21 Months

Sayler you are 21 months old today!  

I can't get my head around the fact that you will soon be 2!!!  We have had a fun Summer together and I feel like you are officially my little girl and no longer my baby :(  Though I miss your babyness I love watching you grow and change and learn new things every day.  You are my little sponge and amaze your Daddy and I with all of the new things you do and say.  At least once a day one of us will say, "How does she know that?" You weigh about 27-28 lbs. and I am not sure how tall you are but I know you are tall for your age.  I think probably 35 inches or so.  You still wear a size 4 diaper but will transition into a size 5 by the end of this month as we are almost out of size 4's.  You wear a size 6 shoe and 18 mo. and 2T clothes.  You still love your "bee-bee's" (blankies) and are getting more and more into your baby dolls.  Mostly you like to hug them and pat them and then put them in "Eye out!" (time out)!  You are such a mother hen at home and at daycare. You love taking care of everyone and making sure you are in everyone's business all the time!

What Makes You, You:  You are still a careful little girl and are not one to jump into any new situation without some warming up.  But you have started becoming more confident and are spreading your wings more and more which makes me so proud of you.  No matter your personality or temperament you are my precious gift and I only want you to be true to who you are.  I always remind myself when you are nervous about a new environment or not sure about a new person that you are not a carbon copy of me or your Dad and that you don't need to do anything you are not comfortable with to try and please us. You are uniquely Sayler and I just admire you and the confidence you have to be you and no one else!

You Didn't Come With An Instruction Manual: Being a Mommy is such a case of 2 steps forward and 1 step back.  Before I had you I was the perfect Mom. Ha!!!  There are a million things I swore I would never do or allow you to do that guess what...we do!!! I vowed to have you weaned off of the bottle at 1 year.  9 months later you still take a morning and night time bottle. I guess I'll worry about it when you still want a bottle as you move into your college dorm...but until then I am just going to go with the flow.  You weren't going to have any juice whatsoever.  You have 1 or 2 juice boxes a day.  You wouldn't be allowed to play with Mommy's things. You have my cell phone in hand more than I do!!!  We are just walking this path together my sweet girl and learning as we go.  I really try to just go with the flow and not get to caught up in what I think I should be doing or what other people say. There are definitely some non-negotiable rules (i.e. you threw a fork at me the other night from your high chair...do not pass go, do not collect $200, proceed directly to time out!).  But other than those types of blatant no-no's...we are pretty laid back.

Curly Q:  Can we talk about this hair?  Miss Lady...this whole head of hair you have sprouted has become the bane of my existence.  You don't want Mommy to wash it, brush it, style it or even touch it.  If you see me coming with a comb and the de-tangle spray you run and tell me, "NOOOOOOOOO!" We have gone from washing your hair every night to only washing it every 3rd day because the screaming...oh the screaming.  We can only imagine what the neighbors think we are doing to you!  I'm sure you can imagine my joy when I went to pick you up from daycare one day and Dana had your hair braided and told me that you "loved" playing beauty salon and just sat like a perfect angel and let her braid it all up. Ugh!!!!  We told her we may be sending you with your comb and spray in the morning and let her deal with it :)

 

Daddy's Girl: You have become quite the fan of this guy. You are truly a Daddy's girl lately and have let me know in no uncertain terms that I am a distant 2nd.  From the minute you wake up (literally) until you lay your sweet head down to sleep you are asking for your Dada.  At first I felt like I had been voted off the island, but I know that this is a normal part of your development and it is so precious to see you snuggle up in your Daddy's lap like there is no other place in the world you would rather be.

 Things You Say:  In previous milestone posts I have written out all of the words you say.  Let me tell you I would be typing a list 10 feet long if I tried to do that now.  I have no idea how many words you have at this point but is well in excess of 50 for sure.  So I will just type up some of the funny things you have said lately.  You keep your Daddy and I in stitches with all of your Sayler speak:

• "Air go???" (Where go?  You always want to know where everyone is and where they are going.  If we say someone's name you always say "Air go?").
• "Dat Say Say mope." (That's Sayler's remote.  You can really replace remote with any and everything in the house.  If it is in your hand or you are even thinking about it...it is yours without question."
• "No. Dat my Say Say's!" (Again...everything belongs to you.  I love it when you say this and try to get you to say it all the time).
• "Eh pie-yo." (My pillow.  You love to drag all of the pillows from Mommy and Daddy's room out into the living room and jump on your "Pie-yos.").
• "Hi-woah?" (Hello?  You always say this when you are playing with my phone.  You will hold it to your ear and say "Hi-woah?" Love it!).
• "Air twuck go?" (Where did the truck go?  No even sure how you know what a truck is...but you spot them when we are out driving and are very curious about where the trucks are going.).
• "Rye dere!" (Right there!  We always ask you where things are in your books like, "Where is the kitty? or Where is the sun?"  And you always point to it and say in this sing-song voice, "Ryeee dere!!!).
• "Eh awe fwy." (I want a french fry! You are a lover of the french fry.  You would pick it over anything including a popcicle or ice cream. Last Sunday we were taking an afternoon drive and we pulled into Sonic for happy hour...what what!!!  And the minute we pulled up you said, "Eh awe fwy!"  We have no idea how you associated french fries with Sonic as we had never been there with you before...but you knew exactly what you wanted).
• "I poop!" (Every morning when we go to get you up this is the first thing you say. No matter if it is accurate or not...you want to make sure we know...I poop!!!").

