So far we're having fun being two!
New realizations: candy, cake, juice and PRESENTS! And they keep coming. Everyone has been overly kind to our little one and I think she has been sufficiently spoiled that it' s going to be difficult to recover. She now expects a new package in the mail every other day and after it is opened she asks, "Open it again Mommy." I usually oblige, one time only, packaging up the surprise again and letting her do the honors once more.
Beyond that she continues to be the chatter bug. Her vocabulary grows each day as does her grasp on the English language. A few months ago I considered her putting 3 or 4 words together as making sentences, but now she is really making sentences. When Daddy said at dinner last night, "I like broccoli." The little munchkin responded with, "I like broccoli too." She even hit the voice inflection and accented the "too" by bringing her tone up a few notes.
She's been saying all sorts of funny and cute things. A few nights ago, our family of three ended up on the couch together enjoying the Apple TV screen saver and at one point the little one says, "Who's that cute baby?" Hhmm, who do you think?
There is a bit of maturing that has happened at two, to my great pleasure. She is better at staying within a manageable distance in public places instead of just taking off to whatever shiny thing is in eye shot. We were at the mall, with plenty of distractions in every direction and she stayed within five feet of me and when I called her or asked her to stay near, she responded accordingly. It may sound fairly trivial, but lest us not underestimate the value of a simple concept.
With the age of two comes the attitude as well. Let's just say it's not my most favorite thing but we work on it...daily, minute by minute. Many of those minutes being apologetic and confined to time out. I must remind myself that the rewards will come in the future. Be tough now and it will pay off in spades down the line. The reality is, every age has it's own challenges and how you respond to them will mold the little tyke into the adult they will become.
I pray it's a good one!
Friday, March 28, 2008
Friday, March 14, 2008
TWO!
Hooray, the little one is two today! Thank you to our blogger friends for all the the birthday tribute posts. It's nice to know the vastness and infinite qualities of the internet are not lost on our little girl. Tell her Happy Birthday and she responds with a smile, "Happy Birthday!"
By 12 noon she had consumed one cupcake, a handful of french fries, ice cream sundae with whipped cream and cherry on top and lets not forget the jelly beans. The little one's world reached new heights with the first taste of candy. Sweet, sweet jelly beans. She consumed about 5 of them and responded with a, "mmmm...jellies. " It was not my intention to introduce candy today, but it had to happen sooner or later so why not the big bday. We were at an Easter egg hunt/petting zoo and when her and her buddy sat down to check out the contents of the eggs, the first one he opened was filled with jelly beans. Before I could stop them, he had handed her the savory treat to share in the delight. That's the way it goes.
So the day has been full of fun and smiles, as every parent would wish for their child. I have plans to take her to her first movie sometime soon. I'm pretty sure she'll freak out at the hugeness of the TV. If only they had a feature of The Little Einsteins. Perhaps Horton Hears a Hoo will be the first movie. It's sure to be an adventure but with enough popcorn, and jellybeans, I think she'll love it!
As a side note: I pressed the publish post button just as the joyful tune of "She'll Be Coming Around the Mountain" could be heard from the little one's room. She just woke up from her nap and started singing. Looks like she's ready for the celebrations to continue.
By 12 noon she had consumed one cupcake, a handful of french fries, ice cream sundae with whipped cream and cherry on top and lets not forget the jelly beans. The little one's world reached new heights with the first taste of candy. Sweet, sweet jelly beans. She consumed about 5 of them and responded with a, "mmmm...jellies. " It was not my intention to introduce candy today, but it had to happen sooner or later so why not the big bday. We were at an Easter egg hunt/petting zoo and when her and her buddy sat down to check out the contents of the eggs, the first one he opened was filled with jelly beans. Before I could stop them, he had handed her the savory treat to share in the delight. That's the way it goes.
So the day has been full of fun and smiles, as every parent would wish for their child. I have plans to take her to her first movie sometime soon. I'm pretty sure she'll freak out at the hugeness of the TV. If only they had a feature of The Little Einsteins. Perhaps Horton Hears a Hoo will be the first movie. It's sure to be an adventure but with enough popcorn, and jellybeans, I think she'll love it!
As a side note: I pressed the publish post button just as the joyful tune of "She'll Be Coming Around the Mountain" could be heard from the little one's room. She just woke up from her nap and started singing. Looks like she's ready for the celebrations to continue.
Wednesday, March 5, 2008
Cheese
With the second birthday coming next week, I decided it would be nice to get some photos taken to mark the passing of another year. The last time we went in for a sitting was a year ago so it felt like it was time. Having done this a few times prior, I told myself this time will be different. For anyone who has never had this excruciating experience, it goes something like this.
