Princess's 2nd Birthday and Development

A couple weeks before Princess's second birthday, I had to do the "million questions" with J. This is an assessment. Thankfully he keeps the same file on the kids so we don't have to go through a bazillion more questions! The week after that, was her IFSP (think IEP for little kids). And surprise, surprise: she's "caught up!" OMG! I can't believe it! The only reason she's "caught up" is because now everything is a range and she's right in that range for her age! YAY! So the next NICU developmental clinic will probably be our last, we hope! Surprisingly, J is still going to be coming around for another year. I guess that's a good thing, and job security for him. I mean, if he didn't come around, I think Princess's little heart would be broken! Then the following weekend was Princess's second birthday.

For her second birthday, we started celebrating on Friday. We wanted her to have time to play with her new toys, as our plan was to go to the zoo on Saturday. I knew she would be too tired when we got home and it would be too much to ask a two year old to get up and leave the toys she just got. So Friday night when Meme got home from work, we broke out the cupcakes I had picked up earlier in the day. I had ordered cupcakes instead of a full on cake because it's just the 4 of us and being Princess didn't do the whole cake smash thing, I wasn't sure if she was even going to like cake! Well, of course, if it's not one thing, it's another. This kid was afraid of the candles! Go figure! But her cupcakes were cute!

Then it was on to presents. She really enjoyed opening them. She got Doc sheets for her bed, a new ride on giraffe toy, giraffe pictures that my uncle took, and a kitchen (which I had to build ahead of time)!

The next day, we were off to the zoo! Our whole plan was to feed the giraffes and then pretty much go home after that. We saw the animals, and then, of course, when it was just about time to feed the giraffes, Princess was exhausted! But when it was her turn to feed the giraffe, she was practically jumping up and down! She was SO happy to feed the giraffe lettuce! I didn't manage to get any pictures of her doing it, but she LOVED it! Then we had to ride the train and then we went home.

One of the cool things Princess did was Carry a Bead. This is a GREAT program put on by Beads of Courage. Anyone can Carry a Bead. All you have to do is pay for it and shipping is free! They send you the bead, then you pin it to yourself and do something! It can be running a marathon, going on a hike, your first day of work or school, or like what Princess did, a trip to the zoo. It really doesn't matter. You get 2 beads, one for you and one for you to send back. This bead that you send back becomes an "Act of Courage" Bead for a child undergoing treatment. So, the next time you're thinking of doing something, think about sharing that adventure with a child who can't and is probably in the hospital undergoing cancer treatment or heart surgery or some other treatment for a disease. These beads really make their day and mark milestones in their treatment journeys. Click the link above to order your Carry a Bead kit now!