Happy Birthday Riley!!!

Two days ago, Riley Mae turned 2 years old! Wow, how time flies.

She is only two, but at times, she seems 10. I cannot believe how much a toddler knows, or is capable of learning & understanding. Seeing her blossom into this beautiful, loving, playful little girl has been such a joy. I get comments from other people telling me that she is “the happiest little girl” they have ever seen. Hearing those things is such a blessing. I have seen Riley at her worst, & it is so tough…it breaks my heart sometimes; but I have also seen her at her best (which I choose to believe is her true self) & she is so full of joy, creativity, smarts, & a love for life that it is truly inspiring. I never had little brothers or sisters, & I never spent time with little kids growing up…so I had know idea how to handle a baby, how to care for them or how to ensure they are developing well as a toddler. She is teaching me so much about who I am, what I am capable of, what children are capable of, who & what are important in life, & which direction I want my life to head. Thank you Riley, for being my little angel.


Here are her latest & greatest quirks & Rileyisms:

• She can pray by herself & she even prayed at church on stage with daddy holding the microphone.
• Loves taking walks. She will stop often to point at things, play with leaves, hug the trees & lampposts, & always puts leaves in one of the mailboxes we pass by. (Check out the Gibson’s blog for a very sweet, very beautiful description of Riley walks.)
• When she thinks something is funny or somebody laughs, she says, “funny?”
• After really sneezing, she will fake sneeze, so you will say “bless you” & then she will laugh. This may be her first joke.
• Not only does she love to dance, but she also loves to sing along with music she knows & the Backyardigans.
• She started giving great big, meaningful hugs. She will smile & squeeze you tight.
  She gives kisses too.
• She counts down “3…2…1” when she wants something (like to run, be swung around, to be picked up, etc.)
• She can count to 10.
• She is learning colors & knows red, blue, pink, green & brown. She seems to kind of know purple & yellow too.
• She says phrases like, “Ready, set, go!” and “Hey, ho, let’s go!”
• She started understanding possessive nouns. She will say an item & then who it belongs to.