August 2014

Magnets! 

All aboard at the mall. 

Sculpture couch @ SIUC

At the Japanese garden on campus. 

Static! 

Our little cheerleader

Fashionista

Taking my order

The monster @ Castle Park

The girl and her dragon

July 2014

July was a fun month for our family. We had lots of time with family and friends, celebrated K's birthday, and enjoyed a few mini-vacations (a few while Daddy worked hard away from home) including going to Turkey Run State Park in Indiana. A few highlights of the month:

Going down the roller slide in St. Charles, MO. 

This was about the only thing she did at this park, over and over and over...

At the ballpark with friends. 

We got there late (2 toddlers deciding to nap late and 

then eat slow, oi!) but everyone had a great time. 

I had to put my purse behind K in the seat because she didn't 

weigh enough to keep it unfolded unless she sat on the edge. 

At the St. Louis Zoo riding the carousel with Grandma & Grandpa.

She still fears riding the animals (I still haven't figured that one out, though I think it's just her fear of heights).

Playing in a gigantic sandbox at Grandma & Grandpa's church.

She was kind of shocked I allowed her to take her shoes off (our sandy local parks 

are kind of...yucky, and we've only been to a beach once before she can remember).

Shortly after this she had each of us chase her up and down the sidewalk at least 10 times.

At the SI Science Center, practicing to be like Daddy someday.

This kid LOVES corn! I was kind of surprised when she requested I not cut it off the cob, 

but let her eat it like I was. She in fact ate this entire cob with no help at all!

Despite her fear of heights, she is adamant that she must climb lately.

I was proud of her this day she learned how to alternate her feet while climbing this "ladder."

At the Spyglass, doing a little ballerina pose at the window.

Being luggage with cousin M. She loved being in the hotel with the cousins, 

and often begged me to see if any of them were out in the lobby.

A sweet moment with Daddy while putting her new mower away for the day.

The tiger lilies were magnificent this year!

2!

I can hardly believe that 2 years have really gone by since we welcomed this little girl into the world!
To celebrate we had a small gathering of friends and family at the park (much like last year). It was a great, laid back time with plenty of sun, a nice breeze, and room to roam!

Our little girl is still tiny, weighing in at only 19.8 lbs and 32 inches tall. She's making up for it in speech (according to her pediatrician, she talks like a 2.5-3 year old), and full-body hugs (which have been so powerful to actually injure her parents). She still hates to sleep, so maybe someday she'll realize that to grow, she needs sleep!

23 months!

I still find it hard to believe we're throwing a party for a 2 year old next month! Where has the time gone?

This months' big achievements:

• Watching the Blue Angels fly!
• Wanting to do everything herself.
• Even more talking! She now knows tons of phrases, and will happily do this exchange:     "Mommy, how you do?"     "I'm good, how are you?"     "I'm pretty good! Thanks!"
• Even pickier eating (ugh!) She's definitely going to remain a skinny-mini at this rate.
• Moving faster than Mommy can shoot the photo. This months' picks were few, as most either had other people in them (and I hate asking permission), or were so blurry they weren't worth it. Maybe she'll start stopping when Mommy says "say cheese!"?
• Playing pretend! She wants to do everything and anything! Real is of course preferable, but she's very pleased to share meals with Dolly, go "shopping," fly on her airplane, or take care of her baby (whom she often cries for when it's sad).
• "Painting" with shaving cream. It's hard to say no to clean fun before/during bath time.
• Being OUTSIDE. Unfortunately, the high tick numbers have kept us indoors more lately than the rain has. 6 on our family already so far, and tick season has barely begun! 
• Preschool story hour at the library. I had pretty much given up taking her as she really didn't seem to care and just could not sit still. Then we started up again and suddenly she gets super excited about it. If I accidentally mention it too early, she'll grab her shoes and point to the door and say "Library. We go now? We walk?" She will then sit perfectly still as the reader reads a few books and the other kids sing songs (apparently she's not big on participation just yet). She hates that I still have to help her during craft time, though (sorry kid, you're just not quite ready for scissors and glue).

22 Months!

It's hard to believe our little lady is going to be a big 2 in only two short months! Time seems to really be flying these days, and I'm doing my best to keep up.

This past month we celebrated Easter, with egg dying (by parents), a visit by Nana, and an egg hunt at church (her first, but very successful).
K is becoming more and more of a little girl, and less and less of a baby. She is rejecting the high chair and has discovered sitting on her knees in a "big" chair. She loves to talk, and has an opinion on just about everything. She's easily distractable, and eats slower than molasses (payback for my childhood, I'm sure). Recently she's become adamant about climbing the ladders like the big kids do at the playground, and though I tried to deter her, it was to no avail, and we now have a rather confident climber, who proudly declares "I climb!" She loves the cats now, and surprisingly Rosco at least has warmed up to her a bit, allowing her to give him her signature squeezing hugs (perhaps he knows she just wants to show affection). She still weighs the same as ever, but is slowly gaining height, and can reach more than I realize. Now that the weather has suddenly turned very warm, we try to get to the park more often, but this last week it's been too hot in the afternoon, and she's suddenly very apt to get heat rash, so we have to brave the heat in moderation.

(The outfit in the first image was completely chosen by her. She definitely has ideas on fashion.)