2 years and 6 months!

We've had quite a month this month. The biggest activity was our trip to NYC to visit Grandma Marjie. Olivia did great on the plane, in the car, on the subways, taxis, and just generally in the city. One of the cutest things is how she surprised so many New Yorkers with her squeaky-voiced hellos.

Not that Olivia is always the charming ambassador of toddlerhood, in fact, we've taken to calling her the Littlest Dictator. Let's just say she has ideas for how she wants things done and isn't afraid to tell you. "You stand right here," she'll announce, pointing to a spot on the ground. If her loyal subject does not stand in that exact spot, that tiny speck of space she's determined is the correct spot, she'll keep pointing with her tiny finger. "No, here! Stand right here!" I have to admit that her aggravation is amusing to me, an issue she'll no doubt tell her therapist some day.

Her *ahem* assertiveness comes out as bravery in other aspects of her world, such as her love of very high slides at the playground and open spaces where she can wander. She also has not problem singing, playing music, or dancing when the feeling strikes her. (I'm going to put it out into the world that I think we have a performer on our hands.)

2.5 is very good indeed.

Bangs!

2 years and 5 months!

Now that summer has started, our daily activity options have multiplied. Olivia enjoys throwing rocks, dripping water, picking mint, swinging and sliding--all activities best explored outdoors. As her granddad says, Olivia's a very busy girl. And that's probably why this month she's had some significant bumps and bruises. In one three day period, she fell of the side of the couch, bloodied her knee at the zoo, got a black eye from falling into the side of a wood chair, and got a piece of mint lodged so far up her nose, we had to go to urgent care to have a professional remove it. (I don't think I'll ever let her forget that one...:) But, she wants--needs--to explore and these are just the bumps along the way.

Other than her many adventures, she's also taken to the wearing a tiara. She got the idea from somewhere and then started wearing a metal ring, the kind that goes around a canning jar, on her head and calling herself a princess. Here she is last weekend wearing her new $1 tiara in the St. Johns Parade:




All this princess stuff really wears a girl out:



It's hard not to indulge in all of the princess merchandise--but I think that if she's using her imagination to create what she thinks a princess looks like, then that's better than buying a Disney-approved outfit or accessory. What bothers me most is that princesses don't do anything, they don't fly or have superpowers, they just sit there and look pretty in their costumes and I don't think that's such a great message. But, I'm sure I'll have plenty of time to ponder this issue in years to come.

In other news, Miss O now has a toddler bed and for the most part she's been doing well and staying put once she goes to bed for naps and for the night. I think Chris and I were prepared for a lot more resistance, but so far it's been fine.

Yeah for summer and yeah for everyone doing fine.

Couldn't resist

Couldn't resist posting a few pics from the past month. ( I love this pic of Chris & Olivia.)


Olivia asked me to put her hair in pony tails and a clip... Obviously the whole adventure got out of control...

At the zoo, in a hat.
I was wearing a scarf, so she had to wear her scarf too.

I just found this picture while cleaning out my inbox. I took it about a week or so ago over at Chief Joseph playground. I felt this was a fairly significant moment as Olivia went down the big curly slide on her own for the first time. She showed great courage running around that play structure with kids three times her size.

I wish the sun would hurry and come back again.

2 Years 4 months!

(I realize that I'm a day late here, but everything still applies.)

It's been a super busy month here at the homestead. Chris and I both had big projects to complete for work and I also had schoolwork for my MFA. Because of the workload, we've had my cousins come and watch Olivia on a regular schedule. It's a bit confusing for her since they are identical twins and I'm not sure she believes that they are not one person...

This month we entered the era of the amazingly cute comment. The ones that stand out for me are the comments that seem to come from Olivia's inner guru. To wit: "I hear a bell in the sky. Can I touch it?" "Do you have Olivia in your eyes?"

She's also making strides in the potty department. Just when we were despairing that she'd never get the hang of going #2 in the potty, she figured it out and that's that. She also stays dry for naps, but not overnight yet. We've made little changes to help her out, especially cutting the nighttime milk before bed. That's been hard for me (probably more than her) because it's a routine we've had since she was a tiny baby. We also moved the changing table out of her room which was also hard for me. I'm excited for her to make the steps into childhood, but I'll always cherish the sweet times of babyhood.

Other things that are new this month: her memory for songs is amazing. This morning I found her singing "Yellow Submarine" while gazing out the window. She also told me that she was "too big" for her high chair, so now she's in a booster seat at the table. She's loving her drawings, her kazoo and harmonica, dressing herself (though not always in the right order...), and watching Oswald.

Fun with the computer

Pics from the computer camera: