2 Years Old

Newborn Bria

1 year old Bria

2 year old Bria

The last 2 years of our lives have been flipped upside down, shaken, and stirred. I think back to the first couple weeks of Bria's life and remember how scared I was. Scared that something was going to happen to her, scared that I wasn't doing things right, scared that we'd never sleep again, scared that she would always cry, scared that I was a horrible mom.

But I also remember being completely and utterly enamored with our precious newborn baby. She was part Brian, part me, and 100% amazing. I was obsessed with watching her every second of the day, which is why we rarely left Bria with anybody, I thought it was my responsibility to know what she did every minute of the day. I didn't want to miss a thing. I remember her very first laugh, Brian and I thought it was the most magical sound we had ever heard and from then on it was our mission to hear that laugh as much as possible.

I remember that first summer with her and how I spent many of my days in the living room with her on a blanket while she talked and played. Sometimes we'd go in the backyard and she'd sit on a blanket out there and laugh while MJ ran around like a crazy dog.

Time kept flying by as we got to bring her to her first Beaver tailgator and dress her up in orange and black, we loved showing her off. Then came her first Christmas and I could barely sleep I was so excited. I loved watching her "open" presents and play with the tissue paper for long periods of time before realizing there was a toy in there.

Then came her first birthday. Such a huge milestone, we made it through the first year of parenthood! Bria wasn't quite walking yet and still didn't have much hair, but her blue eyes and big belly were irresistible. I remember thinking how smart she was (such a mom!) and so proud of my little girl.

Her second summer we went to the park a lot more and went swimming a lot too. Her hair turned even more blond and her skin a beautiful brown. I liked that she finally had a routine, she was taking 1 nap a day and sleeping for almost 2 hours. She always slept well at night (besides teething and sickness) and I was so grateful for that. It was a great summer and I felt confident as a Mom and loved the age she was at, she learned so much everyday and was talking up a storm. I loved that we could communicate with each other.

We made our big move up to Portland shortly after summer ended and it took awhile to adjust. Bria's second Christmas was a lot of fun and it was a blast watching her open presents. She didn't take a nap for 3 days straight and although it stressed me out (what's new) she did great. She loved all her presents and the next week was spent breaking them all in.

Now here we are, celebrating her 2nd birthday and I cannot even imagine what this next year of her life will bring for us.

To say Bria is the light of our world is an understatement. We absolutely adore her and kiss her constantly. She makes us laugh all the time with her animated expressions and crazy quotes. I'm not sure I've ever seen a little girl be so dramatic at such a young age. When she is happy she is beyond silly and she lights up a room. When she is sad/mad she is on the ground acting like the whole world is coming to an end. I guess I would be to blame for her dramatic ways, oops.

I am so genuinely proud of my daughter, she is so caring and grateful and I am just so incredibly proud of who she is. I love Bria so much and can't thank God enough for sending her to us, she is our biggest blessing and we love her to the moon and back.

Happy 2nd birthday my sweet Bria girl.

I'll love you forever,

I'll like you for always,

as long as I'm living

my baby you'll be.