Twas the Night...

...that C stayed away from home all night for the first time.

F and I returned today from an overnight stay away from C. We had a Regimental Ball that was out of town since there simply isn't anywhere here that will hold that massive number of people (92 tables of 10!!) There was child care provided on site there, but considering the number of children involved, we decided that we'd find a friend who could keep C here. A dear friend from PWOC and her husband and older children had her stay with them. C had been to their house before and spent a day with them when I was recovering from my surgery. She adores their boys and really enjoys their doggies. She ate well, napped, and even went to sleep at night without a fight! I am so impressed that she did so well. When I was her age, my parents would leave me with my grandparents or aunt and uncle. In the Army life, one doesn't always have the luxury of having family nearby, and friends are called on to stand in the gap. I am sooooooo incredibly blessed to have found such a family of friends here at Irwin-town. Makes my heart sigh that we're leaving so soon.

Diaper Talent

I think it's about time to push the potty-issue. C has taken to changing her own diaper, well, actually a pull-up. It's incredibly cute. She does the whole thing, including wiping. This is only a problem if it's not just wet. Then, she comes a-running, hollering "yucky! yucky!" Then we wash her hands...for one of the thousand times we wash each day: C just loves to wash her hands. I really don't want to deal with the potty until after we've moved. I'm not relishing the idea of taking a potty-training toddler on a 4 day trip. Yes, we're taking 4 days to do the drive, so we can stop and do a few fun little side trippy things on the way.

Tree's Up

and C is totally into it...all the time. I guess it's our own fault for having cute Hallmark ornaments that look a lot like toys to her. At first, the tree was a novelty, and she was good about asking Daddy and Mommy for an ornament to look at, would examine it, and then give it back to us to hang back on the tree. As the novelty wore off, she stopped asking, and just started pulling them off. She isn't very nice to them and has broken one or two. So, our poor tree looks awfully topheavy though. As she discovers new ornaments to mess with, I keep moving them closer to the top of the tree. Just another source for tantrums, but without the tree it just doesn't seem like Christmas.

Disney in a Downpour

The first time I was at Disneyland, I was 10 years old, and we went in the rain. This weekend, we repeated the experience. It was great...after we took a break from the park and let C have her nap, and stopped at Target to buy a new umbrella, a new outfit and rain coat for C, shoes for me (I'd only taken my sandals!) and a smaller travel-sling to carry diapers (etc) around with us. During the first go-round at the theme park, my feet were soaked and C was shivering. However, the second go-round left C with giggles and grins and cries of "more!" and "again!" and "fun!" Because of the rain, the crowds were really light, and we didn't have to wait long for any of the events and rides. One of our first stops was the Princess Fantasy Faire, where little princesses could get their pictures taken with three of the Disney Princesses. This venue thing is a great idea on Disney's part. Last time we were there, the Princesses would come out for an hour or so, but the line for each was out of control. I'm sure that way some families did nothing all day but scout the appearance sites and stand in line to see the Princesses. Now, the line for the Princesses is continuous, with the Princesses rotating through the day, and each little girl gets 3 princesses at one shot. Much more convenient. C, however was less than impressed with the live princesses, prefering images to the real thing.

On the other hand, C was thoroughly enamored with the rides! She is old enough now that she can voice preferences, and she asked to ride the "horse" (Carousel) and "elephant" (Dumbo) twice. She saw the rockets on the Astro Orbiter and asked to ride the "plane". The really great thing about the light crowd was that when she asked to do things, we were able to just go get on that ride before the inkling passed. We also went on the Small World ride, and although she started out on the seat, she quickly clambored up onto F's lap so she could see all the displays. The awe I saw in her face is indescribable. Of course, I couldn't get a picture of it because flash photography isn't allowed inside the ride. All in all, I know she enjoyed herself, and that made the whole day worthwhile.

updated countdown

ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ

C wandered into the kitchen singing while I unloaded the dishwasher, and I didn't think much of it until she got to the "LMNOP" portion, which is what she'd been having trouble getting through. She was oblivious to the fact that I was watching her, and the face she made when I started clapping was priceless. Perhaps even more noteably, she repeated the feat when I asked her to!

Days like this make me just shake my head. We can have a day full of tantrums and then she'll pull out a moment like this that just makes me grin.

Dreamin'...part 2

Well, we are finally dreaming again around the Wong house. I'm still not sure what exactly was the cause of C's sleep problems, but we've gotten to the point where she's sleeping through the night again, and in her own (TWIN!) bed. She's done well for a week, so I hope we're on a trend now. We've finally worked out a bedtime routine that she likes and works for us too. However, I now have Goodnight Moon memorized. C likes the bedtime routine so much that I walked into her room this morning and she was standing by her toddler bed (that she won't sleep in), tucking Kitty, George and Jammie George in and "reading" Goodnight Moon to them. She turned around and said "back check", kissed them and walked away. Then she ran back to them. She was mimicking our routine. It was so cute! I'm hoping to get a picture of it sometime. It would make a great scrapbook page.

