Posts Tagged ‘twenty two months old’
“Go beach.”
Posted on: August 2, 2013
The beach has really left an impression on M.
She’s constantly asking to go to the beach.
She’ll gather up her things, go to the door, try to turn the knob and say, “Go beach.”
When she plays with her toy car or train, as she pushes them around she says, “Go beach.”
One morning, before work, she woke up. I carried her a little bit and in her “half-asleep” state she says, “Go beach.” And then falls right back to sleep.
Yes. This little girl LOVES the beach.
Hopefully the weather picks up.. we’re planning a beach trip tomorrow!
Gotta love San Diego livin’!
Growth spurt..
Posted on: August 1, 2013
I was watching M a lot yesterday.
Just observing her. I was watching her play, listening to her talk, watching her run around from room to room.
It’s the first time in awhile where I just sat and observed.
Being her mom, I don’t notice the changes unless I really sit and take notice.
She’s grown. She’s definitely gotten taller. She’s all legs! She can reach the door knobs without getting on her tiptoes. When she lies on the couch with her leg dangling off, she can now reach the floor. She climbs in and out of the desk chair and couch with so much ease.
She has a full head of hair. It’s not thick, but it’s not so thin that you see right down to her scalp. There’s a bit of her hair that can reach down her neck and a little past her shoulders. She has a curl at the end of her hair. She constantly has hair in her eyes which makes me want to go get her hair cut, but there’s another part of me that’s totally terrified of her hair getting messed up.
Her type of play consists of pretending to eat, cook, or feed. She loves her dolls. She will carry and sway them. She bounces her baby doll and says, “Jump, jump, jump.” She knows how to match colors on her pegboard (see here).
After the library incident (see here), I’ve been working on sitting with her and coloring. She loves markers over crayons (who doesn’t?!) and can tell me the colors of most of them. Her hand/eye coordination has improved tremendously as she can uncap and cap the markers with minimal help. She can sit and color with me for anywhere between 5-15 minutes, depending on her mood.
She knows how to match people with pictures. When there is a picture of me somewhere, she will point to the picture and point to me. It’s as if she’s saying, “that’s you in the picture.”
Her pronunciations of words has gotten a lot better. She has the ability to answer questions without forcefed answers. She constantly repeats when she hears on TV, plays along with her TV shows, and the words are easily understood. I love listening to her talk.
She LOVES to sing. She’s my duet partner. We can belt out a “Sofia the First” song like nobody’s business. She’s still not into dancing, but I’m hoping that will kick in later. Right now, she’s my little singer. I love duets!
She’s growing up. I see her everyday and those days just fly on by. The day to day gets so monotonous, I forget that I’m raising a little human being.
But I’m glad I took a day to step back and really watch her. I’m glad to see that she’s progressed so much over these past months. I pray that the progress continues at this steady pace. I pray that I can look at her again after a few months and recognize changes once again.
Have you ever just watched your child and noticed change? I’d love to hear what you think.
Toddler workout..
Posted on: July 30, 2013
Toddlers have great abs.
They can lift their legs straight up into the air without any effort.
They have so much control over their ab muscles, it makes me almost jealous. Almost.
So, my plan?
Follow my toddler!
It’s a great game to play with M AND a small work out at the same time.
Toddlers can’t keep still.. I think that’s why no matter how much my little girl eats, she doesn’t gain much weight.. oh, to have that problem again!
So, what I’ve been doing lately is following her lead. If she wants to crawl around the apartment, I’ll crawl too! If she wants to run around, I will too. If she wants to march up and down the hall, so will I! If she wants to turn on her tip toes, then you’ll find me doing the same.
When we lie down, she loves when I copy her. She’ll lift up her legs, I lift up my legs. She’ll send them crashing down on the bed, I’ll send them crashing down on the bed. I think she likes that the most because my legs make the bed shake.
It’s a great little way to get some cardio AND bond with M.
It’s the toddler workout.. maybe I should patent that..
Beach bunny..
Posted on: July 29, 2013
Yesterday, we went to the beach.
This was going to be M’s first time as a full-blown, walking toddler.
Yes, I live in San Diego. Yes, this is our first time at the beach this year. Yes, I know we are wasting perfectly near beach resources by not going many times. Yes, I know all these things. Yes, every year I say we need to go more. Should I keep going?!
M’s been so opposed to stepping on surfaces that aren’t real floors, or concrete. For the longest time, she hated grass. I had to convince her that the tire mulch in the apartment’s playground was like the Nutty Forest from Dora The Explorer. Luckily, she’s been able to walk on those surfaces for several months now.
Sand was something she continued to be “iffy” about.
So, going to the beach, I was mentally prepared to have to carry her through the sand. I was mentally prepared for her apprehensions about the ocean waves. Basically, I was mentally prepared for her absolutely hating the beach experience.
First off, we were camped out in the grassy picnic area of the beach, and surprisingly, M walked onto the grass in her bare feet, without hesitation. Score one for me!
