Happy Half Birthday Isabelle!

May 19th Isabelle turned 2 and 1/2! Since it was her special day, we got to do whatever she wanted. We started the morning off with a movie and popcorn, that was followed by an outing to the park and then we went swimming at my mom's. Of course we played dress-ups and she changed her clothes at least 10 times, without me getting annoyed. We finished the night off with Chick-fil-A for dinner, Isabelle's favorite. Although I didn't make her a cake this year, she was content blowing out one of my candles over and over.

Here's a little peak into life with Isabelle:

Isabelle loves routine- she always wants to do things in the same order.

e.g. When I put her to bed at night there are 5 songs I have to sing and they have to be in a certain order.

Isabelle loves wearing dresses and every time she puts one on she tells me "no shorts!"

Isabelle is finally eating veggies! This is a HUGE improvement. So far she will eat carrots and trees, otherwise known as broccoli. They have to be raw and she has to have ranch to dip them in. The other day she ate a bite of a tomato and actually swallowed it! Slowly but surely she is starting to eat her veggies!

Isabelle loves popcorn- and she has to do it herself. She climbs up on the counter, puts the bag in the micro and pushes all the buttons herself. She is always so proud of herself and says, "I did it!"

Isabelle also loves apples, she eats at least 3 a day!

We just finished a four week course of swim lessons at the YMCA with Isabelle. While she loves to play in the pool, she hates not being able to touch the bottom. It was a big struggle, with lots of crying and screaming. Every time she would try and make up some kind of excuse to get out of the pool like "I'm tired Momma" or "I need to go potty." Funny thing is every time when she got out of the pool she would tell me "I had fun!" Really? Well, she still can't swim, but we are going to keep working on it at my mom's pool.

Isabelle is very independent. She loves to do everything "by myself!"

Isabelle has been potty trained both day and night for 9 months now. She now takes herself to the bathroom without telling us she has to go. We are so proud of her. We are still working on her wiping herself, it seems she either uses too little or too much toilet paper.

Isabelle loves movies and dress-ups. She insists on wearing the outfit that goes with whatever she is watching. All the way down to the shoes.

Isabelle loves to sing. She recently learned the ABC song and sings it all the time. Sometimes she even does a punk rock version of the ABC's. I'm not sure where she got that from.

Isabelle never stops talking. I am amazed with her vocabulary and sentence structure, both in English and French and how she can say whatever is on her mind. She tends to speak more English, but when you ask her how to say something in French she can tell you and she understands it perfectly.

Isabelle ADORES her sister! She always comes running to see Anya whenever she gets up from a nap. She loves to smother her with hugs and kisses.

Isabelle is a little copy cat! In the morning when Isabelle wakes up I always say "Good morning Isabelle, did you sleep well?" Isabelle: "Yeah." Me: "Oh, good!" So now whenever Anya gets up, whether in the morning or after a nap, Isabelle says, "Good morning Anya! Did you sleep well? Oh, good!" It is too cute.

Isabelle always wants to know the plans for the day. When I get her dressed in the morning she always asks me "Where we go momma?" Once I tell her the plans there is no canceling, she remembers all day and will remind me if we haven't done something yet. Who needs a planner when you have Isabelle around?

In three weeks we are going to Hawaii! Like the rest of us, Isabelle is so excited. Every day she talks about the big plane and then the big boat we are going to get on. She also talks about the fish she is going to see and the waterfalls. It should be exciting, but I'm not looking forward to the plane ride with two little ones. At least Isabelle will have her own seat this time.

Mother's Day! I feel like the most blessed mom in the world to have my two little girls!

My mom out for a stroll with the girls.

Isabelle loves to cuddle with her sister.

Happy half birthday Isabelle, we love you!