I'm "benign"

For those of you who knew, or those of you who are finding out by reading this post, I had surgery on the 26th for a mystery-lump in my jaw area. It had grown between February and September '07, so the doctors ran further tests. I had a CT scan that showed it was an enlarged lymph node, which could potentially be cancerous, but the blood work did not indicate "markers" for malignancy, but the surgeon felt it would be prudent to remove the mass. The surgery went fine; my scar is healing nicely; and the tests results are in. The mass was/is benign in nature, the result of something Dr. Martin (why do I keep thinking about shoes when I say that?) called "reactive hyperplasia." Just thought I'd share the news, now that it's all done and over with. For those who knew and were in prayer over this with me--thank you for your prayers as I prepared, recovered and waited for results.

She's SOOO Two

That's right, we've celebrated C's second birthday! She's into Thomas, so this year's theme was "train". Of course, our Day with Thomas was part of her celebration, but we also had a little get-together with friends, cake, presents and ice cream. Even though we invited more than two friends, only two were able to come, and I think I may keep the idea going--of having as many guests as the child is years' old. Two guests was manageable. I tried to have a little train-based craft for the kiddos, but I ended up sending the kit home with our guests as a "later favor" that they could do with their mommies at home. Our cake was awesome--my friend Mandy is super-talented at all things baking, and she made it for us. C recognized it both as cake and Thomas and wanted it immediately upon it's arrival at our house. It was quite a feat, keeping her fingers out of the frosting. She blew the candle out all by herself--before I could even get poised to assist. What a big girl! She also opened all her presents herself, much to her guests' chagrin. They wanted to help something awful! I think much of their frustration (havens, even some of my frustration!) was due to her opening strategy: one strip of paper was torn off at a time, and meticulously placed off to the side in a little pile. She was so excited by each one of her toys that she wanted to play with them right then. I had to take them away and insist that she finish opening. Each of the presents has already found it's place in the daily life of the Wong household though, to be played with, loved and not forgotten at the bottom of the toy baskets.

Here's a few pictures.

Day Out with Thomas

C is totally "into" Thomas the Tank Engine (train) these days. As chance would have it, there is a train museum about 2 1/2 hours from here, in Perris California. The day after C's calendar birthday, they sponsored a "Day Out with Thomas". The event included meeting Sir Topham Hatt (which we didn't get a picture of because my batteries died right as we got to the front of the line and I didn't have access to my extras at that moment), riding on a train that had Thomas pulling, and several other Thomas-related activities in "Imagination Station". Thomas also brought along his friend, Bob the Builder (whom C also LOVES!) who had a 20 minute show followed by a meet-and-greet session, where we did get a picture! Since C likes her trains so much, I think we may go back to look at the museum when it's not so crazy with kids to see Thomas. C was very excited to see Thomas pulling the train, and she boarded all by herself, to the amazement of our ticket-taker. The look on her face to see Bob arrive, live, was priceless. Her eyes got big and her mouth dropped open in awe. I was holding her though, so no picture. When we met Bob, she couldn't take her eyes off him! But I'm so proud of my little girl, she went right up to him, bold as brass!

Sleep Update

Progress is being made. We now have a nightlight, a holiday house with its lights on and a white noise machine set on "ocean" set up in C's room. It may sound ridiculous, but it's working. I also have to lay down with her until she falls asleep, but now if I get up and leave, she doesn't wake up. She's still waking in the middle of the night and hollering for a while, but she's no longer crashing on the floor after her fuss-session. She's crawling back up into bed. In addition, although we bought a toddler bed for her, she won't sleep in it; she's all about the big 'ol twin bed instead. Whatever, as long as she sleeps. As for naps, well, that's still a work in progress. If she falls asleep in the stroller, she'll continue napping in it for about an hour and a half. Otherwise, she wants to be held through her nap. Ugh. At least I'm learning to sort of doze in the easy chair. I still wonder where she gets this sleep issue--F can sleep absolutely anywhere in practically any conditions, and I think I'm a pretty average sleeper. Oh well, at least I no longer feel sleep deprived.

To Sleep, Perchance to Dream...

...Or Not.

Isn't keeping people from sleeping a form of torture? If it is, my daughter is torturing _me_. She's never napped well, and night-time sleep was terrible until she hit about 18 months. She went to bed nicely from about 18 months until the middle of October. For the past 2, almost 3 weeks, she's been, shall we say "resistant", to going to bed at night. She's fine if she's in the bed with Mommy and Daddy (for a night or 2--hoping she'd settle down), but that solution is unacceptable for the long run. We tried a night light (screamed longer); we tried laying down with her in her room until she goes to sleep(lasted FOREVER); we tried letting her cry it out (it has lasted up to an hour before she collapses on the floor for a short time before waking up to scream again). Everything I've seen says that after 3 consecutive nights of any one of these solutions, the child should be over the problem with sleeping. She continues to scream, fight and otherwise refuse to go to bed, and if we do get her to go to sleep, it lasts for about 4 hours and she wakes up screaming so we go through it all again.

Last night I rhetorically asked her, "why don't you want to go to bed?" She finally has the words to respond!
C: "Scared the monsters"
Mommy: "Where are the monsters?"
C: "Monsters dark"
Mommy: "Where in the dark?"
C: "Seep..." *whimper*

I think this means she's having nightmares? Great. Just great.

Little Quack's Halloween

My goodness, this autumnal season has been quite the hit at our house. After the trip to the pumpkin patch, C's been enamored with every pumpkin she's seen. Of course this means Halloween (to)night was a bit overwhelming on the pumpkin front. We had to go see every pumpkin in every yard. We had to wait until this evening when Fred got home from work to carve our pumpkin into a Jack o'Lantern. I'm just glad C was enthralled by the process, rather than horrified by it.
Last year "Tigger" was quite content to stay at the house and help Daddy pass out treats. This year, "Little Quack" quite quickly figured out what was going on and wanted to go around to the houses and get treats of her own. She even insisted on carrying her own pillowcase to get her treats. By the time she got tired, she'd figured out how to say "Trick or Treat, Please." and "Thank You," without prompting. I was quite pleased by her use of manners. We made it around our cul-de-sac and up the connecting street's cul-de-sac and up the next one over before she decided she was tired of walking. All our neighbors and friends commented that C was very cute, especially when she'd say "quack quack". We chose a duck costume for her, based on the "Little Quack" books she enjoys having us read to her, repeatedly. She loved her costume, touching it often even before she got to wear it; it was so soft. I'm just glad that she enjoyed herself...well, that and that I took the stroller along for when she was done walking. Our dear "Little Quack" has had her Halloween.

Growth Spurt

Part excitement, part disbelief...that's what I'm feeling just now. We have to go shopping this weekend! C has once again run out of clothes that fit--she grew again. She _just_ graduated up to the 18 month clothes, and now we get to go buy 24 month clothes/and 2 T's, except pants. The 18 month ones finally fit. I love buying little clothes! I'm also really excited because Grandma Wong gave C an absolutely gorgeous dress for Christmas last year, and C can finally wear it comfortably, and we'll have an opportunity to wear it that it's suitable for--Christmas! Good thing Halloween is tonight, since C's costume is a bit on the tight side; any more waiting, and I think we'd be in a pinch, since I doubt it will fit in a week or so.

Moving Ticker

I've found this site that lets a user make just about any type of countdown tool that they want to. So, now I'm counting down to moving day...just for fun. I actually keep losing track of how much time is passing.

Pumpkin Patch adventures

C went to the "pumpkin patch" for the first time on Monday. Kimberly and I took Sophie and C down to Redlands where there was a pumpkin patch more like the ones I recall as a child. It had more of an agricultural feel to it rather than the pen with pumpkins on tables that was set up in Victorville. C and Sophie got to pick out their pumpkins for the season, climb on a giant "hay castle" and visit a little petting zoo.

C was delighted by getting up and close feeding the goats running in the pen. She wasn't at all scared of having them eat out of her hand. In fact, when she got crowded by them, she started chasing them and giggling. It was a hoot! She was actually more afraid of the animals that were inside pens that she couldn't touch. She wanted a big pumpkin, but I decided the rule would be that she could only have a pumpkin that she could carry. She was pleased with her pumpkin, and has been saying "pumpkin" for several days, finding pictures of them in magazines and on the television. It's quite cute

We did have quite the adventure on the way home. We made it to the bottom of the Cajon Pass, where the I-215 and the I-15 merge and the pass had to be closed because of the wildfires. There was even a time when I could have taken pictures of the guardrails along the median of the road we were driving on, in flames. Freaky! We almost had to stay in San Bernardino or Redlands, but I called Papa, my dad, and he found a long way around the mountain range so that we could get home that night. It was really late by the time C and I got to crawl into bed. I'm just glad I wasn't driving!

Wong Memory

I think C has inherited the Wong memory, also known as the memory of an elephant. I think I will have to be careful because she'll never forget anything I ever say...that I want her to. A month or so ago the axel on her wooden scooter cracked, and I sent it to Papa in the hopes that he'd have the woodworking tools to fix it or remake it. I put the remaining scooter parts in the garage. When we left to go in the car, she kept trying to ride it without the wheels, gouging the bolt into the pavement. I finally told her it was broken, but Papa was going to send us a part to fix it. After that, she left the scooter alone. Papa did indeed see to it that we got a new part, by asking the shop teacher at the local high school to do it, and we got the part about two weeks ago. (Yes, I'm just now getting 'round to blogging about it.) When I opened the package, I told C that we were going out to the garage to get her scooter. (I mentioned nothing about Papa at all!) She ran to the garage, shouted "Papa fix! Papa fix!" and started dancing around. She remembered what I'd told her weeks ago. It took a bit to get it put back together, as she kept trying to "help". Here she is though, happy girl, to have her toy back.

Smells like...

Ketchup. That's what a toddler smells like. You know how when they're babies, they always have that "baby" smell, sweet and soft, no matter if they're just bathed, or it's been a day between baths? Toddlers, at least my toddler anyway, smell like ketchup. All the time. Some days it seems like everything she eats must be dipped. She prefers ketchup, but will tolerate tomato sauce such as can be found on spaghetti, Spaghetti O's, or even for dipping things like mozzarella sticks. Yesterday she dipped her grilled cheese sandwich in ketchup...ewww...I think she ultimately ingested more ketchup than either cheese or bread. She was covered in it. She bathed, and even then still smelled like ketchup during the before-bed rocking ritual. Eeeeyuch!!! She still smelled like ketchup this morning. Then she proceeded to eat more things dipped in ketchup. I guess this means she's getting plenty of lycopene, right?

Music and Lyrics

Not exactly the kind the movie was about, but C is, of course, developing an ear for music and tunes. She's begun singing. Actually, this has been going on for some time, but I want to share about her progress before she progresses past the cute learning part. First, she sang notes with no particular syllabication. Then, she began picking up parts of songs. Instead of learning the beginning, then middle, then end, like most people, she started with her favorite portions. The first one I noticed it with was "Itsy Bitsy Spider." She started with "washed spider out" and then learned the rest of it. This song also, incidentally, helped her master the concept of "again." Yippee. She's gone on to "If you're happy and you know it..." She learned "know it" *clap hands* first. Her current favorite is "Ring around the Rosie." Her version: while spinning sings "rosies, rosies, ashes, ashes, down!" followed by plopping on the ground. The first part she got of that though was not the rosies, but the ashes! Most recently she's added the ABC song to her repetoire. She started with H, I, J; added O, P, R, S and now sings..."A, A, C, D, E, E, E, H, I, J, K, O, P, R, S, double Y, X, Z". It's getting there. I'll try to record it and figure out the whole posting a video clip thing sometime. It's awfully cute, but I think I'm a tad biased.

Concepts

Oh boy, C has discovered several new concepts in the last few days. It's amazing to see her little mind develop and understand new things. She came up with "princess" recently, even though she's never been exposed to any "princess" stories in tv, movie or book form. She's pulled out her Usborne touch & feel books on her own and keeps coming to me with "Look!" and showing me something new she's discovered. Most striking though, is "Catch!" followed by her throwing something at me. Today we worked all evening on throwing a ball, not Roley, books or packages of baby wipes, and she's doing better about throwing appropriate items. She also started doing better about waiting until I'm ready. She says, "ready, go!" and then throws. However, she doesn't always wait until I say "okay." Oddly enough, she's become enchanted by the Iron Chef on Food Network. I was flipping through channels and she crawled up on my lap and said "stop" when I got to it, her eyes big, making "ooh" noises and saying "hot!" referring to the steam she noticed. When I changed the channel, she looked back at me and said "No! Back! Hot!"I couldn't help but laugh. I think all the action is what held her attention. I don't think she knew it was food. Considering her food pickiness lately, I think the knowledge that it was food would have turned her off. I wonder what she'll learn, or figure out, next.

Clothing sizes update

I no longer feel like petitioning the children's clothing industry to change their sizing. C must have had a growth spurt since the last time I tried her 18 m pants on. Today she got to wear pants that fit! They were labeled 18 m. and they stayed on! So, she now wears 18 month pants, 18 month shirts, and 24 month dresses? How much sense does that make?

Lost Pounds

I heard a funny the other day from my British friend, Louise. I suddenly realized how much weight I'd lost, and blurted it out. She responded, "I'm sure it'll turn up again somewhere, in the couch cushions, in a purse pocket. Just keep looking." Then she explained, "That's a joke in the UK, since our money is in pounds, not dollars." I couldn't stop laughing! Here's my latest ticker, updated--even though the other posting updates when I change the data. I'm pretty thrilled with the results so far.

Crazy Kids' Clothing sizing

Okay, I'm just about up to "here" with the sizing on kids' clothing. C started out "normal"--when she was 3 months old, she outgrew the 0-3 clothes, when she was 6 months, she outgrew the 3-6 months clothes. However, she kept wearing 6-9 months clothes until she was 12 months, and wore the 12 months clothes until she was 21 months old. I know that's all because she's small, but now we've reached the ridiculous point. At 21 months, she started wearing 18 months shirts, and stayed in 12 month pants! She's still in mostly 18 month shirts (dresses and jumpers) and can wear some 24 month ones, if they're on the small side. Pants, on the other hand--12 month pants are now too short, but 18 month pants are sometimes the right length, but too big in the waist and fall off (I tried taking them in with the sewing machine, but they're not too big enough to have enough extra fabric to use)! BUT, I put her in 24 month/2T crops the other day, and THEY fit, at crop length and without falling off the waist. How bizarre is that? Dresses, skirts and jumpers are about the only thing I can find that fit the child correctly, but F doesn't want her in skirts all the time (just church, basically). He thinks pants are better for playtime. I feel like pleading with the kids' clothing industry--would somebody out there make a pant that'll fit my skinny kid!?

Go Fish!

This last weekend (4 October - 6 October) we went "down the hill" to see F's Uncle Peter and Aunt Amy. Our big event was visiting the Aquarium of the Pacific at Long Beach. C is quite enamored with fish right now, and there were plenty there for her to look at. As soon as we walked through the door, she squealed "fish" and wanted out of her stroller so she could get right up to the glass and see them up close. She was definitely impressed. I'd be hard pressed to figure out what her favorite part might have been. I just know that my favorite, the seals and sea lions, failed to capture her interest.

