Happy Birthday, Emily!

Enjoying homemade cupcake from her mommy.

Very seriously studying her new DVD.

Smiling as she checks out the gift from her friend, Kennedy.

Our not-so-successful attempt to get a photo of all the kids--still missing is Cooper, Hunter, Elizabeth and Jackson.

A rare photo opportunity with all of her aunts and uncles.

Playing with Daddy's hair while he makes silly faces!

The Reiss family

The Lee Family

Em's little boy cousins, Cooper and Hunter.

Having a rowdy, fun time!

Emily and Kennedy checking out the block in the new ride.

Our baby turned 2 on Monday! Where has the time gone? At her 2 yr. check-up, Emily weighed 27 lbs. 9 oz. and she is 34 1/4 in. tall (~75% height; 50% weight). She is showing steady, consistent growth and meeting her age appropriate milestones. Dr. Lehocky also noted that Emily tends to toe in a little when she walks and he says that he sees this very commonly in kids her age. He encouraged us to avoid W sitting, sit with crossed legs to stretch and once she starts using her legs for bicycling and other activities, the muscle imbalances work themselves out. He said her legs were strong and straight and that she has good muscle tone. Yeah!

Emily's vocabulary and talking have exploded! I look back at how much she has learned in just a few months time, and it is amazing. She speaks to us in sentences all the time. She can repeat most anything we say although some of the syllables may not be exactly right! Emily was really into her party this year. She saw me bringing home shopping bags of decorative items and picking out her cake. She knew we were up to something! After a few weeks of reminding her about the party, Emily would start asking, "Where's my parney?" [parney = party] Imagine her shock and dismay when we celebrated Aunt Jen's party first! (the day before her party.) She was so confused, but since Jen let her have cake and help open gifts, she was pretty happy. My favorite quote was, "Jenny took my parney!" and that was said with quite the pouty face! Love her heart. It was pretty funny.

We celebrated Emmy's 2nd birthday on Saturday Aug. 6th a couple of days early. It was such a joy to be able to host our entire immediate family. It is rare that Jen, Ed, and Elizabeth are in town and able to party with us. Also, Laura and Will may be returning to the IMB eventually so it was wonderful to have all the siblings, cousins, and grandparents here plus many other special friends! Emily loved the balloons, cake, cupcakes, presents--pretty much everything! Even now if she sees something party related, she asks me about the "parney." Hate to tell her that you only get one a year! Here's a few photos of our special day!