dear ellie,

today you are two years old, and it’s as if that magic number has transformed you from a baby into a big girl overnight. you now have two incredible, milestone-packed years under your belt, and the older you get, the more i adore you. i didn’t think it was possible to love you any more, to tell you the truth, but it is. it so is. and today we celebrate you.

two years ago you came screaming into the world and you changed me for good. but i’ve already told you that in letters like this. over the past year i’ve watched you evolve from a chubby little thing with roly-poly arms to a walking, talking, slimmed-down version of yourself.

your personality sparkles. from strangers to loved ones, you wave to everyone you see. you have a gorgeous smile, your mouth full of straight, white teeth. your blonde hair is long and fine and, to our delight, it still curls up at the end. your skin is fair and your eyes are like sapphires, deep and blue like the ocean. if i were to choose a favorite feature of yours, your eyes would be it.

you go to sleep every night without much to do, but you become restless. you sleep for a few hours and then you wake up crying. i come in and rub your back and you go back to sleep almost immediately. regardless of these disruptions, you are always in good spirits in the morning. one time recently when i went in your room to get you up, you whipped your head around and said, “hi, cutie!” i could have died right then and there.

i’m also still convinced you’re a genius. you know the difference between boys and girls, you find shapes in abstract objects i would never see, and you remember things from months ago. i know you’re a smart cookie, but you surprise me every day.

you warm up to new people so much faster than you used to. you adore our friends, your grandparents and all your aunties and uncles, and oh my goodness, do they adore you right back. you run and play and talk and laugh with them, and sometimes i even notice you showing off ;) you are the quintessential little princess and i couldn’t be more proud to be your mommy.

you discover new things wherever you go. you are constantly asking, “mommy, what’s that?” “mommy, where going?” and no matter how many times you ask the same question, i always try to give you an answer. the other day we were in the laundry room and the sun was shining through the window, illuminating the dust in the air. you asked what it was and i told you. your eyes lit up and you said, “it’s flying!” and then you tried to catch the dust in your hands. i hope you never stop wondering, that you always feel that drive to discover. i hope you have many great adventures.

if these letters serve any purpose, i hope they will be a testament to the depth of my love for you. i love you more than anyone or anything and i would do just about anything to make you happy, to keep you safe. thank you for being born and for blossoming into beautiful you.

happy 2nd birthday, my darling girl.

love,
mommy

it’s been a busy week. vacation is nice, but when bryn has control of the social calendar, it’s bound to be a jam-packed period of activity. thus, why we’re so late on some of this, like …

my mom’s birthday. it was last tuesday, october 12, and we knew exactly what we were going to do. despite the fact that we cook most nights, we wanted to make this an extra special meal. marination was in order and skirt steak was the target. i took to the internet for some guidance on how to make it taste good and found a nice, easy marinade recipe that turned out quite good.

unfortunately, we didn’t get a shot of the food like we usually do, but we did get a nice one of the cake bryn made, complete with star candles. it was really moist and delicious. trust me.

of course, no birthday would be complete if ellie didn’t get to blow out the candles. never mind that it wasn’t her birthday. that’s beside the point. she owns all candles, as in “candles by ellie™.”

not only did she get to blow out the candles, she was allowed to taste test the frosting. that was a mistake because it resulted in the toddler version of a person on uppers, but it did produce a really cute picture.

all in all, i think the night was quite the successful 55th birthday celebration.

happy birthday, mom. at 55-years-young you’re just as beautiful as ever.

we love you.

yesterday, in honor of the 29th anniversary of ryan’s birth, i played super housewife. sure, i usually take care of the grocery shopping and the cleaning and the laundry and the bulk of child-rearing, but yesterday i also COOKED. and BAKED. gasp!

“whatever, mom. big deeeeal.”

you see, while cooking may be a central part of the typical housewife’s daily routine, our family is different. we grill a lot, and ryan is the grill master. in fact, i’ve never barbecued a thing in my life. i’m sure i could — i just haven’t. and since we grill more than anything else, ryan is usually in charge of the main course. i pride myself on side dishes (i’m partial to pasta roni and steamed veggies, and i can make a pretty good salad), buuut that’s usually it.

so yesterday, since ryan worked from home, i decided to change things up a bit. i made him breakfast, lunch, dinner and dessert. i know, i know … i’m incredible.

breakfast was a concoction of eggs, bacon, cheese and country potatoes. the verdict? “delicious.” unfortunately i forgot to take a picture before ryan scarfed it down, but you can see it for yourself in your local grocer’s freezer, as it was made by a guy named jimmy dean. ha!

i worked a little harder on lunch. ryan’s favorite sandwich meat is salami, so i made sure to buy some during my last safeway trip. i also bought a french roll, his favorite chips – salt & vinegar lays (blech) – and his favorite soda – root beer. the good stuff. in a bottle. and i actually remembered to take a picture of this meal before it was devoured by the birthday boy.

then it was time to bake the cake. i planned to do it after i put ellie down for her nap, but thanks to good ol’ duncan hines, i didn’t have any trouble whipping it up with her by my side. i did, however, apply the frosting and sprinkles while she was asleep. it’s hard to be a perfectionist when a toddler wants to “help.”

appetizers for dinner were supposed to include salami & cream cheese rolls (they’re pretty much my favorite things ever) and steamed artichokes dipped in mayo (mmm, lard), but we decided the artichokes were enough. i put the potatoes in the oven promptly at five o’clock and poured myself a glass of carhartt sauvignon blanc (thanks, kevin!) while ryan enjoyed a bottle of fat tire, a far cry from his typical cheap can of coors light. he and shirley enjoyed their artichokes while i prepared the oven-baked fried chicken i had never made before.

i got the recipe for the chicken here, but i changed a few things. instead of whole chicken pieces with the skin on, i opted for boneless, skinless breasts. and instead of dried bread crumbs i used panko to make it crispier. i didn’t pay attention to the amount of mayo coating the recipe calls for, but i’m pretty sure i didn’t use an entire cup. you only need so much mayo to get powdery stuff to stick.

(how betty crocker do i sound right now?!)

i was going to steam the asparagus like i usually do, but i opted for this onion/wine glaze-drizzled, pan-cooked recipe instead. we didn’t have any parmesan cheese, which probably would have made it more flavorful, but it wasn’t bad at all.

of course i was too busy to remember to take a picture of the finished product(s) before we all dug in. luckily there were enough leftovers to make up a small plate for the camera.

we were too stuffed to eat cake immediately after dinner, but we wanted ellie to help ryan blow out the candles before bed, so we all gathered ’round the island and sang happy birthday. ellie’s always fascinated by people singing, especially as a group, so she loved it. so much, in fact, that she helped her daddy blow out the candles three times :)

playing super housewife for a day was fun, but i’d be overwhelmed and exhausted if i had to do it all, all the time. it just goes to show how lucky i am to have a super-involved husband who does all he can to make life easier for me. he really is the best there ever was <3

happy, happy 29th, my love!