As for the travel part, it was a bit of practice for C and a trial run at how long we can drive without having to stop for a wiggle break (for our road trip to Leavenworth when we move). We stopped several places and shopped along the way, letting C push her own stroller and run around in the stores and mall a bit. The travel wasn't all that bad, actually, except for the fact that she thought she didn't need to go to sleep at night. We also learned that buffets are a "go", fast-food is a "go", but sit and be served places are definitely a "no-go"...for right now at least. Our best meal (comfort-wise) was probably the take-out pizza that we took back to our hotel. The worst was the cafeteria at the aquarium (C wanted her food NOW, and screamed until Daddy made it through the line). Soup Plantation was good, and the meal at the Sea Empress, while quite tasty, was uncomfortable because C just isn't quite suited to sitting still and eating right now.

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Cranky toddler

I've figured out why C's been in such a mood the last few days/weeks. She yawned this morning and I caught a good view of a second bottom molar on each side! No wonder she's been a whiny, fussy, particularly persnickity pickle with a runny nose and no appetite who's primary purpose in life was to drive Mommy bonkers!

Decisions, Decisions...

I feel like all I do these days is make decisions...or make decisions about making decisions. Ugh. After getting the news about moving, we had to decide about housing. First, we were going to put it off until Fred got some more specifics about dates and such, but I was browsing the available housing off-post in the Leavenworth area, and discovered that the houses I liked that were open one day for our intended time-frame, but were snapped up by the time I looked again, so we decided to decide about housing! I spent a number of days on the phone with friends more familiar with the area than I, and after much "going 'round", we have determined that the best choice for us is going to be taking on-post housing. Even though there's no guarantee of the type of housing we might be assigned, I'm confident that I'm more likely to regret not living on post for social support than I am likely to regret not living off-post so I could get a house with more perks.

Orders

That's right, we've gotten orders for the next assignment, and it looks like a move will take place shortly after the Winter Leave period, also known as Christmas Break, though not closely enough to move during the leave period...thank goodness. Also involved will be a deployment. This will be my first as an Army Wife. Not sure just how I feel about that just yet; I'm still trying to wrap my head around leaving Ft. Irwin. In the last 10 years, (since college, basically) I've lived here longer than anywhere else, and it feels odd to think about moving again. My head is spinning with all the details that have to be worked out and plans that have to be made. Not really looking forward to home-hunting from a distance again. However, the internet makes that a whole lot easier. I'm also having heartache leaving so many friends, and in the middle of the year, not at the usual PCS-season, and all the familiarity of the area. However, we are moving back to a relatively familiar landscape, and I have several friends once-from-here, who are now there. The move was planned, as we expected F to go to school this summer. It's just not quite on my timetable. I wasn't so "happy" about the move at first, more "practical" but God has truly provided His peace, in scripture and in circumstances. I'm ready to plan, and so, we're off to Fort Leavenworth sooner, rather than later! Kansas friends...see you soon!

On sentences and sizes

C is growing up so fast! She's starting to put her words together in sentences now. Her first sentence was quite some time ago, but she didn't continue. She pulled a stuffed dog out from under my head that I was pretending to nap on, quipping, "That's my doggy!" Lately though, she's been adding to her repetoire, saying things like "George is a monkey" and "Thomas is a train" and my favorite, "Daddy goes poop."

On another note regarding progress of a different kind. I've had to hand down some pants that I've out-shrunk, and I'm going to have to go shopping for a new size of pants pretty soon. A friend gave me a pair of shorts the next size down, and this morning I got them completely on for the first time, and they aren't too tight to breathe! I'm so excited, I did the happy dance. I'm quite pleased.

MOPS kickoff

It's official, the year has started. Both of the organizations I'm involved in have had their kick-offs. MOPS got started yesterday, with an amazing meeting. The theme this year is "The Home Factor...Begin Here, Go There." We started yesterday with the Front Porch, where people gather to visit and get to know one another. Fittingly, we had activities for the ladies to get to know each other in their care/discussion groups. We started with a skit to set the tone for the year, based on the story of the 3 little pigs. It turned out so cute! I couldn't believe the laughter in the room! If you'd like a copy, let me know...I wrote it, though I credit all the inspiration totally to the Lord. We also made a welcome sign for our homes. The most hilarious part of the day was the Survivor: Motherhood game we played. Each of the discussion groups was a team and had challenges that relate to surviving a day as mommy of an under-6er (toddler, infant, preschooler). I had no idea that toilet paper could be rolled back up so quickly, or that adults could chug baby food! The Care Fair was yesterday too, and several women who'd been to their first MOPS meeting ever that morning stopped to tell us that they had so much fun, and they'll be back! We may even run into an awesome problem: having to start a new discussion group! Praise God!

Saying "I Love You"

Tonight after I put C to bed, I ran to the computer to blog this momentous occasion. C went into her crib, asked for Kitty, Bear, and George, in turn--and received them. I told her "Mommy loves you," kissed my fingers and pressed the kiss to her cheek. She kissed her hand and reached out to me. I asked her, "Can C say 'I love you'?" And she did! Rather clearly, "I wuf oo." Twice...the second time was after she saw how happy it made me. Wow...what an evening. My eyes are tearing up. What a sweet, sweet moment.

