My Little Rocker

Anna and I have been having quite a week without Daddy. He's in the Philippines yet again, so we've been on our own since Sunday morning. Monday was nice enough for us to spend outside, but every other day has been pretty chilly. Last night was downright COLD, with crazy high winds too. Ms. B got to spend the evening at Auntie Loonie's while I went to open house, so at least she got to have some fun indoors.

Tonight my little girlie was being a hot shot by climbing in and out of her rocker all by herself! I've never seen her do this before, and I was very impressed that she could do it so well, without even once slipping and hurting herself! I think you can tell by the picture that she is very proud of herself.

She was also talking a lot today, and she kept saying, "Beebow!" very loud and enthusiastically. No idea what it actually means, but it's quite a fun sound that I repeat back to her frequently. It might have something to do with playing or going to the park, because she was saying it while she was standing at the screen door. Then again, it could also have something to do with shoes, because she kept grabbing those too. She tends to do that, so I can't be sure. Tomorrow we will be spending the day with "the clucky ladies," so naturally we're going to have lots of fun! Tim will be back on Wednesday, and by then it's supposed to be getting warm! I can't wait!!

Spring is Here?

We've been way too spoiled this entire week with unusually mild weather. It has made it into the 60s for the past couple days, but of course the temperature plunged just in time for the weekend - and the first day of spring. We have had snow all day today, with temperatures in the low 30s. Blah. Anna seemed to rather enjoy it, and she didn't seem to understand why we weren't going to the park today like we have been doing all week. It's pretty funny that now she can peek out the window or the door and point to the park across the street with excitement. She likes to walk on the different terrains: concrete, woodchips, grass, and sand. She seems most cautious with grass and sand, which doesn't make sense to me. She loves climbing the steps, going down the slides, and climbing through the tunnels, but doesn't like the swings much anymore. I think she just wants to be moving all the time right now instead.

Some other changes have occurred as well, such as her favorite snack. Kix must have gotten old, because now she favors puffs and goldfish (Grampy even got her her very own fish-shaped container!) She doesn't necessarily have a favorite book, but the Elmo Colors Game is in the rotation almost nightly. I can't say that she has a current favorite toy, because she pretty much plays with everything. Exploring, running, peaking in the shower if anyone is in there, and putting objects in containers are probably her favorite things to do right now. Naptime appears to be changing - looks like it's usually only 1 long nap a day now. Anna will be turning 14 months old on Monday! I just can't believe it. And Abbey will be 3 years old in a week! What an old dog!

I Win!

On Monday Anna B was cracking me up with her fascination with these old running medals that I have in her play room. She was looking at the straps, so I took them down, showed them to her, and then put them on her for fun. She DID NOT want to take them off! She got a kick out of clinking them together, walking around with them, and taking them off and back on by herself. I was quite impressed with her ability to do that, but I was also flabbergasted as to why it was so amusing. How could they not be weighing her down, making it difficult to walk? I have no idea. She amused herself with them for at least an hour, and she probably would have continued if it hadn't been snack time. Anna was definitely not happy when I finally took them away.

Bicycle, Bicycle

Yesterday Anna went on her very first bike ride! We got one of those carriers that mount behind the seat. It took Tim a while to install (I timed him at 1.5 hours), but he claims it wasn't too bad. It didn't occur to me previously that I'm not the best bicyclist, so having my girlie riding with me is absolutely frightening! I sure hope it gets less scary once I'm more used to it. I don't like those trailer things that some people use, because it makes the kids seem like cargo to me.

At first Anna seemed to enjoy the ride, though not quite as much as I was hoping. Then I'm not sure if the straps were too tight or it was too cold (lots of wind, not much sun), but she got really upset in the middle of Riverside. We finally got home and she was fine, so then we took her for a quick walk in the wagon, which she really loves. I hope the next bike ride will be happier than the first!

I forgot to take pictures. Maybe next time.

Bouncin'

We spent a little time upstairs a few days ago, and I decided to see if Anna would like her doorway jumper. She never was all that enthusiastic about it, despite the fact that I thought she would love it when I got it for her months ago... she seemed to be pretty entertained by it. Her favorite part was trying to walk while in it, because then she would just bounce right back to where she was. She also really liked the activity tray that came with it - of course it makes music and lights up, so how could she not like it? Anyway, it was nice to see that she actually got some amusement from it, even if it's a little late for that.

Walking in the Playroom

I finally decided today that I was tired of waiting for the second floor to get finished in order to move the playroom upstairs. Thus far all Anna's toys have made their home in our living room. It's just been getting a little out of hand; too much living going on in there! So we got a new gate, which took Tim forever to install, and then we started moving a bunch of toys up there. I think it looks pretty good, all things considered. Anna got a bit of a chance to walk around and explore tonight, and she seems to be pretty happy with it. She is getting way more secure in her abilities to walk, so she has been doing it more and more frequently. It's very exciting for all of us!

Ready, Set, Go!

Anna might actually take off any day now! I've never seen her walk so much as she did tonight. She was taking steps all over the place, and I didn't even have to prompt her or help her at all! I must admit that I was starting to think that she would never want to walk, and there was this silly, irrational thought in my head that I'd be carrying around a stubborn 5 year old! Thank goodness I'm wrong again. I took off all her clothes tonight as she was running around and let her be "Nature Girl," as Grampy calls it. It's pretty obvious from the pictures that she has gotten her appetite back! It's funny to think that I was concerned about her losing weight just a couple of weeks ago! She's making up for it with a vengeance, for sure. The only bad thing so far about her increased speed and mobility nowadays is that it is becoming impossible to take a decent picture. By the time the picture takes she's halfway across the room. I guess we will have to settle for blurry action shots for now.