brrr!!

Ever since the initial spring-like weather about week or so ago, Maggie and I have been itching to get outside for a stretch at least once or twice a day! Of course, being springtime, the weather is fickle ... beautiful sunshine and 65 degrees one day, and torrential downpours and wind the next. Today we got tricked! Maggie and I played inside much of the morning, but the sun was so bright ... her room was warming up nicely, so we got dressed, shoe-d and headed out...

... and ran back in for coats! So we got "coated" too, and then headed out to play. Well, the porch was in the shade and that was way too cold! Maggie kept saying, "Water!" and hinting she was very interested in playing at her water table. I'm not sure she got it when I tried to explain that we just might freeze if we played with water in this chilly weather...

So I distracted her. We trooped around the garden and driveway and stayed reasonably comfortable when not in the shade. Eventually our teeth were chattering and Maggie was calling on "Charlie" (this means "It's chilly!") so we headed in. After eating some lunch, I get online to see it's 41-frickin'-degrees! No wonder we were so cold ... I thought we were just being wussy! C'mon spring, get your act together and bring us some sunshiney-love! :)


Also getting a slightly more "Charlie" reception, our friend the potty. For the last few days, Maggie has not shown as much interest. And though she has managed to poop in the potty twice, she's becoming increasingly freaked out by the idea of "transacting" that kind of "business" in the potty. So we'll step back a little for now, take it easy ... this will not become a battle of the wills, because we all know who would win! ;)

maggie's world... potty time ... excellent!

By the time we got back from our "spring break" in snowy Michigan (during the first week of March ... brrr, I suppose it was spring somewhere), a package had arrived and was sitting on our landlord's doorstep. What ever could it be??



We had ordered a potty chair since Maggie was announcing things like, "Poop?" when we'd hear that she was working on her "business." We had also ordered a little book called Big Girls Use the Potty in order to spend $30 and get free shipping. Our plan was to just take it waaaay easy and be very casual about things. We didn't want to push the potty training issue on Maggie, as she still is quite young to be thinking about such things. We just set it out in her bathroom and showed her that she had a new book to look at.


It has been a surprise to me - but she has taken right to it! She loves the little book and walks around saying, "Potty!" In the last couple days, she has been sitting on the potty a couple times daily AND actually peeing. (We weren't going to jump into rewarding her with stickers on a chart, but since she has taken interest, we put it up.) This morning she even pooped, which surprised me to no end. She normally would pee and talk about "poop?" but not sit still long enough to really... transact any business. Yet today ... she did! Wow!

I somehow think the thrill won't last and we'll be back where we started in no time, but since she has shown interest (and even some proficiency), I did actually order some cloth pull-up training pants. Might as well run with it since she is interested, I guess! And though she's still a little young to have a handle on undressing herself, these might be a little easier to get out of than a diaper, a cover, and a snappi. :)

*sigh*

Today I am much more tired than triumphant.

today's laugh :)

(click comic to enlarge)

wrapping up 2009 ...

We're on the road coming home from having spent a wonderful couple of days down in Melbourne, Florida - where Tim's parents reside. Maggie has had an excellent time with her grandparents and though she always takes a while to warm up, her moodiness and sadness this morning definitely had to do with the realization she was leaving her new friends and family ... and that was difficult for her to do! Slowly but surely, she developed relationships and games and routines with her aunts and grandparents ... and experiencing all those fun new things made our leaving today SO hard to do!

Tim & I have just been marveling at Maggie's communication - this week alone! She is making so many strides with expressing herself - not just with words, but also with signs. And she is repeating SO many things ... guess it's time to check ourselves and be a little more careful as we may have quite a little talker on our hands VERY shortly! Some of her revelations have included:

- When Tim's mom sang vocal warm up songs to her, she was able to say "'gin! 'gin!" asking her Grammy to repeat that same vocal song ... again and again. :)

- Saying, "Amen!" repeatedly at the end of our mealtime prayer. Girlie has got the Spirit!

- Being very clear with her "all done" signs at the end of meals, bathtimes, naptimes ... and while we try to honor her clear signal, we also tried to make sure still napped as necessary. :)

- Doing more signs than usual - "water" and "change" standing out.

There's lots of other things too ... mostly lots of repetition and things that sound pretty close to real words and phrases - "I diit" (I did it) or "Bangda" (granddad) or "eeee" (which now could mean not only monkey sounds or teeth ... but also "tree" or "east." Grandma taught her about going east.) :) She's also saying "nana" (banana) and "keeee" (kitty) and meowing (ya ya ya, she "sings" it) ...

Anyway, we will soon stop at our hotel for the night (in Florence, SC). Happy new year! May 2010 bring blessings upon blessings - and joy and peace of mind and heart to help you through the inevitable difficulties!

communication!

We've been having some fun little breakthroughs with Maggs in the communication department. Of course, she chatters away all the time and much of what we do is guess and go by her emotional cues (oh, and she has emotional cues!) ... but for the sake of my memories (and not being a diligent scrapbooker or baby-booker), here are some of things Maggie says/signs as we approach the 18mo mark:

- eee eee eee! (Depending on inflection, this is either a monkey OR a toothbrushing request)
- hewp/ewp ("help!" - usually w/getting in a chair or out of a basket, she also signs this by clasping her hands together and raising them up and down in front of her - very close!)
- uh-oh!! (her phrase of choice ... for mischeviousness, for dropping things, for...just about anything!)
- umma umma! (Yum! I like this! ... or want this!)
- da (refers to Dad ... and sometimes other relatives ... an oddly enough, Ms. Ruth, our church organist)
- mama (yes folks, that's me!)
- nasal snorts (in general she is looking at a picture of a pig when this happens)
- quack/guack (duck sounds, she also signs "bird" for just about every kind of aviary she sees ... and sometimes for other animals as well? She talks about birds a lot!)
- oof oof (says a dog)
- tayoo (I swear I've heard this and in context it could really be "thank you"!)
- signs "eat" and "more" and "all done" and sometimes makes a drinking motion for a cup of milk

I am sure there more, but I know I'm forgetting some things. I will add to the list as I remember/witness more of these fun little "breakthroughs." :)

And many happy wishes to my sister-in-law/new mama (the girl is a natural): Amy, who birthed Sofia Victoria on the morning of December 3! She is such a sweet girl who we got to spend the last two days with and we are looking forward to many more visits in the future! Many blessings be upon your days together and may God continue to bless this beautiful family: Amy, Gonzalo, and Sofia!


Me with (the slightly jealous) Magdalena and new cousin, Sofia!

new skill!

Look what Maggs can do! I'm used to helping her scoop but I just let go... and what do you know? She can do it! (Of course, it's a little messier with something like applesauce or pureed peas ... they don't stay put on the spoon as well!)