Toddlerhood: Potty training and food jags

Well, it's official, we've begun potty training. For months C has been interested in the toilet, and it's use, and every so often she'd ask to sit on it, but when she said "all done" nothing new was in the potty. This morning though, we were in the middle of changing the morning diaper, and C said "potty!" I indulged her, and lo, and behold, there was new stuff in the potty when she said "all done!" Yippee!

Now, if I could just get her to eat something besides applesauce, oatmeal and goldfish crackers. I think those 2-year molars that she's been working on lately are hurting, so she's fussy about what goes in her mouth. However, knowing that doesn't make living with her persnickitiness any easier.

Aaack! I'm raising a tvophile

Well, my intentions were good, but I started something that I think I'm beginning to regret. I was sick some time ago, and so I could rest, just left the tv on PBS. It was all well and good for a bit, but then we took that trip to San Diego and bought the DVD player and the Thomas DVDs. She is now officially addicted to the big entertainment box...specifically Curious George, Thomas the Train, and Clifford, the Big Red Dog. Her favorite is Curious George, of course. However, she has also learned to say "George," "monkey," "Thomas," and "choo-choo," often at the top of her lungs. At least she also loves the books about George and Thomas so we do get to read fairly often as well. I really didn't intend to let her watch this much television, but it's such an easy way to make her happy. Ugh. At least I'm becoming well-versed in children's public television. How 'bout the rest of you. Do you find the television on more often than you'd like, or am I just a lazy Mommy?

Quick Visit

This has been the summer of the grandparents. Not only were we able to take C to see her Grandparents Wong, but her Grandparents Lippert got to come visit her! She was unsure of them at first, but after they had been here for about 20 minutes, she seemed to remember them and got all excited and show-offy. It was hard to get her to bed that night! They arrived late on a Sunday night, and returned to Vegas on Wednesday for their early-morning Thursday flight. I managed to schedule a number of my meetings and practices for our upcoming programs for that week, so I had built-in sitters! It was such a luxury. Grampa, who has been dubbed "Papa" or "Poppy," taught C how to "gimme five". She entertained Gramma by trying to lay out her blankets on the floor, quite fastidiously. The blanket thing is a rather recent obsession, as she lays them out, lies down on them and says "nap", "shhh, shhh, shhh" a few times, closes her eyes and then pops back up to repeat the process. All of this with a stuffed friend in her arms. Gramma helped me out by doing some laundry, and C, just like when Mommy does the laundry, helped shift the wet clothes to the dryer. She thinks it's great fun and Gramma was impressed. The cutest thing about their visit, and probably the saddest was the moment we returned home after having dinner with my parents in Barstow. We came through the laundry room door and C ran to the living room, where Grampa had most often been during the visit, laughing "Pa-pa! Pa-pa!" it quickly became "Pa-pa?" as she ran through the kitchen looking for him, followed by a wailing "PA-PA!!!!!" when she realized he wasn't here. She was quite distressed. The next few times we came home from being out, she went through the same procedure, but has since recovered. I think she's going through a "male" phase; she's really enamored with Daddy and was quite smitten with both grandfathers during her time with them. It was a nice visit, but I wish it had been longer, or that C's grandparents were closer so we could see all four of them more often.

There's no place like home

Well, I guess I've finally caught up through our vacation. It was great to get away, wonderful to see C's grandparents, but it's equally nice to get back to home and our routine. It's taken a few weeks, but C seems to be back on a nap schedule--finally. It's such a relief to be able to plan to accomplish things during that time again, and to be able to plan activities for particular times of the day! We've had a few "big" things happen in the time since I started trying to get the vacation blogged.

We had a playdate for MOPS at the Oasis Pool (cute name for a pool in the desert, huh?) one morning. C started out clinging to me, but very quickly became comfortable enough to stretch out and try to kick. She has a really cute froggie-style kick. She hasn't ventured to reaching out to paddle with her arms yet, but I'm sure it won't be long. She's so comfortable in the water! We spent a good half hour to 45 minutes of our time in the pool "jumping" in. She was jumping; I was catching. She started out sitting on the edge of the pool and sliding directly into my arms. This graduated rapidly to standing on the edge and walking directly into my arms. After a few of these "jumps", I started standing further and further away (further being inches, of course) and she stepped out toward me, allowing herself to go under water and pop back out. She decided this was great fun and giggled every time she emerged. Wish I had pictures, but then again, I was the one in the pool with her! Maybe next time I'll remember to have someone around take a few.

A few milestones have occurred as well. She's such a good little girl; she's going to bed cooperatively says"pease" and "tant tou" without a reminder sometimes and even plays independently, without an audience, for short periods of time. Verbally, she's made leaps and bounds. She calls me "Mommy" now, F has become "Daggy" for the time being and knows Shadow's name, and calls her by it. She has picked up some phrases, like "there you go", "(a)gin" and "opme" (open it for me). Most of her phrases have been word sets that F and I use on a fairly regular basis. She put together her first sentence a while ago, "that's my doggy" when I was pretending to nap on her brown beanie buddy. Last night though, she finally put together the item requested _with_ the please, saying "up pease". Usually she says "up" and then we wait and she'll say "pease". Her physical skills are astonishing me. She put her dressy shoes on by herself the other day, on the correct feet, with the velcro straps done up, and speaking of shoes, she had my flipflops on just yesterday, with the divider through the toes correctly! She's doing really quite well with feeding herself with a spoon--only about 5 % ends up on the floor or her anymore. Just today she started putting her arms through her shirt while she's getting dressed in the morning, and has decided that she wants to throw her own diaper away after changing. Most impressive though is her jumping. She graduated from bouncing to two-footed hopping very recently, and there is much hopping around the house, especially when music is on!

