five things | her final week of one

1. after splitting banana and nutella on ciabatta for lunch, after cleaning the gobs of chocolate heaven off of her face and fingers and the table and the chairs and the floor, marlo sat down on the sofa and patted the cushion next to her. mama? shit? gladly, i took the coveted spot next to her and then, without being prompted, she leaned in and rest her little head on my shoulder. after a few moments and a few hysterical and lengthy sighs, she lifted her head to meet mine and puckered up her lips. mama. mmmuuaaaah! here's the thing: i was prepared for terrible two's. hell, i've been experiencing the terrible one's for months now. but the unabashed sweetness and love? my heart wasn't even remotely prepared for it. luckily, she more than makes up for it with her tantrums, throwing things around the apartment, and shitting on the floor. parenthood, as is life, is all about balance.

2. it's a little terrifying how similar we're quickly becoming. during her first year around the sun, i couldn't take credit for much because, if you saw her and joe standing next to each other, you'd wonder if joe had a vagina and somehow birthed her. hell, i even found myself asking if she was really mine because she was ALL JOE. luckily i was there and remember the birth quite vividly and can vouch honestly that she is, in fact, mine. but now? i get to take credit for her. which, has it's drawbacks. when she's throwing a tantrum in public, it's hard to deny the kid who looks just like you and sounds just like you and is dressed just like you. earlier in the week, i found myself texting joe with the you will not believe what your daughter just did... yada, yada, blah, blah. i only claim her when she's perfect. which, like her mother, is ninety-five percent of the time. (joe is shaking his head as he reads this. as is my dad.)

3. her helmet was delivered this week. FINALLY. it's matte black. and badass. and fierce. and intimidating. you know... all things that a two year old should be. gimme all the badass chillchens...

4. the weather has sucked this week and we've been stuck inside until this afternoon. we were both going a little insane yesterday, so, i decided it was perfect time to pretend that we were swimming at the pool in the middle of the summer instead of in our narrow bathtub while it poured outside. she's always pretty vocal but bath-time is when she gets particularly talkative. if you don't mind my freckled leg in the foreground, here is a pretty cute video of mo counting and then licking the bubbles off of the bubble container. so delightfully strange, that one.

5. to celebrate her birthday this weekend while joe isn't working, we're going to do all of her favorite things: eat pizza, go into the city for doughnuts, nap, visit smorgasburg, gorge ourselves on bacon and chocolate-chip pancakes for breakfast, have a few play dates with her best buds and their mamas, take afternoon scooter rides around the neighborhood, stop to pet as many friendly puppies that we can find, and spend as much time outside and on the swings as possible. the fact that most of her favorite things are food is just yet another piece of evidence of how alike we really are.