Two

I’ve been so caught up in the girls that I haven’t been able to post anything recently. In a whirlwind of visiting relatives, birthday parties and colds, the Beans have entered their hopefully more terrific than terrible twos.

After celebrating their birthday on Labor Day with Daddy Bean’s side of the family, we had only a handful of days to recover and then welcome the arrival of my sisters and their brood. When A & A arrived, I think I only spent a minute here or there with the Beans, as they spent most of the long weekend at my parents’ house, reveling in the attention that they were receiving at the hands of my adoring sisters.

And did they revel.

They had no less than two slumber parties that week and really seemed bothered when I swooped in for a kiss or two.

On Friday, Aunt DaDa was my right hand man at their two year pediatric appointment. We prepared the Beans on the way to the appointment by reminding them how wonderful Dr. B. is and that she is sure to award them with a sticker for visiting her. Peanut took the bait and was pleasant and downright spunky during the checkup. Pie, on the other hand, bellowed red faced and irate throughout the checkup and not even with the help of the doctor could I peel her away from my hip.

The appointment went well and the Beans are doing fine, despite the lack of growth for Audrey. She is still way below the growth curve and although we’ve resigned ourselves to the fact that she’s just going to be a petite little bird, being the typical parents that we are, we are still a bit concerned that she is as tiny as she is. She really looks fragile, but her energy and hardiness really doesn’t reveal it in the least. So, we walk the line of feeding her whatever she wants, whenever she wants, and harboring the guilt of being the indulgent parent that tosses a cookie or cracker to her just to get her to eat.

Daddy Bean, wiser than I sometimes give him credit for, worries that she will, as most women are wont to, grow to have negative issues with food. I had never thought of it until he mentioned it and now I can’t stop thinking of it. So, I try to follow the doctor’s orders of feeding her good, but calorie dense, foods and at the same time I find myself biting my tongue whenever I fall into the usual trap of complaining about myself, what I’ve eaten and what I look like.

Later that evening, we celebrated Papa’s birthday at our favorite Chinese restaurant. The Beans, knowing what kind of audience they had, took advantage of this opportunity to foreshadow a bit of the “terrible twos” for the rest of us. As parents, J and I were horrified, while the aunts and uncles, cousin and grandparents sat amused and entertained.

Saturday was their big day. They turned two, but to them the last two weeks was their birthday! In fact, just the other day, when Gramma asked what they were doing last weekend, Maggie piped in, “Maggie’s birthday party!”

The Beans had a wonderful time and received more gifts than could fit into our little house. They stayed up way past their bedtime (to play with boys, no less!) and finally collapsed some time after 10:30 p.m., having lived it up to the fullest on their big day.

By last Monday, the last of my family flew back home and our household returned to normal. Since then, the Pie and I have weathered a nasty head cold and the Beans have discovered Play-Doh. When I tell people that playing with Play-Doh is a bit tiring, they give me such funny looks. But it is!

Thank you to our wonderful and generous family for making the Beans’ day so special!!

Filed under Life with a Bean |