– Dear Atlas: Year Two –

By chelsea | September 26, 2018 9 Comments

dear atlas,

you are two years old!

between the time when you turned one through now, your development has been explosive! it’s been so fun (and soooo much better than when you were a newborn).

you started walking around 15 months and i honestly believe it’s because you were more focused on learning than walking. you have always been an observant baby and now the world fills you with even more curiosity. also, way to be potty-trained before your second birthday – high five girl!

you started ‘school’ a few days after you turned one. the adjustment was hard at first but now you absolutely love it. you get excited when we sing our going to school song and now you like to tell us about all your friends.

daddy traveled a lot at the beginning of 2018 (i’m talking like, he was home 16 days over the course of three months). so you and i girl, we spent some quality time together. we started going to story-time at our local library, even walking there when it got warm enough.

moments were hard, especially when you had continuous ear infections from about your first birthday until your ear tube surgery in february. you did miss a few trips with us and we sure did miss you! you were brave though and now you are much happier, less whiny and your ears don’t even have to pop on airplanes now!

that being said, you ventured multiple places around the USA as well as england and scotland this year! we leave for germany and switzerland on thursday!

me and daddy had to work for about three weeks in australia and new zealand. you alternated time with all your grandparents and you absolutely loved it! always be grateful for the unique people that love and support you.

you are an outside girl and love watching bees buzz and ants crawl! you especially love to ‘chalk’ with daddy in our driveway. whenever we leave the house, you make sure you say bye-bye to all the drawings on the pavement. you like to smell flowers and lay on your back to look at airplanes.

you are very nurturing. you put your animals and baby dolls to sleep by covering them with a blanket and patting their backs (like i do to you). when i got stung by a bee, you gave me elise, your most prized lovey. then you checked my heart with your stethoscope. i hope you continue to show compassion and nurture those around you always.

you are also empathetic, much like me. the first time we watched ‘the secret life of pets,’ you hysterically cried when the cat knocked her food bowl over. i’m talking, hard cry. when you see me cry, you start to cry too. this doesn’t make you weak. it makes you strong. the ability to empathize with others is a superpower and our world needs more of it.

you like to talk. you always have! as young as seven months, i remember you saying HI! to anyone and everyone. over the past year, your language has skyrocketed! at about 19 months, you started to string words together and now you say 7-10 word sentences. it’s absolutely amazing and inspiring to watch you get smarter literally by the day!

you know your whole ABCs and also love singing “baa baa black sheep,” “i am mooooana” and “purple rain!”

you are also in the habit of calling me “mama chelsea!” when you’re trying to get my attention. your daddy finds this hilarious and encourages it.

you are fully two. it’s frustrating and hard on us sometimes because you go from 0-90 in one second. we also remind ourselves that it’s part of your development. you are learning to express yourself and feeling BIG emotions for the first time in your life.

for instance, you wanted to put a towel on your head like me after my shower. you noticed yours was backwards, so i changed it. then you decided you actually wanted my purple towel, but it was wet and i said no. then you were fine (after a wardrobe change).

for the most part though, you are very happy and will randomly exclaim, “mama, i’m happy!” which melts me to my core.

you are silly and have the best smile! you are such a girly-girl, i find it quite hilarious. your favorite colors are pink and purple. you adore accessorizing (photo below was on picture day and you wanted ALL bows in your hair). you love your purses and jewelry!

i’d say you’re currently equal parts a daddy’s girl and mama’s girl! you have moments when daddy has to do everything and you tell me to stay in the house. then the reverse happens. also remember that you have the most thoughtful, kind and daddy who loves you more than ever. you bring him so much joy and happiness, i love watching you two together!

you love animals, especially gorillas, monkeys, giraffes, hawks, owls and all dogs. you ask if we can go to do the zoo frequently. when the zoo isn’t in the cards for the day, you will settle for a walk to a park and swing forever.

i am grateful i get to be your mama, attie. you bring so much joy, laughter, fun and sass into our lives. i love you more each day. you continue to be our greatest adventure!

xo.

mama

---

if you aren’t atlas and you are reading this, thank you. i want to capture my thoughts in a letter to my daughter when she turned two. you can read year one letter to her here.

•