February

Dahlia seemed to transform into a "big girl" in February.

Every Tuesday, Coach Bob comes to visit Dahlia's school for "gym" class. For months, Dahlia was scared of Coach Bob and his games. The parachute was especially terrifying, causing Dahlia to clutch her beloved Mimi and suck her thumb in a corner while her classmates enjoyed themselves. At a birthday party in February, however, Dahlia showed off how far she had come. She eagerly took her place at the parachute, yanking it up and down, going underneath it, and jumping on top of it. She also showed off her fearlessness by "zip-lining" across the room...

Of course, it's always easier to relax when there are hula hoops and good friends to play with. And the pizza and cake didn't hurt either! At another outing a couple of weeks later, Dahlia ran into her good friend Minnie Mouse, and the two of them shared a ride on the tire swing:

Dahlia also used to be very afraid of bouncy-houses. When she took her parents to the Purim Carnival, she showed no signs of her former fear. She giggled and laughed with each and every bounce and fall and repeatedly went back for more quality bouncing time:

One of the highlights of February was a visit from Dahlia's beloved Saba and Grandma Ellen. Dahlia is a major bookworm these days, choosing the public library over the playground even on beautiful sunny days. She has memorized countless books and loves to choose 15 or more books every week from the library. Dahlia was excited to share her books with new readers:

Saba and Grandma definitely know the way to a two-year-old's heart. Not only do they read large numbers of books without complaint. They also showed up with pizza one night for dinner! Dahlia eagerly pushed her parents out the door for a date night and enjoyed a great meal with two people who quickly became big favorites:

Dahlia loved sharing library books and pizza with her visitors, but there was even more big excitement that weekend! Grandma and Saba also accompanied Dahlia for her first trip to see Sesame Street Live!

Dahlia's favorite characters danced and sang...

...and her hero Elmo was there too! What a show!

Dahlia had a wonderful weeekend with Grandma and Saba! She hopes they come back again soon so they can have even half as much fun.

Grandma and Saba apparently also brought something else with them some -- the terrible winter they'd been experiencing out east. Snowmageddeon came to Austin in February, shutting schools down and bringing the city to a halt for a few hours.

What's that you see (if you squint really, really hard)? Why yes, it's the impressive 1.2" of snow that apparently fell in Austin a couple of weeks ago. Yes, that would be inches, not feet. It means that Austin has received a total snowfall of 1.5" over the last five years. Dahlia knew she needed to be excited when the white stuff showed up:

Finally, Dahlia has extended her appreciation of stuffed animals into a wider range of friends. Here she is with the winsome gang: Tigger, Usagi (Rabbit), and Winnie the Poop. Yes, in Dahlia's world his name ends with a p, not an h:

Every night, she now sleeps with her menagerie of friends. It is amazing that there is any room left in that bed, but her parents are happy that Dahlia spends the entire night with her friends in her bed rather than requiring parental accompaniment at 4am. Let's hope she keeps up the "big girl" sleep habits and sleeps in her bed with her friends all the way through the night!