Indoor Fun

According to Michigan natives, this winter has been the worst winter in many years.  We have received so much snow in January alone - more than double what is considered "normal" and several inches beyond the previous snowfall record that was sent in the late 1970s!  While you would think it would be fun to have so much snow to go sledding and build snowmen, it has been so stinking cold that we can't even get outside to enjoy it.

So, instead we find new ways to stay busy inside.  Today, that consisted of playing dress-up with all of the great dress-up clothes that Addison handed down to you and playing beauty shop with Mama.

"I'm so cute" is your new favorite thing to say.

"drying" Mama's hair

Brushing Mama's hair

The end result…guess you got tired of brushing my hair.

Iowa Trip

It was nice to be home with family to celebrate Grandpa's life.  We watched lots of old family videos where I discovered that while you look more like Daddy than me, your mannerisms are very much like me; the way you like to walk on your tiptoes, your giggles and various facial expressions are so much like me at your age...it's neat to see.

You had fun bossing Riley around.

You had fun playing with different (boy) toys.

You were too scared to ride on the sled, so Uncle Will and Riley went for a ride in hopes it would help change your mind…it didn't work, but I think they had fun!

You found some of Grandma's old chapstick (which you call "chapchick") and would not leave it alone.

You had fun playing with your cousins.

Such a big girl holding baby Camden

Saying Goodbye

I was in Orlando for work last week and had just finished giving a presentation when I checked my phone and saw that I had a missed call from Eric and a text message from my dad saying to call him immediately.  My heart sank because I knew what the news was going to be.  I called my dad right away and learned that my grandpa had passed away.

Eric, Graecyn and I were able to make the trip home to celebrate Grandpa's life.  It was so good to be home with family; we spent a lot of time looking at old photos and videos and sharing stories.  The things I will remember most about Grandpa are his sense of humor and love of pulling pranks - I can remember many Christmas and birthday cards from him that were sealed with so much tape (every seam!) that it required a good pair of scissors to get into (Grandpa would sit there and chuckle while I struggled to get it opened).  I will remember how he always laughed so hard that he would cry, how he could whistle so loudly through his teeth, and how much he loved his family and was always there to cheer us on whether we were the star on the team or simply a bench warmer (me).

I am thankful that we were able to spend time with Grandpa while we were home at Thanksgiving and as hard as it is to say goodbye, there is some comfort in knowing that Grandpa and Grandma are reunited.

It was windy, overcast and snowing hard during the funeral and burial, but for a few minutes during the burial, the clouds parted and the sun peaked out - I think it was Grandpa's way of saying goodbye (thanks for the picture, Juli). 

Happy 2nd Birthday!

We had a big Sesame Street party for your 2nd birthday.  Grandma, Papa, and Uncle Will came from Iowa and we had many other friends brave a horrible winter storm to come to your party.  You were so excited to see everyone, especially your best friend Callie (I've never seen you get so excited, jumping up and down and squealing).

You got so many fun toys: golf club, puppy purse, indoor trampoline, dress up clothes, art supplies, picnic table, and princess hair accessory kit (just to name a few!) - you love them all!  With Christmas so close to your birthday, I'm pretty sure you're expecting to get gifts every week!

Happy 2nd birthday, Monkey Doodle!

2 Years Old!

The past 2 years have flown by in a flash!  I cannot believe you are 2 years old.  You are the sweetest, spunkiest, silliest, and most strong-willed little girl I know!  Here are a few fun things about you right now…

Everyone says (and I agree)…

You have the prettiest blue eyes

You look just like Daddy

You are such a busy body and never stop moving!

Nicknames: Monkey Doodle, Baby Girl, Sweet Girl, Gracie

Favorites:

Foods – pancakes (when asked what you want to eat, no matter what time of day, you say pancakes), all fruit, most vegetables, sausage, fish, Greek yogurt, goldfish, cookies, cake…you really are a great eater!

