Emma's first "no," and birthday stuff

Emma has been saying "no" for awhile now, in response to a question, or when repeating something she heard. Tonight, though, Emma officially hit her two-year-old stride with a big "no" for Grammy.

Emma was looking at her Snappy Bugs pop-up book and was playing with a pop-up leaf on one of the pages. She was getting ready to bend it, so Grammy said to her, "Emma, don't do that or you're going to break the book," and moved Emma's hand. Emma looked at her and said, "No!" Well, she immediately realized what she had done. She closed the book, looked at Grammy, and said, "Yay!" trying to make up for her previous behavior.

I guess it's good that it took her this long to start saying "no" when she gets mad at someone. And it's a sign that she's growing up and asserting her independence. So I'll look at it as a positive, rather than the start of many, many years of defiance. Aaahhhh...

She had a fabulous time for her birthday. We went to the zoo on the 12th, and really enjoyed that. Friday the 15th I took her to Cincinnati to see Sesame Street Live. When Elmo came out, it was like she was seeing a movie star. She was beside herself the whole time. And we had great seats, on the floor and right next to the stage, so when the characters came down to dance on the floor, they would often make their way to Emma, shake her hand, rub her hair, or say hello. She was a little bit nervous each time this happened, but since she recognized all her favorite characters, she didn't get scared or cry. Such a little super star!

Saturday the 16th was Emma's birthday party. She played on the swingset with her friends, open presents, and had a birthday cupcake. She had a great time, but it took a few days for her to wind down and get back on a regular nap schedule. Fortunately, birthdays only come once a year, because Emma and Mama both were exhausted!