There is much thought about what she should wear and how to do the hair etc. etc. Then you get in the room with the photographer who is all of about 18 years old and quickly realize that you are going to have to take control of the situation. They offer no suggestions or advice on how to get your cute little darling to look at the camera, much less smile, or even stay in one place. It's painful but you persist and hope for just one money shot that will be worthy of the memory books. When the photo shoot is finished, you wait.
About 20 minutes later, if your child hasn't already melted down they soon will as you sit down at their fancy computer to view the results. This is where I begin to meltdown. A little known fact about me, I have no trouble making the big decisions in life it's the small ones that I anguish over. I guess I'm really afraid to make the wrong decision and end up with post purchase dissonance. There I am looking at all the photos and having to pick one, so as not to break the bank on photo purchases. Packages usually start in the $150 range and that's for a so/so (I was here) sampling. But I only want to spend $50. Well, that gets me just about nothing that I will be happy with. It goes on and on and sure enough, I walk out with a $140 bill and a few photos to show for it. At least I got one of every shot I sorta liked and I feel kinda ripped off but I ultimately dismiss it because it's for the history books.
As I said, this time was going to be different. This time I'm going with backup. Another Mom and I went with our almost two year olds and we both seemed relieved when the other agreed to go. It turned out that photographing a 2 year old was much easier than at 1 year. The smiles come easier and she didn't try to dash outside of the sitting room and into the mall every time I stepped back for the shot. It was nice having another opinion, or at least someone to validate mine, on which photos to choose and how many. The nice people at The Picture People allowed us to do our photos individually but as one sitting. We were able to purchase one package and split it, selecting as many poses as we liked. It was still overpriced but at least I got more for the money and a few pictures I'm really happy with.
Why is this important to me? I wondered this myself but what it comes down to is I want it for the little one. When she is older, I want her to be able to know her history and what she was like as a child. I have no photos from my childhood taken at a formal sitting and I only have one baby picture all told. There are a few school photos from odd years that I somehow stored away and saved in my own memory books. I look at my husband's photo archive and it is rich with pictures of him from age 0 through high school. He had regular sittings, almost monthly, when he was a baby and it's nice to have to look back on. I hope she enjoys them, I know I will.
There is much thought about what she should wear and how to do the hair etc. etc. Then you get in the room with the photographer who is all of about 18 years old and quickly realize that you are going to have to take control of the situation. They offer no suggestions or advice on how to get your cute little darling to look at the camera, much less smile, or even stay in one place. It's painful but you persist and hope for just one money shot that will be worthy of the memory books. When the photo shoot is finished, you wait.
About 20 minutes later, if your child hasn't already melted down they soon will as you sit down at their fancy computer to view the results. This is where I begin to meltdown. A little known fact about me, I have no trouble making the big decisions in life it's the small ones that I anguish over. I guess I'm really afraid to make the wrong decision and end up with post purchase dissonance. There I am looking at all the photos and having to pick one, so as not to break the bank on photo purchases. Packages usually start in the $150 range and that's for a so/so (I was here) sampling. But I only want to spend $50. Well, that gets me just about nothing that I will be happy with. It goes on and on and sure enough, I walk out with a $140 bill and a few photos to show for it. At least I got one of every shot I sorta liked and I feel kinda ripped off but I ultimately dismiss it because it's for the history books.
As I said, this time was going to be different. This time I'm going with backup. Another Mom and I went with our almost two year olds and we both seemed relieved when the other agreed to go. It turned out that photographing a 2 year old was much easier than at 1 year. The smiles come easier and she didn't try to dash outside of the sitting room and into the mall every time I stepped back for the shot. It was nice having another opinion, or at least someone to validate mine, on which photos to choose and how many. The nice people at The Picture People allowed us to do our photos individually but as one sitting. We were able to purchase one package and split it, selecting as many poses as we liked. It was still overpriced but at least I got more for the money and a few pictures I'm really happy with.
Why is this important to me? I wondered this myself but what it comes down to is I want it for the little one. When she is older, I want her to be able to know her history and what she was like as a child. I have no photos from my childhood taken at a formal sitting and I only have one baby picture all told. There are a few school photos from odd years that I somehow stored away and saved in my own memory books. I look at my husband's photo archive and it is rich with pictures of him from age 0 through high school. He had regular sittings, almost monthly, when he was a baby and it's nice to have to look back on. I hope she enjoys them, I know I will.
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