amazing day.
Last week was the 4th of July, which in our house, reaches a level of excitement on par with Christmas. Since the weather was perfect, we were able to go to the beach, play in the sand, jump around in the waves, roast marshmallows, then relax around the campfire as the fireworks explode over the ocean in front of us. Yeah. It’s as perfect as it sounds.
It’s already been a fun-filled couple months, and the summer is only just beginning. We have many adventures ahead of us, experiences to treasure, milestones to meet, and love to be shared. I am so happy that we are blessed to have the life we do, where we are able to spend so much time together as a family. No matter what is ahead of us, as long as you are by my side, I know everything will be perfect.
All my love,
Mama
