Katie-isms

I've had a few moments lately where I was talking to Katie and had to write down what she said.

She picked up my new iPhone and said "Ohhh Mom! Nice Blackberry!"

"Abby! You are a naughty dog!" since Abby has been sneaking onto our couch at night despite the many efforts we've taken to get her to stop.

"Baby Owen loves Doc! Can we watch Cars!?" Baby Owen is her doll, formally known as Baby Jessica. It's a little confusing because 90% of the time Baby Owen is dressed in pink. Also, Owen is the name of the baby at daycare. Cars is her FAVORITE movie right now so Baby Owen always wants to watch Cars...go figure.

"I want to party in the U.S.A." Katie doesn't spend much time in the car but has taken a liking to the Miley Cyrus' song "Party in the U.S.A" After I told my sister Mary, Mary made sure Katie knew the whole chorus. It's hard to explain to a 2-year old why I can't find Party in the U.S.A on demand via the radio.

"Probably..." is the start of many comments.

-Probably the sun is tired.

-Probably the kids are in having dinner

-Probably we can watch Cars after nap.

"This is crazy weather!" I would agree based on the last couple weeks.

"That's a tough one."

Katie: "I think I fell in love."

Me: "What do you mean?"

Katie: "I think I fell in love..with the White House. Can we go visit?"

"That bridge needs a Band Aid." This was her response when she was directing me as to which road we should take home but I told her we couldn't go down that road because the bridge was broken and being fixed.

Big Girl Bed: Part II

Bed update: Katie slept in her "big girl bed" for the first time on Friday night. She said she wanted to sleep there but when the time came time to actually go to sleep, she wanted her "cribby." I knew we were so close to making this transition that I told a little lie. I said the crib was broken and needed to be fixed. So Katie, 5 stuffed animals, 4 books, 2 pillows and 1 baby doll named Owen all slept in the bed. There were a few tears and some staling but once we said she could read to her friends, she got comfortable and eventually went to sleep. I felt like she was 3 months old again and Chad and I were on you couch just hoping she would go to sleep. She's older now and we didn't have to agonize over letting her cry-it-out but we had the same feeling of relief when there was silence. Oddly enough, we can't get her out of the bed now. She woke up on Saturday morning, didn't call out for Mom or Dad, opened her books and started to read to her "friends." The bed she avoided, she now wants to stay in all the time. She doesn't want to get out. We are going back to the old philosophy we had when she was 3 months old: Try not to stress too much because everything will probably change in a couple of days. Here she is on Saturday morning...

President's Day Weekend

Thanks to the President's Day weekend we had some much-needed extra down time. Katie and Chad went to the playground and grocery store while I took a photography class on Sunday morning. Katie said she wanted to go back to the playground when we woke up on Monday and didn't need to go to work. I took her there and brought my camera to try out some things I learn. It might take me awhile to get used to the tips and techniques but between Katie and the soon-to-be-arriving Deuce I have two good subjects to work with.

Big Girl Room

We've finished preparing Katie's "big girl" room. Now we just have to figure out how to get her to sleep in it. She seems to think of it more as a playground. When it comes to sleep...not so much. Check out Chad and Katie trying to assemble the bed rail.

Here is Katie testing out the bed. Noticed her wide awake look.

Deuce Perusse

I've neglected to officially announce that 72 Cedar will have a new resident in a couple months. The newest member of our family is expected to arrive at the end of March. We are anxiously waiting whether it will be a boy or a girl!

I'm enjoying another easy pregnancy but, now that I'm in the home stretch, things like back pain and tiredness are starting to creep in. Keeping up with a two year old was one thing I didn't have to deal with the first time around. The baby is very active and is making itself known with swift kicks.

Katie told us for a long time that we should name the baby "Uncle Stephen" if it's a boy and "Girl" if it's a girl. Up until a month ago, she was adamant that this baby would be her new brother but I think she is warming up to the idea of having a sister now. Her baby dolls are getting alot of attention as she prepares to be a big sister. One doll, dressed in head-to-toe pink, is refered to as her "baby brudder Owen." Owen is the baby at her daycare. Stay tuned....more news to come!

Frosty the Armless Snowman

Katie and Lily (our neighbor) made a snowman recently with the new snowman-making kit Katie got for Christmas. They were very proud of themselves and their snowman (Chad and Nate, Lily's dad, were close by doing the heavy lifting. ) Abby was very excited too...to see some sticks to chew! Here is Abby coming in to steal Frosty's arm.

Holiday Wrap-up

We had a great Christmas this year. Katie's fear of Santa didn't subside but she now considers him a "good guy." She loved all of the holiday activities and is enjoying her many new gifts and toys. Chad and I enjoyed seeing her face light up at the simplest things: she would ask us all the time what our favorite ornament was on the tree, she was so excited that Santa wrote her a note thanking her for the cookies and she become an expert decorator of gingerbread men. She was a little disappointed when we took down the tree but said today that it was outside "taking a break." All in all, a great ending to another great year! Cheers to a happy and healthy 2010.