T minus 1 month

I haven't been paying much attention to the date lately - with baby Owen I just keep thinking in terms of number of weeks since may 6th. But yesterday I noticed it was may 26 and it hit me- my little girl will be 2 in only one short month. I can't believe how fast the past year has flown by. It was an amazing year of growth and discovery, fun and laughter and so much amazement and pride at the kind of little girl Maya is becoming. She cracks us up- she has such a great sense of humor and she really uses it to make people smile and laugh. Some of my favorite examples from the past year:

1. Part of her bedtime routine is pulling the chain on her bear that plays a lullabye. A few months ago - she started reaching for the chain, but would pull her hand away playfully and giggle, pulling our chain!

2. When she was starting to learn her numbers, she would count 1...2... 5! We couldn't tell if she was purposely messing up or if she just really thought 5 cane after 2, but she loved how much it made us laugh when she did it!

3. When her great uncle came to visit, he would make lots of funny faces for maya. Weeks after he left, she still loved making her 'funny uncle' face

Maya has also just gotten smarter and smarter in the past year. She can sing almost the whole alphabet song, and she can recite a lot of her favorite books. She also is super perceptive, and has great emotional intelligence. She is so caring, and loved taking care of her friend August when he was over. 

A lot of the last year was about preparing for owen's arrival. Maya was excited the whole time I was pregnant, kissing and hugging my belly, saying good morning to the baby and asking for the baby to talk to her. And even after he was born, she still adored him, giving him numerous hugs and kisses a day. He is one loved little boy!

I'm so excited to Celebrate Maya's second birthday in a month. I'll miss her as a baby, but can't wait to see how she'll continue to amaze us!