Larkyn turns TWO!

Throughout the day today, I have been reminiscing about this day two years ago.  I had no idea that Larkyn was going to be born the next day, two weeks before her due date!  As I write this post, I think about how two years and four hours ago I would wake up, realize my water had broken, and begin the exciting journey of having three kids.

Whenever I think of Larkyn, the first word that comes to mind is BLESSING.  From her happy, contented, easygoing nature as a newborn, to her easy smiles as a baby, to her contagious smiles as a toddler, and now her exuberant personality that makes her siblings laugh - she has brought smiles to our family since the day she was born.  I am so grateful God chose to give us Larkyn Emery as our third little blessing.

As she is about to turn TWO, I note that she is an extremely talkative little girl.  Strangers comment about her, as although she young (and tiny!), she speaks clearly enough for strangers to understand her, in sentences, and with the expressions and inflections of her older brother and sister.  She will talk to anyone and answer their questions about her name, and how she is ("good") and offer further information about who else is with her, what she is doing, and any other information she feels like sharing.  I love to hear her singing in the backseat of the car, chatting with her siblings, and making them laugh!  She intentionally will do silly faces, actions, or phrases to get a reaction or a laugh out of her siblings and it works.  She especially gets huge belly laughs out of her big brother Colton! Colton sweetly shares his toys with her and will be the first to run to get Larkyn her favorite blankie whenever she asks for it.  Larkyn looks up to Summer and will ask Summer to play doll house with her, read her books, and to sit on her lap.  Summer, in turn, loves her big sister role with Larkyn and enjoys sweetly mothering her :).  Paul nicknamed Larkyn "Lark-i-nut Coconut" after our favorite parrot at the zoo and Larkyn just LOVES it when Paul calls her that, and will ask for it over and over!  I love her little lingo, such as calling all bugs "buzzy bees" and when asked if she needs help will always reply, "I'm good" or "I got it".  She makes me smile all the time!

Larkyn is very independent and wants to buckle her own seat belt, put on her own clothing/shoes (as much as she is able).  She is very stubborn at times about going potty, and strongly dislikes public toilets.  She will hold her potty for hours, choosing not to go on toilets she doesn't like, and then go as soon as we get home on the potty at our house.  While she does still have accidents, she is mostly potty trained during the day, and wakes up from most naps dry, although we still diaper her for nightime sleep.  She loves jewelry, having a bow in her hair, and having her nails painted.  She loves books, dollhouse, playing in the toy kitchen, and doing anything outside.  She is doing very well in swimming lessons and has been the easiest kid of my three to adjust to getting her eyes wet (without any tears!).  She generally does a great job of sharing toys with her siblings.  Her battles often come with eating, if she doesn't want to finish the food in front of her before getting more, however she has improved dramatically in the last two months in this area and has not had to take a "bumbo-timeout" during dinner in quite a while!  She sleeps with her doggie, ellie, puppy, and blankie each night and will cry if something that isn't "supposed" to be in her bed is found in there (things need to go back where they are supposed to go!).  For the most part (if she is not in a testing mood!) does a great job cleaning her room or the living room when asked.  She has enjoyed the word NO a lot lately, but again, has been improving so much in this area as well, and despite being in a period of testing, is actually quite obedient for an almost two year old (granted, she has crossed the line and not appreciated the consequences, and that has generated a quick learning curve!). 

Presents are wrapped, decorations are out, and we are so excited to celebrate our youngest tomorrow!  It was fun to let her pick her paper goods (Princess Sofia) and frosting color (purple) and see what she would choose!  We plan to make some of her favorite foods for a big celebration breakfast tomorrow (french toast, eggs, bacon, and strawberries), open presents, and then hit the road to be at my parents' cabin for the 4th of July.  She chose corn on the cob and watermelon ("not cut"/big kid style) to have with her cupcakes tomorrow evening at the cabin, where we will sing to her.  We will also have hotdogs and macaroni and cheese, two other favorite foods of hers.  She has been talking about her birthday and how she will blow the candles out, and I am really excited to watch her enjoy her day after she intently watched Colton celebrate his birthday in April.   Two is such a fun age!  Larkyn's celebration will continue in the coming weeks as we have her kids party next Friday (the 8th) at the splash pad and her "Sisters" extended family birthday celebration with Summer on August 4th.  There will be lots of celebrating coming up, and I will update the blog with pictures/video after we return home from our 4th of July celebrating :).

My prayer for Larkyn this next year is that she would trust Jesus as her Savior at an early age, that she would learn to love his Word that we read daily together before nap, that she would learn to walk in His ways, and that she would be a light to the world, bringing glory to HIS name and others into his kingdom.  I also pray for godly friends, teachers, and someday a spouse to encourage her to walk in His ways.  And WHENEVER I pray for this little girl I can't help but end with a huge THANK YOU to the Lord for the incredible blessing Larkyn is to me and to our family.   I am smitten by our little Larky-Loo.  We love you sweetheart!