 This is a picture of you in August of 2010. I can't ever remember you being that little.  Though I remember taking these pictures of you swinging for the first time...I just can't believe you were that tiny!  I can only imagine how much you will have changed by August 2012.  I am just head over heels in love with you and can't believe my luck that God chose me to be your Mama.  You keep us on our toes baby girl...and we love every minute of it! Happy 1 3/4 Birthday!!!

Love you to the moon and back,
Mama

Summer lovin'...had me a blast! - June 2011

We have had a busy summer and I am just now getting around to blogging about it! Pitiful.  My whole life I have been told I talk too much...but apparently that doesn't translate into blogging.  I need to find a way to have this blog read my mind an just automatically post.  Wait...that probably would not be a great idea.  Lots of crazy talk goes through this noggin all day long.  Best to keep that under wraps.  So while I can still remember what we did this summer I will give a quick recap:

Say and Daddy took advantage of the beautiful weather and flew a kite in the backyard (Daddy continued to fly the Princess kite all by himself LONG after Say lost interest! Ha!)

Oh how I love those chubber legs running all around!

Nana and Papa bought Sayler a cool new sandbox and she was way into "mess" as she called it.  She could not believe we were letting her dig in the "mess" with no repercussions.

My Midwest girl in all her corn-on-the-cob eatin' glory.

We took our first family vacation to visit the Beckman's in Indianapolis and Sayler had so much fun with her cousins.  She still walks around the house talking about Ayba (Ava), Nick, and Nenny (Jenny).

Sayler and Ava playing in the sand table. 2 diva's for sure!

Is this not the most precious picture ever? The 3 Musketeers!!!  Sayler loved riding on the boat! 

Like mother like daughter...we both LOVE going fast.  Sayler kept saying "mo ayah" (more air) she loved the wind in her face!

This is what happens when Uncle Jim let's us take the boat out by ourselves, Captain Ava!!!

Sayler loved standing at the very front of the boat...until, she figured out that gate could open.  Then she wanted to sit on the seat with Mommy.

All the girl cousins enjoying the boat ride.

Daddy caught lots of fish and was pretty proud of himself.

We went to the Indianapolis Children's Museum which is the largest children's museum in the world and Sayler had so much fun.  She just jumped right in and loved all of the cool activities.

Looking at Daddy through the tunnel debating whether or not to crawl through.

Sayler and Ava playing in the garden.

Sayler refused to put on the rain coat that was required for the water table area...so we didn't last long at this station :)

We took our first trip to Deanna Rosa Children's Farm one afternoon and it was so much fun.  It is this awesome place in Overland Park that is designed to depict a turn of the century farmstead.  Sayler loved all of the animals and was very interested in a cow that was mooing very loudly out in her pen.  She kept mooing right back at her!

Feeding the hungry goat some grass.

Sayler liked the goats as long as they were stationary.  The minute one of them started moving she was not a fan.

Say sneaking into the fridge and taste testing the strawberry cream pie I made.

Yummy pie mommy!

June was so fun and the Summer just got busier after that.  Will update with our July tomorrow!

18 months

My sweet Say Say...it kind of hurts to write this tonight.  A good hurt.  A hurt because you are mine and you are growing up right before my eyes and it is wonderful and painful and exhilarating and scary and hilarious and miraculous and humbling and frustrating and blessed all at once like a beautiful tornado that is you.

You my sweet, sassy, careful, curious, smart, shy, kind, stubborn, precious baby girl.  The one who God chose to make me a Mama.  You blow my mind girl. You teach me something new every day. You have changed me. And I cannot express to you how much you mean to me.  Your life is the miracle of mine. And if someday when you're 14 and hating me because I won't let you have a boyfriend for 2 more years and you feel like I just don't understand you or care about your feelings I want you to read this and know that I love you with a love that can handle the fact that you will hate me sometimes...and that's ok. Because I love you enough to get us through the times when you feel like I don't. 

