Turning Two, A Dollhouse, Strawberry Cookies

Our little Lily is two. My, how the time flies! It seems just yesterday she was turning one, spending the day in the dentist's office getting a badly chipped tooth pulled (ouch!). And could it really be two years since that morning that she entered the world so peacefully?


I am quite happy to report (as those of you who love Lily know) that this girl has quite the spunk to complement her more introspective side. And you really need that around here, you know?


(Lily thinks it's so funny that the mommy is sitting on the toilet. Isn't two a little young for the potty humor to start? Here we go!)


When I asked Lily what she wanted for her birthday, she made two things perfectly clear: strawberry cookies and toys (who's ever heard of strawberry cookies?). And after many a playdate of watching her delicately and thoughtfully play with another child's dollhouse, we decided this just might be the year for a dollhouse for the family. After quite a bit of deliberation (does such a simple decision really need to be so hard? I suppose in a family where new toys are very rarely purchased, it does), we decided on a nice neutral dollhouse that leaves plenty of room for the imagination.


She really does love it, and does the silliest things like putting the Daddy in the refrigerator or turning the bookshelf into an exam table (all the while with an orderly sister reminding her of each item's "proper use," of course). I love our sweet Lily's imagination.

And for the cookies we settled on a gluten free strawberry linzer cookie. I am generally a woman who believes that dessert is meant to be indulgent, but with Ben's little gluten free trial underway, I knew I had to accommodate "the boss" as he's affectionately called. I felt like I was betraying myself while I was adding things like garbanzo flour and agave nectar to a dessert, but you know what? In the end, they taste delicious.

Happy Birthday, Lily! You're just a doll, and we absolutely adore you.