Halloween kitty cheese

Much fun was had by some. Any guesses as to who the Scrooge was? ;-)

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I can't smile, I'm busy...

Like mother, like daughter? I had forgotten my phone at work today, so after dinner Aylin tagged along to retrieve it. She climbed right up into my chair. When I asked for a smile I got "no, I'm busy..." Then she climbed down to explore the rest of the office and decided jumping on the beds in the showroom was way more fun. :-D

Hands...

Mommy and Aylin's hands, contemplating bathwater wrinkled fingers.

Putting stickers on Bernie

She's having a blast.

Coloring and motor-mouthing

Reading with Bernie

While Papa Joe works on a hand rail for Bernie, she and Aylin are bonding over Veggie Tales stories.

Aylin playing with Uncle Rich

Smart Lil Cookie!

In the days/weeks since Aylin began using underwear at school and at home, she has potty trained very quickly. Almost from day 1 of trying on underwear at school she has rarely had an accident! Which, for better or worse, is one of the big milestones for moving up to the next room at daycare.

 

Generally the rule of thumb for moving up to the next rom has been:

1. 3 years old
2. Potty trained
3. Can drink from a regular cup or cup with a straw
4. Is able to keep up with the other kids in the class

Well aparently my kid has all of those down except for the 3 year old bit. So Monday when I came to pick her up she had spent the afternoon in the 3 year old class and has stayed ever since. In talking to the director about the unexpected move yesterday she mentioned that "Aylin is just ready. She is so smart, she needs to be with these kids. Now that she's using the potty regularly with almost no accidents she really needs to be where she can keep growing and learning". I was shocked. I mean, yeah, don't all parents want to hear those things?! Yet, I don't expect it so when I do hear it i I puff up like any proud momma would! I am so proud of my little bug!! Sounds like we may need to start planning our Potty Trained Party faster than I thought we would! Anyone up for some Chuck -E- Cheese?! :D

Potty Training Successes

Some of the most beautiful words to a mother of a toddler's ears are:

• I love you
• Night-night (means we're going to bed without a fight!)
• Please & Thank you
• Help you Mama?!
• Need go potty Mama! <-- the most recent addition!

We have been using pull ups and a potty seat for quite some time now, however Aylin's interest in using the potty at home has been very minimal. I tried not to push it, because I felt like it needed to be something she came to me with, or if she was asked if she needed to go and replied NO! I didn't want to force it. I didn't want it to become a frusting thing for her. Aparently that was a good plan! Off and on she has been trying during the day at school, but still didn't want to go at home. I would ask, and her immediate reaction was NO! The past week or so (I just noticed this yesterday from a potty chart at the school) she has been going more regularly on the potty at school. When I went to pick her up the teacher mentioned that she had done really well all day and that her pull ups had been dry all day. So after nap time they decided to try her in a pair of real panties and see how she did. She stayed dry ALL afternoon! So she came home in panties, and 4 more times at home she used the potty!!! I was so excited! She would quite randomly just start pulling on her skirt and then say "Need go potty Mama!" So we'd rush to the bathroom and she'd sit and go! She was so proud of herself. It was truly awesome. I couldn't be happier for my little bug who'se growing up!

Daddy's big boots

She loves 'em.

Cutest. Kid. Evar.

Srsly.

A couple of recent videos of the kiddo…

Just a-swingin'!

I hung a swing in the old oak tree in the front yard this afternoon. The weather was perfect when the girls got home, so Aylin got to swing for quite some time while her mom cooked dinner. Looks like a winner to me.

Paci Free Day #1

Today we went without a pacifier all day excluding naps and bedtime. Thankfully, with only relatively minor meltdowns it was a success. The most difficult times were in the car, since our drive is around 50 minutes. She gets bored, so she'd ask for her paci. I would tell her it was at home in her bed. She'd cry, maybe throw a bit of a fit. But was easily distracted by books. Let's hope the rest of the week goes as smoothly, and by the weekend we won't be so dependant. *fingers crossed*

Language is exploding at our house!

