Someone is 2!

It has been a long time since I last updated, but now that the craziness of March is over I thought I should get at least one update in before the new baby arrives.

Maria is now two years old! Can you believe it?? She is still tall and thin (35" and 25lbs), full of energy and the gift of gab. Thus far the "terrible twos" have been pretty temperate, meaning that most of the time Maria is pretty easy to handle. Maybe she's saving up for those "trying threes". Of course all that could change with the arrival of a younger sibling, when Maria realizes that she is no longer the center of attention.

We celebrated her 2nd birthday on two different occasions. On the day of her birthday, March 14th, we had Grandma and Grandpa Epler over for dinner and cake, and Maria was able to open her first few gifts. For as big of a "tomboy" she seems at times, our little girl is definitely still a "girly girl" too. She loved her princess clothes.

Then on the 21st (when Aaron could be home), we had a second party with just a few people (for my sanity). Maria celebrated that afternoon with her friend Mayah and cousin Benjamin. We also got in a good visit with Auntie Donna, Uncle Jason (Aaron's brother and his wife), and Uncle Matt and Auntie Erin (my brother and his wife), as well as Mayah's parents Trevor and Joyce. Maria seemed to really enjoy herself, and with cousin Benjamin staying the night she got a lot more time to get to know her cousin. They seemed to be getting along really well by the end of the weekend. All in all it was a great time, perhaps a little tiring for me, but a good time.

Hopefully we will be updating again in the near future with news of Baby Betke.

Winter Fun with Daddy

This entertainment was courtesy of Grandpa Betke. Thanks for building the snow slide in the backyard. Maria loved it!

22 months old

The holiday season is over, and already another month has come and gone. Maria is now less than two months from her 2nd birthday! Where does the time go. She is speaking in short sentences now mostly 2 words, but occasionally 3 words. She is becoming quite easy to understand now too, at least to me, Grandma Epler, and Shannon (her dayhome provider), although I would hazard a guess that other people would now understand quite a bit of what she says. She is also getting a lot of use out of her new toys (the kitchen and table were quite a hit), and as soon as I get the "art" center set up I'm sure she will love painting too (thanks again Grandma and Grandpa Betke). She has also discovered the joys of playdough, which has actually been a sanity savior for Mom some days - and she has yet to decide that it looks like food....maybe it's because of it's unnatural blue color.


(Tea time with Grandma; Playing ball with Cousin Ben; Learning to play with playdough)

As for the two of us, well Aaron continues to be busy. He's currently on a job in Fort McMurray and away a lot, which would be tough at the best of times, but with only 3 months to go until baby two arrives, it has me more exhausted than normal. However, we are coping, and Maria and I have a really good raport and routine going right now. I wonder if it will all go out the window when Aaron returns home though....guess we'll see.


(My first pigtails; Winter fun with Daddy)