Two Years Old!

Julia turned two on December 12!! Two! Wow!

I have a gazillion pictures of her birthday and of her birthday party later that weekend, but I'll save that for another post.

Some recent Julia-isms:

•  Julia has gotten really good about saying, "No, thank you!" instead of just, "No!" But, it's pretty funny to hear her say that, especially when she looks upset and her voice is on the edge of tears and she's still saying, "No, thank you!" Also, when she's given a choice, she often doesn't like either option (i.e. "Do you want carrots or green beans?"), so instead of answering the question, she just says, "No, thank you!" She had a meltdown at one point in Wichita when she was supposed to be napping. She wanted milk, and we offered her water, to which she, through her loud crying, said, "No, thank you!" Aaron's cousin heard it on the baby monitor, and said, "That's the most polite tantrum I've ever heard!" Haha!
• Also in Wichita, we got doughnuts after mass and I was giving her pinches of icing and sprinkles, since she couldn't have doughnut (they have egg in them and she's allergic). I got distracted and stopped giving her sprinkles as often, so she started asking for, "Just a b*tch! Just a b*tch, mommy!" I was confused and horrified for a split second until I realized she was trying to say "pinch!" 
• When we were spending time with Aaron's family, we asked Julia if Stephen looked like daddy, and she said, "Yes!" Then, we asked her if daddy looked like Stephen, and she said, "No!" I guess in her mind, Daddy is the original! Haha!
• One time Julia was sitting on my lap and she started saying, "I cut the cheese! I cut the cheese!" I was so confused because a) I didn't smell anything and b) I wasn't aware she knew that expression. Then, she slipped from my lap and grabbed her toy cutting board, knife, and a fake slice of American cheese. 
• Julia sat on my legs recently that were badly in need of a shave, and she said, "Ew! That's itchy! I don't like that!"
• We were walking back from the playground one day, and Julia saw a plane in the sky. She enthusiastically started waving and saying, "Hi, Papa! Hi, Papa Gary!" which is typical for her, since she knows Grandpa Gary is a pilot. This time, though, she took it a step further. "Papa!" she called, "Will you come down and play with me?" We explained that if he were inthe plane, he'd need to keep working. Undettered, she called out, "Papa! I have a question for you! I have a question about Santa!"

 We love you, sweet Julia!