Dear Leah,

It's been exactly two years since you joined our family. Two years seems like such a short amount of time, yet it is hard to remember life before you were part of it. Year number one was filled with plenty of ups and downs and your second year has thankfully been full of many more ups than downs. You spent the first half of this year still very much a baby. You reached new milestones on what seemed like a daily basis and you still had plenty of your chubby, cute, babyness left.

With each day and every new milestone, though, you showed us that you were moving on beyond babyhood and turning into a true toddler. By the eighteen month mark, you (finally) began talking (after many months of screaming, tantrums, and frustration on everyone's part). Though we prayed for that day to come, it also meant a whole new world of independence on your part and having to accept that our baby was growing up. Now, your language is filled with so many words and phrases....many of which help you assert that strong will we always knew you had. Leah do it self.....no, don't want to.....don't wike it.

Along with a drastic change in your language, you have also grown so much in your ability to play and socialize. You've always been in awe of your big brother, and now he's truly become your best buddy. You are his shadow and you follow him all over the place. Sometimes this leads to nothing but trouble, but there are also many moments when it leads us to wish that time could stand still and you two would never have to grow up. Certainly, your newest little sibling has so much to look forward to. You will be a friend for life to both of your brothers and they will be so lucky to have you as their sister. You will teach them to love, care, and nurture. You already do that with Caleb when you hear him crying and run to get him his blankie for comfort. You do something to upset him and immediately say "sorry, Cawub". You hug him when he's sad and pat him on the back when he's hurt. You have empathy like no other and a nature that truly cares. You adore babies. Your favorite part of church is going to the nursery to watch the babies that are younger than you. You point out every baby that ever crosses your path and treasure your baby dolls at home.

It's a hard truth to accept, but you are soon passing on the role of being the baby of the house. You'll no doubt be excited to have a real, live baby to occupy your time at home. And your strong, independent side makes us sure that you won't have trouble letting go of your place in line. You've been sleeping in your big girl bed for awhile now, potty trained for almost a month, and insisting upon doing anything and everything by yourself. It takes twice as long to get out of the house because you have to attempt the shoes, coat, hat, and mittens by yourself before letting anyone else help out!

So, as you turn two, we know that this marks the end of a big year full of changes. It also marks the beginning of a new year. One filled with so many more changes. What won't change, though, is the beautiful girl God has created you to be. You're a gift...our precious daughter that we can't imagine life without. We can't imagine life without the snuggles, hugs, and love that you bring. From your contagious smile to your bouncy curls, from your sweet voice to your joy-filled laugh, God has proved his goodness in you. We pray that you, and all those lucky enough to cross your path, will see God's work in you this year, next year, and every year of your life.