Julia is TWO!

How time has flown! And now Julia is two years old! It seems like yesterday . . .
So, you may be asking - What is Julia doing now? She can count (it depends on the day how far she wants to go, but we know she can go to at least ten), she knows her letters and can sing the alphabet song (some parts are still pretty slurred, but she knows what she's singing), she can climb up into her high chair by herself (that was an interesting event when it first happened, let me tell you - I am making her dinner, come around the corner to put her in it, and boom - she's already sitting there waiting, pleased as punch), and being a big helper - she enjoys making messes and then helping to clean them up (she really does help with cleaning). At school, she's known as the sweet girl - it is true, she is sweet, but she also has a puckish devilishness that she displays quite frequently with us, whether it's tackling Sissy, or that look in her eyes before she does something silly, she definitely has something going on in there.
Julia's birthday was pretty low-key - it had been a really hectic week for everyone, so the actual day was family time and going out to Red Robin - this is one of the few restaurants where we can actually get her to eat something substantial, so it was the logical choice; besides, the burgers are awesome :-) Saturday was her party, which was a pretty good time, as far a the guests were concerned, but Julia is going through a phase of being very shy when very many people are around, so despite seeing Nana, she was very much Daddy's girl (and Mommy's, when Mommy could take a break from hostessing). This phase, too, shall pass - it's just a little tough on us parents who want Julia to feel connected to her extended family. She spent a lot of time sitting with Daddy playing with his iPad (P-Pad, in her words), but finally started warming up a bit towards the end, when she asked to see "The Lion King" - this and "Kung Fu Panda" are her favorite films and we see both of them at least 3-5 times a week. Oh yeah - that's another thing: she's very much into certain programs and movies now, so the phase of our television viewing being dominated by the youngster has begun in earnest!
So, that's the update for January and photos from her 2nd birthday - stay tuned for more from our toddler! She's growing faster that we know how to comprehend!