The good kind, that is. The other kind… well, I'm working on it. :)

Aylin has crossed some kind of threshold in the last day or two, and wants to be talking all the time. She's kind of like a broken record, but we tend to learn by repetition, so that's not really a big deal. She'll latch onto a phrase for a little bit — "I don't need it [shakes head]," for instance — and repeat it over and over again, looking for confirmation that she does not, indeed, need whatever it is.

She's mostly internalized the please-and-thank-you routine. The other night we went to Buffalo Wild Wings for dinner. We were walking through the parking lot, Aylin holding my hand on the way to the door, when one of her Crocs came off her heel a little bit. Kristina said, "Aylin, your shoe's coming off; let me help you." Aylin stopped; Teena fixed her shoe, and Aylin immediately said, "Thank you, Mommy!" And off we go again.

It's fascinating, humbling, fun and inspiring, all at once. These are some of the best things about being a parent: Watching your child grow and learn, becoming a little person.

More potty-training successes!

I suppose I should spare y'all the down-and-dirty details… But suffice it to say Aylin continues to move forward in her potty-training.

I was really dreading this process. I've heard so many horror stories from other families along the way, I guess I expected it to be really hard. So far, though, it's just been a very natural progression for Aylin. She's basically directing the timeline. She's as excited about it as we are, I think. After her successful trip this evening, she was running around yelling, "So poud of oo! [So proud of you!]," which is what her momma told her after she finished.

When Aylin went back into daycare last year, she joined a class full of kids who were just a little bit older than her, and that seemed to jump-start her language development. It seems that the same thing is now happening with potty-training. There are a lot of kids in her class who are developing their potty discipline, and I can't help but think it rubs off… no pun intended.

Canine companion

I'm glad to see Bela has finally mellowed to the point where she can let Aylin maul her like this.

Whose a big girl who tinkled in the toilet at home?!

This one!!! So so SO SO PROUD!

Lil one is growin up!

Although sometimes it's hard to believe that it's been two years ago that God blessed Jeff and I with the most amazing and precious gift. It's days like we've had recently that remind me she is no longer a baby.

For one she has started learning to count at daycare, and can count from 1-6 on her own. Then she usually skips straight to 9 from there. Tonight she started counting and was pointing to each of her fingers as she did so! She's so smart!

She's also learning letters. Some she actually gets right most of the time. P, Y, W, O are a few.

She transitioned to the 2 year old class at daycare 2 weeks ago today. And literally required ZERO transition time. Normally they give two weeks of part time in each class to get used to the new room. She went up one day and was doing so well they let her stay and hasn't gone back since, much to the disappointment of her first teachers. She learned all of the names of her new classmates within the first week. And her new teachers are constantly telling me "she is SO smart!".

With the move up to the big girl room she gets the opportunity to use a potty. While she has tried a few times at home she hasn't been terribly interested in it. But now with other kids doing it all day, she wants to know what all the fuss is about. So she has started trying on the potty at school once a day. They let her try as often as she asks, or they ask if she wants to try. So far it's just once a day.

She has NOT transitioned to a toddler bed, apparently it's just not time for that yet. But it will come in it's own time I'm sure.

Another clue that my sweetheart is growing up... She turns to me while in the bath, asks me to "Open it?" On her empty bottle of shampoo for playing. After opening said bottle she turns to me and says "Thank... You... Momma." Then offered me a kiss on the mouth. :)

She really is growing up fast, some days I feel like I can hardly keep up. But she fills my heart with so much love some days I feel as though I could burst. Then there's the days when she pushes me to the edge of disaster... But somehow i forget about all that disaster stuff the second she giggles or offers kisses, or any other sweet thing. :) I am so very blessed!!

Untitled

Thanks to the good Lord and Uncle Sam, these will be installed on Monday -- weather permitting, of course. #thankful

Playing in the water...