Pittsburgh, part 3: Adventures with Clifford and Mr. Rogers

Just like "Emily Elizabeth", Clifford's human, C could slide down Clifford's tail!

True to scale, C could climb into Clifford's doggy bowl and play with his treats. The learning part of this exhibit was a hand-cranked conveyer belt that loaded the doggy treats into the dish.

F picked up C so she could see Clifford up close. My camera missed the moment when she hugged him. In addition, there was a section where C could climb through a tunnel to Cleo's yard, play with "sand" shapes with T-bone, pretend to be a mail carrier, wear a costume and pretend to be one of the dog characters. The display also included several buildings that are shown on Birdwell Island, including Clifford's doghouse, where kids could draw pictures, a snack-shack from the boardwalk, the Bleakman's house, and the schoolhouse, where little ones could learn all about Norman Bridwell, Clifford's author. C thought the snack-shack was pretty neat. We spent a good half hour in it, serving up plastic snacks. Mmm...tasty!



Clifford is a temporary exhibit, on tour throughout the United States. The museum has several permanent exhibits; however, most of them are intended for exploration by children a bit older than C. One exhibit that she was ready for though, is the rather large area devoted to Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood. Considering Fred Rogers was from Pittsburgh, that seems appropriate. I was taken right back to my childhood seeing Trolley, Henrietta Pussycat, X the owl, Daniel Tiger, King Friday and Queen Sara, all on display (original puppets, in glass cases: these, the kids couldn't play with). There was a mock up of Mr. Rogers' living room, and C "played" on the player piano. She made shapes with the push-pegboard in Lady Elaine's Museum-go-round and visited with some puppets in X's tree and a mock-up-castle. There were so many things--we couldn't see or do all of them. C wasn't ready for some of the activities, and we had to cut our time there short, since we had plans with F's friend from college that night.

Getting on the trolley to go to Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood. Oooh...now I need to find Mr. Rogers on PBS. It was truly a blessing to go down this memory lane with my baby girl.

Pittsburgh, part 2: Children's Museum "Getting there"

As we were leaving Delaware and sitting at the airport in Philadelphia, C and I did a little exploring, and were thrilled at what we found-a play area sponsored by "The Please Touch Museum". I was thoroughly impressed. Of course, I'd left my camera back at the gate with F. They had an amazing setup with a mock large passenger airplane, control tower, and twin engine plane. Kids could communicate with each other from the passenger plane and control tower, and fuel up the twin engine. The control tower had a slide attached and there was simply an incredible number of things to look at and play with--too many to describe here. Prior to that point, I had merely hoped to take C to the Children's Museum in Pittsburgh, not entirely sure that she was old enough to enjoy it. Seeing her interact with the display at the airport, I changed that "hope" to a definite "plan". When we arrived in Pittsburgh, we started to see billboard advertisements with Clifford, the Big Red Dog advertised. Looking closer, we discovered that they were for a special exhibit at the Pittsburgh Children's Museum. Now, we simply HAD to go...C watches Clifford, has a Clifford stuffie, and started pointing at the billboards once in Pittsburgh. We originally thought that the Children's Museum would be co-located with the Carnegie Museums, which is why we went there first. We were mistaken. Once we found the Children's Museum though, we had a good laugh, as F had earlier pointed the building out to me as the planetarium Gung gung and Po po had taken him to as a youngster. F didn't realize it though, until we were in the building and he discovered the pendulum that he recalled from the planetarium days in the now-food court! We did, however, wish that we'd been able to reverse our choices and spend more time at the Children's Museum than at the Carnegie Museums, considering how much C loved it. Look how excited she was just to get there (to see Clifford!) More about the museum later!

Pittsburgh, part 1: Carnegie Museum of Natural History

"Brrr!"


Touching the "Brrr!" in the Discovery center

After all those days in Delaware, we weren't quite finished with our travels. We flew into Pittsburgh and after driving around, exploring F's grandparents' old neighborhood, finally locating the hotel where we had reservations (Don't recommend mapquest!) we went to dinner at Eat'n Park with a family friend. The next morning we started our big day in Pittsburgh. First we had to do a driving tour of Carnegie Mellon University, Shadyside and Squirrel Hill, F's haunts from his college days. They're close to the Carnegie museums, so it was convenient to do so while we waited for the museums to open.

