Little babies turn into little girls way before they should

I only wrote two posts in January. Fail. I resolve to do better in February.

So, here we go.

Audrey needs an update of what she is doing these days. Which is lots and lots of things.

Baby girl has become a big girl seemingly overnight. I don't even know where to begin, she has made so many leaps in the past month.

We'll start with physical progress. Audrey can run. Yep. Run. She's is deceptively fast and agile. It is a whole new ball game. She is also working on perfecting the skills of climbing and exercising zero caution. That girl has no fear, at all. This is not because we don't let natural consequences happen. She falls and bumps and bruises a lot. She just has a fearless personality. I have no idea where she got that from. Certainly not her mom or dad.

Anyway, physical advances in recent days include climbing in and out of her rocking chair. Standing in her rocking chair, we have mostly put an end to this but if no one is looking up she goes. Climbing in and out of the hidey-hole. Now that I padded it she rarely smashes her head, of course. Climbing in her toy basket. Climbing in the magazine rack. Climbing up to the slide and going down by herself at the play space. Do you see a theme here?

Audrey is also making large mental strides. We always have tried to talk to her in complete sentences and explain things. Which often gets comments about how she has no idea what we are saying anyway. I have always thought she may not, but she may. And when she does I want to be telling her what we are doing and why. Well guess what, she still doesn't say all that many words consistently, but she understands many, many words and sentences.

If one of us says "Audrey let's go change your diaper" she runs to her bedroom door and starts banging. If she picks up Shasta's toy and you tell her "Audrey, give Shasta her toy" she walks over and offers the toy to Shasta. If she is kneeling in her chair and you say "Audrey, turn around and sit on your bottom" she does. Well, at least most of the time. If she doesn't I say "Do you need help?" and then she almost always sits down. Point being, she understands A LOT more words than she can say.

So, parents out there keep talking to your littles. They understand more than you think and one day they will start responding with words or actions.

Toddler knows best

When we were in Wisconsin for Christmas we took Audrey to the Madison Children's Museum. They have an area just for little dudes.

She had a lot of fun. Her favorite things were, looking at the fish, going down the ramp, going down the slide, and WATER!

She loved watching the fish in the tank. Which is good, because we still owe her a fish tank for her birthday. Soon baby girl. Tires, generators, and life have gotten in the way but we haven't forgotten you. We will go pick out your fish soon.

She really liked the super steep slide as well. Always a dare devil that one.

But her favorite part was the water room. Of course. Every time we go to a Children's Museum there is a water room and every time I think why. Why are you tempting our children with water? They are going to get all wet and it will be messy, and they will get cold, and we will have to change clothes.

This trip I had an epiphany.

Who cares.

Who cares if she gets wet. Who cares if it is a mess. Who cares if we have to leave right after the water room because she is soaking wet. We took her to the Children's Museum so SHE could have fun, right? So we need to let her have the fun she wants to have. Even if that means a wet little girl.

She will be a happy, wet little girl.

I will admit this is sometimes easier said than done. But I have been trying to remind myself of this in everyday life as well. Within reason, of course. Playing in the toilet is still a no go. BUT when I can I try to remember to let Audrey choose her own fun, even if it is not what I would choose at that moment.

From now on we will bring extra clothes to the Children's Museum.

A Jane of many trades

Audrey is a very well rounded little lady.

She loves books. They are easily one of her favorite toys.

She also loves her duplos. She likes to take them out of the bin and put them back in the bin. She really enjoys taking them apart and then putting them away. I suspect she will learn to build with them one day.

She is a budding photographer.

 

However, her greatest love is perhaps for her riding toys. She has a musical scooter thing and a hippo push toy/rider. She loves to be pushed on them. But, let's be honest mom and dad do not always love to push her. It is fun because she squeals with glee. But you can only push a toddler down the hall so many times.

So, when no one is willing to push her she likes to use her riding toys in creative ways.

She surfs on the hippo.

She uses them as climbing aids.

She pushes them into things.

And of course, she falls off. Our little dare devil. I'm sure we'll get to spend more than our fair share of time at urgent care. I am OK with that, though. I like spunky little girls!

Merry Christmas

We had a wonderful Christmas this year.

Audrey got way more gifts than she could even need. That is OK. Everyone had fun spoiling her and she had fun too.

As you can see she got lots of loot. Including, a xylaphone, an animal train, a regular train, a ride on toy, a bus, a flashlight, dinosaur stackers, bath toys, books, and lots of clothes. She was not wanting for gifts.

We all had a wonderful Christmas with family. I hope you did too!

Snow Baby

Before we got ice, we got snow. It is no secret that I love snow. I am not so keen on ice, but snow I love.

