To Bodhi on his Second Birthday

Dearest Bodhi,

Happy birthday!

If I thought your first birthday had come around quickly, I think that your second may have come around even quicker. This last few months, you don’t really know it as you’re so little, but you’ve been living in a very strange world. Mostly confined to our home and garden. No more school runs and chittering to people from the pram, no more toddler classes and socialising of children of your own age. You haven’t seen your grandparents for 4 months. For the most part you have been happy, you have loved having your brother and sister home all the time. The garden has most definitely become your very favourite place to be. But 4 months is a sixth is your life which is quite a big time.

We’ve got your name down for you to start pre-school in September and I think you’ll need it. When your brother and sister go back to school after nearly 6 months off I think you will miss them desperately. It will be good for you to make friends of children of your own age too.

You are most definitely a toddler now, you prefer to run most places rather than walk. But even when you were crawling you didn’t do things slowly. You are most definitely a mischief maker and if there is trouble to find, you will find it. I have had to move your room around more than once to try and stop you from climbing up onto the windowsill. If I’d let you, you would climb up onto the dining table, probably stand up on it too. You can open doors, even the front door, this past week you even managed to fall into the pond (luckily I was right behind you). If something can be done, or you can get into trouble you will do it in a way your siblings will never have thought of before.

The garden is most definitely your happy place. You love to be outside playing with your car, in the mud kitchen and most especially with the water table. We have refurbished you brother’s old sandpit for your birthday, which I also think you are going to love. You would happily spend most of your days out there. You are also getting a balance bike from Mummy and Daddy and some of the family have clubbed together to get you a police car Cosy Coupe.

You’re trying really hard with all your words and trying to piece together sentences at the moment. I think your most uttered words at the moment, aside from Mummy, are ‘what are you doing’ which is like your version of why you say it so much. Your name for Aria is Yaya, which I love, and Logan sounds more like Rowan at the moment. But things like this always make me smile.

Before lockdown you very much enjoyed going to baby classes and loved going to Jo Jingles and Little Movers and Shakers, which we have been trying to do via video classes at the moment.

At home your biggest love is probably Hey Duggee. You love anything Hey Duggee related and the TV show is your most favourite of all. You have recently also discovered Peppa Pig and also enjoy watching Paw Patrol with Aria.

You have also recently started to enjoy sitting at the table and drawing (scribbling) and colouring in books with crayons. I also think it’s because it means you can sit with your brother and sister while they are doing home school.

For a long time you didn’t really have the patience for books and stories, but over the last few months (much to my delight), you have started to love stories at bedtime. You’re lucky to have older siblings too as Aria will often sit and read to you and Logan occasionally as well.

You and Aria have developed a really lovely bond over these last few months. You’re regularly cuddled up together on the sofa or playing games. You love Logan too, but he is a bit older and I think sometimes the age gap you have at the moment is a harder one. But he still runs to you when you cry and will shows you his Transformers too.

We’re still breastfeeding. Never thought I would say that! But is such a busy house, it has been our little quiet time morning and night. I was going to wean you earlier in the year, but it seemed wrong with all the bugs around and of course then came the pandemic. I am starting to feel like it’s time now and am going to try and wean you off the morning feed not long after your birthday. You’re starting to drink less and less then anyway.

You are starting to love cooking with Daddy and I and have fast discovered the epicness of spoon licking! You have also quickly developed a love of cake and chocolate. The latter your brother never had until he was two!

Your favourite thing to cuddle is still the soothers we went sent to review from Tickla Tots. Even if you tend to suck them. You also love water and the bath and splashing around. You even love to watch others in the bath and splash them and pour water on them.

Happy birthday Bodhi. The child most likely to turn me grey, but also make me smile. Let’s hope we manage to squeeze lots of adventures in the next year around the madness.

Love Mummy xxxx