Then, when we took her to the sand in sandals, she was totally fine. She started off walking on her tip toes, as if trying to avoid it somehow, but eventually she gave in and enjoyed the sand. Score another one for me!
Once we got to the wet sand, we tried to ease her into the incoming waves. But suddenly, she let go of our hands, and just ran for it towards the ocean! Hubby was closeby and always made sure she was within arms reach and eye sight, but she was just having a super time!
She was soaked!
She was so happy, that made me so happy! The smile on her face as the waves crashed onto her feet and legs was just priceless. As the waves created a pool of water around her, she would sit right into the water and just splash with her hands. She loved every second of it.
After we took her out, she kept wanting to back. All we would hear was “Go beach! Beach, there!”
Even right before bed, as were all getting ready, she had to ask one more time, “Go beach, please yes?”
I had to reassure her that we will go back.
We definitely will go back. Now that I know that she LOVES it, I can’t see how we can stay away…
You know when..
Posted on: July 28, 2013
You know when you’re daughter grew in height when you see her running around the apartment with a potato she grabbed from the countertop…
Sisser…
Posted on: July 27, 2013
Hanging out with the niece and nephews this past weekend, and playing with our little baby nephew got us thinking..
M loves her little baby cousin.
Would she be open to the prospect of a new baby in the family?!
She knows what a baby is.
So, we asked the question.
Me: M, do you want a baby brother or baby sister?
M: Baby sisser.
Me: Do you want a baby sister or baby brother?
Me: Baby sisser.
Ok. Sister.
But does she know what a sister is?
So, we asked the question.
Me: M, do you want a baby boy or a baby girl?
M: Baby girl!
Me: Do you want a baby girl or baby boy?
M: Baby boy!
Ok.. some confusion.
Me: M, a baby brother is a….
M: Girl!
Me: A baby sister is a…
M: Boy!
Ok.. major confusion.
Now, we are in the process of teaching her that brothers are boys and sisters are girls.
Surprisingly, she already knows the difference between boys and girls. More often than not, if we ask her about a person she knows and if he/she is a boy or a girl, she’d get it right.. maybe she’s a really good guesser.
She wants a sisser…
- In: Parenthood
- 3 Comments
So, we had an “interesting” experience the other day..
The local library has craft time for toddlers every Wednesday. I figured this would be a fun little activity for M to do.
It would be her first time doing a somewhat structured activity outside the home. She would sit down, glue some stuff on to a piece of paper.. the end.
If only it were that simple!
We got to the library, and immediately, M’s eyes lit up. As we got to the children’s section, there were pictures of animals and things she knew. Right away, she says in her “loud by default” voice, “Pig! There! Oink, oink!”
“Shhhhh…” says Hubby and I.
We put her down onto the large circle carpet where all the children’s board books were. My intention was to show her some library books so we could check them out and finish our Summer Reading Program.
She decided that the big circle carpet was a perfect open space to run around and twirl on. Did I mention she was singing and vocalizing at the same time?
“Shhhhh…” again from the hubs and I.
It came time to sit down at the tables and start gluing. It was paper shaped like a basket, and some paper fruit.
M recognized each fruit and started naming them. If we weren’t in a library, it would have been really cute because she would get so excited about each fruit. “Strawberry! Gapes! Oh-nges!”
“Shhhhh…” Luckily, it was just Hubby and I trying to keep her quiet!
She wanted to eat the fruit. She LOVES pretending, especially pretend eating.
I showed her that she was supposed to glue the fruit down onto the basket. I put glue onto the back of the fruit and tried to get her to hold it. She proceeded to get glue on her fingers, which she didn’t like.
Hubby helped her glue down a few pieces of fruit, but she got tired of that.. FAST.
So, she got down from her chair and decided to explore.
And by “explore” I mean, running up and down the aisles of the children’s section, while being her normally loud self..
Hubby gave chase and you knew the moment he caught her because all you could hear was, “No. Down, out! Doooooown.”
Hubby stepped outside to the near by atrium, and all I saw was her running around and just enjoying herself.
There was no way I was going to be able to get her back onto the chair to finish this project. So, being the only crafty one in this little family, I finished the project for her!
Hubby brought her back into the library, but she did not want to stay quiet. I told Hubby to finally just take her outside.
I was so embarrassed, but I kept my head high. I gathered my things. Checked out the books I wanted, and left.
It was totally embarrassing while I was in the moment. But now that I’ve had hours and hours to think about it, the less and less embarrasing it is. Why should I be embarrassed? I’m a parent! This is what I deal with! You can’t tell me I’m the only one that’s had to go through this.
There wasn’t anything I could do. She definitely was NOT ready for this. I thought she would be. She loves coloring. She can sit still when being read to. She’s normally a well-behaved child. She’s been praised several times for her behavior in a restaurant. She doesn’t mind being in a stroller or shopping cart. She’s never acted out inappropriately.
This just wasn’t her thing.
