Dear Mary,

One of my favorite times of the day is when I get to come into your bedroom in the morning to get you. Sometimes you are still asleep and I get to rub your back and watch you sleep for a moment before waking you up. Other times you get right up and reach for me to pick you up. When I get you in my arms you put your head on my shoulder and hang on to me really tight. It is a moment that I always look forward to and cherish. I know the days are coming where you will get up on your own. This morning I walked into your room and it was still dark outside so I couldn't see you. I heard you roll over and start to stand up. When I reached the crib I felt you standing there reaching for me to pick you up. When I did, just like any other morning, you held on tight and put your head on my shoulder. I stopped for a moment and just held you because today is your birthday. My sweet little baby girl is turning two today. I know that these morning moments will be non-existent sooner rather than later. The morning will come that you will just wake up all by yourself and come out of your room all dressed and ready to go.

Mary, our little "Bear", I can't believe that you are 2 years old today! I miss you being a little baby, but I absolutely LOVE watching you grow and learn new things. You are very sharp and you catch on really quickly. You amaze us everyday and you definitely keep us on our toes. Yes, little Mary you are a challenge these days. I'm pretty sure that if you opened a dictionary to look up "Terrible Twos" there would be a picture of you! :) The only thing is that you have been like that since you were born! I always said that I would never rock my baby to sleep, but we did with you. We also said that we would never have a movie player in our car, but we did when you came along. You have this way about you and your Daddy and I are total suckers for you. Some days you have really great days and other days are really REALLY tough. You are very extreme with your emotions. You are either totally upset and you want the world to know or you are 100 % invested in being a happy and loving little girl. I love it when you are happy because your smile can light up a room.
Mary, we had your birthday party last weekend. Daddy and I got you and "Bubba" a bouncy house for the weekend and invited all your cousins and friends over. You had such a great night and knew that everybody was there for you. You stayed up really late because you were wired. Your Grammy and Grandma bought you clothes and they had to get you 3T! I put a pair of your new pants on you last night and they fit perfect! You are our big girl!

Mary, you have a sweet tooth and you like to sip Coke from your Daddy's cup. You started calling it "Burp" because it always makes you burp. You are addicted to Popsicles and they always make you happy. You are in love with your "Bubba" except when he tried to play with your toys. You like to make him squirm because you know that he would never hurt you. The other day I walked into the room and you were literally standing on him. He was screaming at you to get off and you were just laughing. You love Pasta and apples. You love it outside. You recently discovered Strawberry Shortcake and you like the way it smells. Every morning we pass a farm on our way to Mrs. Melissa's house and you love to say "Hi" to the horses. You like to talk on the phone and you will often bring me my phone and say, "Mom", or "Daddy". I will call them and put the phone on speaker and you will babble to them. You LOVE to dance! Girl, you LOVE to sleep! I LOVE this about you. We can put you down at 9:00 and have been known to sleep until 11:00 the next morning! You totally get this from me.

Mary, I could write all day about how much I love you. It's a bitter sweet day today because my sweet baby girl is growing up and becoming more and more independent everyday. I love the fire that you have in you. My hope for you is that you use it to your advantage and you use it to go after everything that you want out of life. I am so excited to see what you do and who you become as you grow. At the same time I would be happy if you stayed my little girl forever. I hope, in a way, you will. I hope that we are close as you grow up and that you always feel like you can talk to me about anything. I promise I will do my best to listen and give you good advice. I hope you can always depend on me and Daddy to be there for you and "Bubba".

Sweet little baby girl, Happy 2nd Birthday today! You make Daddy and I so happy and we are so in love with you!
Love,
Mama