Oh, and 14 year old Sayler? 

Don't even think about wearing that skirt you have hidden in the back of your closet.

I found it.  

And burnt it.

Mama loves you baby!  Mwah!!!

Now let's get back to the present so Mama doesn't have to start drinking her special "medicine" thinking about you dating.

Here are some things about you at 18 months old...

You LOVE:

• Playing outside "ow wide"

• Birdies "bir-bees"
• Your new slide "side"

• Swinging "wing-wing" (you would swing in the middle of a blizzard if we let you...you can't get enough)

• Elmo...major love affair going on here.  You ask to watch Elmo 10 times a day and if you are watching it on t.v. you also ask to watch it on our phones.  You will bring Mama or Daddy the phone and say "Ay, dee, cees" or "La, la, la" as you love the Elmo video's where he sings ABC's and Elmo's Song.
• Going to Ms. Dana's.  For this I am so grateful and you will never understand how grateful until you are a Mama and you have to trust someone to love on your baby when you can't.  You run to the door in the morning and say "Nay-Na?"  Even on the weekends you will ask to go see "Nay-Na" and I think you are bummed when we tell you that you aren't going that day :)
• Cookies - Oreo's are your new favorite.  You are no fool...you pull the 2 halves apart and give me the side with no icing! Ha!

• Books...you LOVE to read books and it is amazing to me how much you can identify when we play the "what's this?" game.  You learn and grow every single day and it blows.my.mind!

• Cheese - you love you some shredded cheese girl!  You would eat it all day every day if I let you.  You make a HUGE mess whenever you eat it and I find myself finding pieces of cheese all over the house for days...but I give it to you whenever you ask for it cuz you're my baby!
• Your blankie/beek/bee bee. It is the wind beneath your wings.  You go nowhere without it and it comforts you like no one else can.  I am a huge fan of the beek...and eternally indebted to it for stopping a fit in it's tracks on many occasions.

 

Things you DON'T love:

• Getting dressed/undressed/diaper changed/hair brushed/teeth brushed/face wiped...basically anything related in any way to grooming.  You are not a fan and avoid me like the plague when you see me coming with a diaper and wipes!
• Getting strapped in your car seat.
• Bath - at least you are consistent.  You have hated it since the day you were born.  Now you are petrified of getting water or soap in your eyes as I think one night a few months back you did get some soap bubbles in your eyes that stung a little bit (just bubbles mind you...not acutal soap) but no matter...you are not having any of it and the minute your toes hit the water you start trying to find a way out of the tub yelling "eyes, eyes, eyes, eyes!" the entire time.  At first I felt awful about you getting soap bubbles in your eyes.  Not so much anymore :)  We just try to get through it any way we can with a smile on our face...but I may start wearing ear plugs at bath time because baby girlllll...you've got a set of lungs on you!!!  I'm hoping someday soon you will start to like your bath...but if not no biggie!

(notice the fudgecicle in your hands in the tub...the only reason you have a half grin on your sweet face)

• Coming inside...(disaster).  I know people thing we must be poking you with hot pokers as we drag you in the door kicking and screaming every night.  We never have to wonder what you are feeling that is for sure!

Your STAT's

• You weigh about 25 lbs
• You are about 33 inches tall
• You wear 18 month clothes and a size 6 shoe
• You wear a size 4 diaper
• You have a mouth full of teeth and are currently cutting all 4 of your "I" teeth...ouch :(
• Your hair is getting so long.  When it is wet it goes way past your shoulder blades.  From the top of your head it is probably 6-7 inches long root to end.

Funny things you do:

• You are so polite and say thank-you "dat doo" about 100 times a day.  You will always find anything that is lying around and will bring it to me and say "dat doo Mama."  I love it so much.  You are also saying please "peeees." I love me some manners and it makes me so proud when you use them.
• You are curious about Mama's "boobies" and will pull open my shirt and look down it and say, "boobies?" and I will respond, "yes those are Mommy's boobies."  You will then look up at me and say, "ooooohhhhhhhhh."  Hilarious.  The other night when I was rocking you at bedtime you looked down my shirt and said, "Nigh, nigh boobies."  I almost fell out of the chair laughing!
• Whenever we get the camera out and point it at you you will automatically say "chhheeeeeessssseeee!"

• You love to give Mama and Daddy a pound and whenever Daddy says "pound clown" you throw up your fist.

Sayler Jaye...I am just smitten with you.  I always find myself watching you and listening to you and thinking what an individual you are.  You are not a "mini me" you are not your Daddy either...you are you 100%.  I love that about you and I hope that I honor your spirit and your unique personality every day of your life and make sure you feel safe, secure and proud to be just you all of the time.