Toys – baby dolls (you like to wrap them up in a blanket and rock them in your arms), dress up clothes, shoes, purses and jewelry, puzzles

Books - I don't know that you have a favorite book, but there are several that you seem to request more often than others, including: "Sniff!" by Matthew Van Fleet - it has cute pull tabs and textures (we're already on a second copy since you got a little too aggressive with the pull tabs on the first copy) - you like it so much that we got you "Munch!" and "Lick!" for Christmas.  You also like "Wherever You Are, My Love Will Find You" by Nancy Tillman (you refer to it as your "dolphie" book because there are dolphins on one of the pages inside); "All Kinds of Kisses" by Nancy Tafuri (you call this one your "big puppy" book because there is a picture of a puppy inside - you like to give this puppy lots of hugs and kisses before we can turn the page), and finally "Good Night Little One" by Margaret Wise Brown (you call this one your "donkey" book because there is a picture of a donkey on the cover.  You are also starting to like some of the Dr. Seuss books, especially "Go Dog, Go".

Activities – coloring (especially with big girl markers like your cousins have, but that I won’t let you have because you don’t quite understand what you should and should not color on - thank goodness for invisible markers), doing somersaults (you have these mastered!), marching, fist bumps (you like it when we “make it rain” after), playing outside, watching Barney, singing, and hide and seek (you do really well with this game).

Other loves – animals (especially dogs), reading books, giving kisses (and not the sloppy, baby-type kisses…you’re now giving sweet, non-sloppy, real little girl kisses), shoes, and your sleeping comforts (puppy blankie, dolphie, monkey, elphie, and lamb)

Sayings:

Help you (when you want us to help you), I do it self, what’s wrong?, are you ok?, what’s that?, bless you when someone sneezes, my mama and my daddy (especially when you're nervous or scared) and today for the first time, holy crap (not the proudest moment for us – we’re still trying to figure out where you learned that one)

Other Fun Things:

You can count to 10, know several colors, know a few shapes (heart, star, triangle), and are starting to learn the alphabet (you know many of the letters, but can’t quite get them in the right order yet).  You can almost blow your nose and love when we clean out your nose; on the other hand you have also started the bad habit of picking your nose – after you do it, you say “gross” or “yuck” with a big smile on your face (this may be a hard one to break).  You are still scared of swimming pools, but love to talk about them and you are also scared of the vacuum.  You are very patient for a 2 year old – you’re learning about waiting your turn, and you seem to understand it well.  Daddy and I always say a blessing before we eat and you’re starting to want to say it yourself; you do a great job as long as Daddy or I give you the words to say first.  You’re doing pretty well with the potty, especially at bedtime; during the day, you’re usually too busy to stop and take the time to go on the potty.  You have started to hide to go poopie and get embarrassed when we catch you, adamantly denying it.  You love to wear my thick, fuzzy socks to bed - pulled all the way up to your knees. 

Our unofficial measurements for you indicate you are 24 lbs (<25%) and 34.24” (>50%) - still long and skinny (wearing a lot of 18 and 24 month sized clothes - with the waist taken in)!  You've been so slow to get your teeth, but now have 12 teeth with 2 more on their way.

You are so much fun at this age (even with the many tantrums you throw).  I can’t wait to watch you learn and discover!  Never in a lifetime could I have imagined how much joy you would fill my life with!  I love you with my whole heart, baby girl!

xoxo,

Mama

Christmas Part 2

Because we were in North Carolina for Christmas, Santa wasn't able to deliver his presents until we got home.  So, Sunday morning we woke up to Santa!  We woke you up at your normal time and told you that Santa might have come.  You weren't too sure what that meant, so it took some coaxing from us to get you to go downstairs.   Once you were downstairs you went straight for your old toys!  Next year, we'll have to be sure to have Santa put the new toys in a more visible location instead of behind the couch!  Once we got you around the couch, you were in heaven and headed straight for your new jewelry and kitchen.

You were so excited playing with each new thing for a few minutes before moving on to the next.  Before we knew it, you were tearing into the presents!  It was a great Christmas!

Santa Came!

Checking out your new toys

Making coffee