<p>Playing in the water from Jeffrey Melton on Vimeo.</p><p>We decided to take advantage of the beautiful weather and go play in the park. This little drainage ditch was a big hit.</p>

Playing in the water

About 5 minutes after this, she fell face-first in the water. Soaked, but still playing. #proudpapa

Star Wars!

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Watch on posterous

I'm trying to make sure Aylin learns the ways of the Force... We're off to a good start.

Loves. Books.

Really, she does.

Oatmeal!!!

Aylin *loves* the oatmeal I make. I call it iPad Oatmeal: It's magical, life-changing.

Things my child has done recently that make me laugh/smile

• Wiggled her finger aroud in her ear for a bit, then with it good and coated with ear wax quickly shoved it into my mouth while I talked to her teacher at daycare.
• She "reads" to herself, and to us. It's great. She knows the main word or theme for a page and says them as she turns the page. I especially love it when she "reads" the I Love You Through And Through book.
• She loves to dance and sing. Even to the background sax music playing on the Starbucks patio. It's pretty amazing (and amusing).
• She decided that our dog Bela is fun for "riding". Bela was sound asleep in the middle of the living room floor and next thing I know I hear Bela groan and look up to see Aylin straddling her and bouncing up and down... Sorry Bela!
• Cold hot dogs are good... Ok, if you say so.
• If she asks for something, and you repeat it "You want ...?" She responds "Okay" only it sounds like there's a G instead of a K. She doesn't say "Yes" just yet. But she can do "Uh-huh". But mostly sticks to "Okay".
• She giggles about kisses from the doggies and then says "kisses!"
• She is a BIG TIME chatter box. She still has a lot of gibberish to her words. But it's super cool to listen to her chatter.
• She's learning to "play pretend". With her babies, and stuffed animals, and whatever else. She pretend feeds them, she pretend sips tea from her musical tea set, she rocks her babies and pats their backs... all very sweet to watch.
• Above all else, she LOVES to Ca-la (color). She gets to have chalk un-supervised for her coloring table, and crayons when mommy or daddy are present.

Minor, but funny, play injury

We were rockin' some Me First and The Gimme Gimmes (http://bit.ly/gFwgHx). Aylin was dancing -- head-banging, actually. She bit her tongue. It was traumatic, but only until the next song came on, at which point she started bopping again.

Coloring is a collaborative effort these days...

Aylin loves to color, but not by herself. She usually chooses our chalk colors for us. It's as much fun for her, though, to dump chalk back and forth between cups while one of her parents actually colors. Creativity comes in all forms, eh?

She comes by it honestly...

I'll let her hack on Mom's computer. :)

Shopping carts are for what?

She fell over backward about 30 seconds after I took this.

Aylin's 1st Play In The Snow

Aylin got a brief opportunity to play in the snow today. I say brief, because it's been in the single digits today, and we don't want to be getting sick from it. :)

At first, it was just cold. But after a bit of walking around she noticed the snow was getting on her boots (she doesn't like her hands dirty, do this didn't surprise me). She would walk a few steps,  stop and look down at her feet then squeal an angry squeal, then walk some more. Repeat... Until she mostly got over it. Then it was fun to walk up a small embankment w have leading to our wellhouse, then with her hand in mine for steadying, she'd run down it toward the house and squeal happy squeals. Repeat about 10x. Then we followed the cats around the yard for a while until we got child enough to come inside.

All in all, she had an enjoyable first experience with snow play. :)

Ca-La?!

This child has to be forced to color... Can't you tell? :)

Yeah?

Aylin has reached that long-hoped-for developmental milestone at which she can say, "Yes?" or "Yeah?", to questions she wishes to answer in the affirmative. So she'll come up and ask us for a pickle, and we'll say, "Do you want a pickle?"

[nods head emphatically] "Yeah?"

We're pretty tickled.

Wildhair!

:)