There was enough snow to go sledding, make snowmen, go skiing, all of the wonderful snow activities. We were excited to share the fun of snow with Audrey. She experienced snow last year, but she was really little and not really able to play in the snow yet.

We got her all dressed up in her snow gear to see what she thought after the first big snow.

She was pretty unsure. She did know she for sure did not want to walk in the snow. She still doesn't try to walk in snow. She did eventually begin to play with the snow and she thought sledding down a a small hill in the front yard was pretty cool.

I think she will become a lover of snow.

Christmas is coming

For the last six years we have gone and cut down a Christmas tree at a local farm. For the last two Audrey has joined in the fun.

We go to Tannenbaum Farms. It is a fun place. You take a wagon ride out to the trees, they have a reindeer, a fire, hot cider and coco. The things memories are made of.

Last year Audrey was a little less than a month old. She came along bundled up in the sling. Based on the pictures I'm pretty sure it was realtively warm last year. I don't even have a winter coat on. Audrey had fun, she slept through the whole thing.

This year was a bit colder, by colder I mean it was about 25. Not exactly freezing, but not warm either. We bundled everybody up and headed out. Audrey had on two pairs of pants, a winter coat, hat, mittens, and I was wearing her so she had some heat from me. We thought this would be fine for a quick trip, we may have miscalculated. Live and learn.

We took the wagon ride out to the lot and chose pretty much the first tree we saw. We were not unaware of the fact that we had a baby with us. JT chopped that sucker down and we headed over to get it bundled, get some cider, and catch the wagon back.

 Everything was great until about halfway through the wagon ride.

Audrey started getting mad so I turned her around to my front so I could talk to her and warm her up. She was not interested. So I took her out of the carrier. Also not interested. We finished out the wagon ride with a fussy baby.

Honestly, we had not yet had an experience with not being able to calm her down when out in public. We really didn't know what else to do so she cried. I'm sure the other wagon riders just loved her.

I took her inside the warm shop to see Santa while JT paid. She was OK for a little bit but just as I tried to take a picture she lost it. I didn't want to make her sit there so we left.

And then baby girl absolutely lost her shit.

We sat in the car for at least 10 minutes trying to calm her down enough to leave. I tried nursing her, we turned the heat way up, we tried toys, books, everything. She was hysterical. And apparently cold. Elmo finally did the trick and we were on our way. Thank god for smart phones.

Next year snow pants and boots are mandatory. She has both of these things but we did not think to put them on her as there was no snow. Amateur hour, I know. Live and learn.

She seems to have warmed to the tree though. And really a family trip to cut down a tree would not be complete without tears, just ask any one of my siblings.

She got two ornaments this year. A penguin ball from us and a reindeer from grandma and grandpa.

You may also wonder if Audrey tries to play with the tree. The answer is no. How can this be? We bought a blue spruce. It is quite sharp. She will go over and touch it and look at us like "why is this so pokey."

Mean? Perhaps, but so far it has worked.

I can hardly wait to see what next year at the tree farm brings.

Born to be a dad?

Today while fighting to get Access to accept the data I was trying to import I got to thinking. Uh-oh, right?

We often hear people say that a woman was born to be a mom, or some variation on that theme. People have said it to me. I say thank you, feel good for a little bit and go about my business. It is a nice thing to say, I think.

What I rarely, or maybe even never, hear is people telling men they were born to be a dad. I may just be oblivious. People often tell men they are great dads. Which is nice and wonderful. But, can men not be "born to be dads?"

A text JT sent me got me started down this path. Yesterday he went to the gym and basketball after work so he got home after Audrey went to bed and he didn't see her all day. He texted me and said "How do people travel I already miss Doots so much." I said it is hard but you do what you have to do, I travel more than him I have the experience here.

At any rate, I was thinking about how sweet that text was and how much JT loves being a dad. And I thought you know what, he was born to be a dad. He gets more joy from that child than most anything else in life. Hence, the deep thoughts with Kristin post.

My point is, can't men be innately disposed towards parenthood just as women can be? I think so. OK, here is where I may lose some of you...so why is being born to be a mom enough for women but not enough for men? Or maybe that isn't why people don't tell men they were born to be a dad. I'm not sure. But it seems to me that a man's desire to be a parent above all else is just as valid as the same desire in a woman.

So maybe we should start recognizing those men who seem "born to be dads" a bit more. I don't think JT would be offended if someone said, "you are such a wonderful father, you were just born to be a dad."

We could debate if that statement, said to a man or a woman, is offensive. But for now I would prefer to just take it at face value as a compliment towards one who gets joy from parenting.

Here is to all those dads who are innately good at being parents, who get joy and fulfillment from their children. I have several in my life and am certain there are more out there than many realize!