On January 26th, Genesee became a 2.5-year-old.

These days, she weighs almost 29 lbs, measures just over 3 feet tall, sports a consistently-dry pull-up, and loves a good bag of Cheetos. Or Doritos. Or Potato Chips. Really, she’s a snacker of all things snacky and she’s still got that sweet tooth for the sweets too.

The 2.5 version of Genesee continues to adore OUR dad (even though she says he’s only her dad), but she’s also a faithful lover of Arlo, Mr. Levi, Cory, Papa, Grandpa, and the fictitious Mr. Grinch.

Sometimes we call her “GG” or “Pumpkee,” and other times we call her “naughty,” like when she gives us the evil eye or tries to beat me up. But, I still love my sister… quirks, and whines, and all. Because no one can demand “2 minutes on couch” before bedtime cuter than Genesee. And when she watches Madagascar on constant loop or fights Mom to wear Paw Patrol pajamas to school every day, my heart melts a little. Besides, she’s become a much easier back-seat companion in the car and it’s hard to not admire someone who can operate the iPad with her feet.

And so, to celebrate this milestone and honor Genesee’s growing independence, we removed the safety gate from the stairway in our house; there’s no stopping her now!

Well, they made us work for it, but at the end of a 30-day advent-calendar-meets-Escape-Room-shenanigans game of clue, we learned that Cha Cha and Ernest are engaged to be married!!

…On a… Wait for it…. CRUISE SHIP! Congrats C and E; This is going to be epic!

One of the best moments of 2019 was the final hours before the calendar struck 2020:
Hanging with Papa and his furry ladies, blowing our noisemakers, sporting those fancy-schmancy headbands, playing a competitive game of pool against the Boss Baby, and toasting to the new year with cheap plastic wine glasses of sparkling apple-mango juice.

It was simple. It was silly. It was everything.

Sometimes you have no idea how precious moments are until they become favorite memories.