Our first stop was the Carnegie Museum of Natural History (we saw some of the Art one too). I thought C would enjoy the Natural History portions more than the Art. She was most interested in the animals on the second floor. It was cute to watch her point to each animal and try to label it. Lions became "kitties", as did tigers and all other forms of cats. The deer was labeled "hos" (horse in C-speak), as was the camel. She got the giraffe right, but the hippo was "pig". The best part of the museum though was the Children's Discovery Center in the lower level of the museum. There was a bear mounted just like in the exhibits upstairs, but children were allowed to touch it. C made a beeline for it when we walked in, very excited to see the "Brr!" With F's help, she touched it and I was glad we've been working with her on soft, nice touches with the cats. She explored all sorts of Child-size and exploration exhibits in the area. She touched shark's teeth, tried to kiss a turtle through the glass of it's aquarium, and felt lots of different textures from natural objects. She was so excited about everything! It was fun to watch her explore.

Delaware, part 5: tourism

Ducks at Wilmington's Brandywine Park


Grandma Wong pushing C at the park near the historical district in New Castle


Grandpa Wong reading to C on our "at home" day

To be quite honest, it was a tad difficult to find tourist-y type things to do near the Grandparents Wong's home. Especially things that would hold C's interest. On the first day we were there, we tried to go to the Brandywine Zoo in Wilmington. Unfortunately, there was a traffic issue and we were stuck on a State Route, trying to get onto the interstate...for about 2 hours, when we only moved about 200 feet. We skipped the zoo that day, and instead went shopping (see previous post). The next day, we tried again and successfully reached the park and zoo. The zoo is small, but just the right size for a toddler, and tucked away in an absolutely beautiful park. The park was an amazing oasis of nature in the middle of the harsh city.

After two days out, we opted for staying home on the third day. C enjoyed herself, playing with Grandma and reading with Grandpa, and just scampering around in their spacious living room.

On the fourth day, we drove up to New Castle and walked among some of the oldest buildings still standing in America, and along a short bit of coast. After the trip in the car, C needed some time to run around, so we stopped at a small park in the area. We walked past the birthplace of William Penn, an old Presbyterian church and an old Episcopalian church (both c. 1690's). It was a concrete lesson in how architectural styles are particular to a given historical period and change over time. We also tried to tour the home of Delaware's Governor George Read, but C was a bit cranky and we would have had to wait for the tour to start. Instead, we headed out, and by a bit of providence, found the old courthouse museum open near our car. The courthouse was under renovation, so we didn't see much, but one of the docents provided us with a brief overview of Delaware's history and showed us a few items on display.

We left the following day, flying into Pittsburgh for a brief visit with some friends and some museum time. (More later!)

Delaware, part 4: playground time

One thing C LOVES to do is go to the playground. Here at home, it's usually too hot to go to the playground except during twilight time or early morning (like before 0800!) during the summer months. When we walk past the playground areas during our morning constitutional, she makes hopeful noises as we approach, and disappointed ones as we depart. The weather was beautiful though in Delaware and the grandparents Wong have a playground just a few blocks from their home. We went over each day of our vacation, and C enjoyed every minute of it. Of course, Grandma and Grandpa were delighted to watch her run all over the area, climb on the equipment, bounce on the bouncy things and slide on the slides. The first day we went, she was afraid of the big bouncy frog, but by the last day of our time there, she was running to the frog, squealing "frog" and returning to it time and again. The large, slide/stairs apparatus had a short bridge walkway that intimidated her quite a bit at first. She didn't like being able to see through the slats. Once Daddy walked over it a couple of times holding her hand, she was fine, as long as he was at one end or the other waiting for her. She was still cautious, but she was being so brave! I'm not sure which she likes more, the slide or the bouncies. She calls the slide a "whee" (accompanied by giggles), but I'm pretty sure she spends an equal amount of time on the bouncies. She goes to the bouncies first, but she could be saving the slide (the best?) for last.

Delaware, part 3: shopping

No trip with F is complete without a shopping outing. C is getting to a stage where she doesn't want to ride in her stroller, but would prefer walking. Walking with both hands held is best. She thought it was great fun when she got to walk in the store holding both Grandma and Grandpa Wongs' hands. I thought it was so cute, I just had to get a picture.

Delaware, part 2: Buttons!

C loves things with buttons! Another treat Grandma and Grandpa Wong had waiting for C was this preschool laptop. It's a nifty learning tool, with all sorts of fun little games on it. C's not quite ready for the games, but she loved pushing the buttons and watching "something" happen on the screen or with the sounds. She really loves the monkey who hosts each of the games. I'm sure it will be quite useful to have around during those moments when C wants to be just like Mommy and use the computer. However, Mommy needs to get some earplugs before this toy comes out for "anytime" use. That monkey is loud!

Delaware, part 1: Tea Party

Well, the summer leave season for 2007 is, as C would say, "all done". C has taken her 9th airplane ride, and has now seen both coasts. She's one well-traveled toddler. I have several days worth of blogging information, so I'm going to break it up a bit. When we arrived in Delaware to see Grandma and Grandpa Wong, Grandma surprised C with a table that's just her size, and a Beauty and the Beast tea set. C immediately fell in love with both, and she and Grandma had several "tea parties" during our stay. I'm excited that C understood the concept of the tea party, as one of her friends is enamored with tea parties as well, and this gives them another playtime potential. More later...