It was new to her. It was a new environment, and she wanted to explore. She just doesn’t know that she had to be quiet in a library, and with all the stuff to see, the last thing she wanted was to sit down and glue paper together. There was nothing defiant about her behavior. She was just curious and excited.
I understand.
And in her defense, she WAS probably the youngest one there.
The mothers there were very understanding. The library staff didn’t say a word. I’m sure this wasn’t the first time they had an active toddler there during craft time.
After the library fiasco, we decided to take her to the nearby park to just run around and blow off some steam. This park has a huge duck pond and we ended up circling the pond three times! She’s definitely a ball of energy!
I will definitely wait a while before trying this again. Maybe a song and dance class would be more her style…
Things my daughter says..
Posted on: July 24, 2013
With M’s two year old birthday quickly approaching, I’ve noticed a significant development in her language.
She’s gone from two word sentences to three word sentences AND she’s starting to show the ability to really hold a conversation.
She’s never been the type of kid that liked being force-fed lines. She didn’t respond well to “M, say this” or “M, say that.
I could teach her an answer to something, and if she wanted to respond in that way, she would.
I think that’s why it took her so long to acknowlege that her name was “M” and not “Picture.”
She’s a child with a definite mind of her own. I absolutely love that about her. It’s quite surprising finding out what she actually knows.
With that said, here are some examples:
M left her sippy cup of water on the counter of the master bathroom. We walk down the hall and following conversation occurs.
Me: Me, where’s your water?
M: (points towards master bathroom) There! I saw it!
When pretend drinking or eating..
M: Mmm, drinking tea. Delicious!
M: (blows on spoon) Mimi, hot. Ahhh. Delicious!
When she found her bottle on the floor..
Me: M, why is your bottle on the floor?
M: I dropped it.
Whenever she wants something..
M: I haaaaaave it..
Those are just some examples that I can think of right now. I’m sure there are so much more that Hubby or her grandparents could add to the list.
What sort of things does your toddler say that totally surprises you?!
Guest bloggin’ time!
Posted on: July 23, 2013
So, I’m still convincing Hubby to guest blog for me. I keep telling him that he can pretty much write about whatever he wants… sorta.
I still think it’s a good idea. I still think it will provide readers with additional insight on our lives.. and our lives as parents..
I really think it’s a good thing..
But, in the meantime, I think I’ve found a guest blogger!
Trust me, this all sounded good in my head. I’m hoping this executes just as cute as I’m thinking it will be..
The guest blogger is.. M!
Without further ado, here’s my 22-month old daughter, M. Interview-style. And believe me when I say that I made sure SHE did all her own typing.
Me: So M, how’s life so far?
M: ////////////hhhhhh b sx (Translation: Good.)
Me: What do you like to do for fun?
M: zfzffw4455 (Translation: I love teapots. I like watching all the DVD’s my parents have given me. I can’t forget, I LOVE playing with my iPad. I especially love surfing through Youtube videos.)
Me: Why can’t you sit still?
M: v rr (Translation: Mom, I’m a year old. What do you want from me?!)
Me: Ok, one more question since you obviously don’t want to be sitting with me right now. How do you rate me and Daddy’s parenting skills?!
M: prffffffffffff (Translation: Considering the fact that I’m still alive, and I’m super happy most of the time, I’d say that you are both doing a great job. I love you, kiss!)
Ok, so I may have embellished a little bit. But don’t you think that’s what your kid would say if you asked them those questions?!
Overnight..
Posted on: July 18, 2013
M had a bloody nose the other night..
It scared me a little bit because I didn’t see it until I woke up the next morning.
When I wake up for work, it’s still a little dark outside. I always have the hardest time getting up because I never want to leave the warmth of the bed and the cuddling of my little girl.
I looked at her when I woke up because she seemed to have a smile on her face. I think she was having a happy dream. I go to kiss her and she gives me a full blown smile in her sleep. I gotta love those moments!
I looked at her a little closer and noticed that she had something on her face. It almost looked like those indents you get on your face when you lay down against a wrinkle on the pillow or the bed sheet.
I decided to shine the phone light on to her face.
She had dried blood all over her cheeks..
Now, before you freak out.. ahem, Grandma… it really wasn’t a lot..
In fact, there wasn’t a spot of blood on the sheets. It wasn’t a bloody masacre like other nosebleeds can be. Believe me, I know of some bad nosebleeds!
There was just a tiny spot on the pillow, a small smear on my arm, and little smears on my shirt.
It also looked like she was sucking her thumb while her nose was bleeding. Her little pointer finger seemed to have the most blood on it.
So Hubby and mine’s theory is that she was sucking her thumb and picking at her nose during her sleep. She does that on occasion as a form of comfort. We think that she may have picked her nose and maybe made it bleed.
(Cue CSI music..)
I used to get nosebleeds a lot as a kid. I remember getting about 3 in one day once in elementary school. The doctor told my mom to just stick Vaseline in my nose and it worked.
I’m hoping that this is just a one-time occurance. I just don’t want to her to deal with nosebleeds at this young age.. my poor baby girl!
Living life in the carpool lane.. 