Phoebe and Valentine's Day

This past Sunday we celebrated Phoebe's 2nd birthday! I feel like we've had her forever, so it seems like she should be older. Maybe it's denial - another year of 2?!  She had no idea what a birthday was, even though we kept telling her all day that she was now "Phoebe 2!" (Whenever we ask her what her name is, she answers "Phoebe 1!")  I tried to make certain things for her special that day. During the girls nap time, Logan and I had blown up a bunch of balloons, so when Phoebe came downstairs, her eyes nearly popped out of her head. She has a passion for balloons. When Gwen came down to join her, they made up their own game of catch and played for a good hour while I finished prepping for the party. We had a fun party with the whole family which greatly excited Gwen. She was talking about seeing everyone for days. But as soon as they arrived, Phoebe naturally clammed up and wouldn't say a word. In fact, she clung to her daddy for a while until she got used to all the attention. (My girls are such opposites, it's unreal.) During the party, she opened up a bit more, I think. She loved every gift she got. She's been playing with them nonstop for two days straight, and hasn't gone back to her "old toys" yet. Maybe this means I can pack up more of their stuff. I hate all the clutter!

We certainly love our precious, petite Phoebe. She brings so much laughter to our family and does something new and hilarious every day that gets us talking. (This morning, for example, she woke up at 6:30, and instead of crying, she yelled out, "Mommy! Help!! I'm awake!") I can't imagine our family without her. She completes us perfectly.

Yesterday, for Valentine's Day, we didn't do much since we did so much the day before. But the girls did get large stuffed Valentine's Day animals which thrilled them to no end. I presented them at nap time, almost as a bribe to keep them in their room. Didn't really last long, though. Phoebe was sure Gwen would steal her "doggy pup" and kept screaming whenever she got close. To make the day even more special, Logan got off work super early to take an assessment for a potential job, so we were all excited to have him home hours early. Because of the lack of rest, Phoebe was out by 7:00. I prepared a late dinner out of habit, but when Gwen saw her beans and cheese in her bowl, she said, "I am NOT eating" and left the table. Today we didn't fight with her, so Logan and I had a little dinner date in our own kitchen. Then the girls went to bed, and we cuddled on the couch and watched some Psych. It was a good day.

I didn't take many pictures at the party, but here are a few in case you didn't see them on facebook.

The birthday girl! Two years old, can you believe it?

Posing pretty with her daddy. I was very proud of Gwen for not ripping Phoebe's presents open as soon as she saw them. Then again, we did bring them down when she was miraculously passed out on the couch.

 Clinging to daddy because there were people in her house. She's wearing an adorable Minnie Mouse hat her grandma made her. She was getting jealous of Gwen's homemade Grandma hat, so she got her own too!

Opening presents. She kept that hat on for a long time.

She loves puppies. She was enthralled with her walking furry puppy.

This pic is kinda blurry. But it shows how nicely Phoebe can share all her toys!

I hope everyone had a nice Valentine's Day with their special ones!