Every minute of every day...loving you and proud to be your Mama.

Love you,

Mama

AMEN!!!

Jesus would be proud.

Untitled from Stephanie Doss on Vimeo.

Single White Female

Have you ever come across someone and thought, "I could so go all SWF on this girl."  No?  It's just me?  Now I've made it awkward.  

Anywhooo....

It happened to me tonight when I was referred to this blog.  More specifically this post.  STOP.TRAFFIC.RIGHT?  How fabulous is she???  And now I have to sign off so I can go move Sayler's crib into our storage space in the basement so I can convert her room into this.  I kid, I kid...the storage space is way to big, a closet will suit her just fine.

She is listening...

Just a short post today mostly for me so I don't forget these sweet moments with my tiny.  I have been noticing lately that Say has been saying things and doing things that I don't recognize as things we have shown or taught her.  Initially it is frustrating because I don't know what she is saying or doing so I can't respond appropriately.  But now when these "light bulb moments" happen I have learned that it must be something she has learned at daycare.

Ya'll I can't tell you how much this little girl LOVES her daycare.  In the morning when she is being a total stinker and running from me as I try to get her diaper and clothes on all I have to say is, "Say do you want to go see Ms. Dana?"  She immediately shapes up and starts saying, "NayNa, NayNa, NayNa!!!"  She loves her some Ms. Dana.

So I kept noticing her doing the same thing over and over the other day when I would tell her no, or tell her to be nice, etc., etc. (she has become a fan of hitting and throwing things when she doesn't get her way...I'll be honest here, I too would love to be able to hit or throw something at someone in frustration...so I get it...I don't allow it...but I get it :).  When I was disciplining her she kept rubbing her head and saying "waw wee Mama.  Waw wee Mama."  I had absolutely no idea what she was doing so the next day when I picket her up at daycare I asked Dana if she had the kids do something if they were in trouble to acting rowdy.  She said, "Oh yeah, if the kids accidentally hurt one another or are not sharing or acting naughty I make them walk over to the other child and rub their head or pat them on the back and say sorry."  So I told her what Sayler had been doing and she said, "I have never made Sayler do that...she has never been disciplined here."

Well the girl is paying attention.  Isn't that amazing?  Her mind is just working all the time.  She also came home the other day singing "Ashes, ashes, ashes."  They had been singing "Ring Around the Rosie," all day.  The other day Daddy was watching TV and something happened on the screen causing him to say, "Wow!"  Sayler immediately looked at the TV and said, "Wow!"  Now whenever she looks up at the screen she says, "Wow!" or "Elmo?"  (Channing responded to this by saying..."I really need to start watching my language."  Ya think?)

I just all happens so fast.  I feel like not even 3 or 4 months ago she could only say a few things.  Now I feel like we can really communicate with one another.  It is awesome and scary at the same time.  We are responsible for shaping her, molding her little brain that is doing big things right now.  I am just so proud of her and proud to be her Mom. Remember that Aerosmith song, "Don't Want To Miss A Thing."  That's how I feel about her.  I don't want to fall asleep at night sometimes because I miss her.  Cheesy and a little obsessive/stalker status?  Yes.  I own it...but I'll be a billy goat if I don't love the stuffing out of that girl.

Getting to know you...getting to know all about you

Mornings are not my favorite time of day...never have been. Just ask my poor mother.  So I am getting a big ol' honkin' dose of my own medicine with my little bundle of joy.  Sayler is the queen of the morning stink eye.  She gets out of bed pretty sweet...but it is all down hill from there.  If she sees me coming with her clothes and diaper she maintains a perimeter of at least 6 feet so I can't reach out and grab her to get her little booty dressed. She kills me this one.

One morning a few weeks ago I had finally captured her long enough to get her changed and dressed and she was tooling around the house doing her morning rounds.  Pull all Tupperware out of the drawer. Check. Pull all clean folded laundry out of the laundry basket that has been sitting on our bedroom floor for 2 weeks waiting for Daddy to put it away. Check. Find Goldfish Cracker remnant on the kitchen floor and promptly shoves it in her mouth. Check.  SO this particular morning she was in monitoring her Dad's shower when I hear him yell "BABE COME HERE!!!"

I felt my heart jump into my throat and ran into our bathroom.  I thought Say had slipped on the tile and split her head open or knocked her teeth out. So I run into the bathroom and Sayler is standing there perfectly fine.  I looked at Channing and he is standing there dripping wet and he looks like he has just seen a ghost.  The following conversation follows:

Me:  "What?  What happened? Is Say OK?"

Channing:  "Ummmm....she's fine. I'm not."

Me:  "What?  What's wrong?"

Channing:  "I was drying off and had the towel over my face and your daughter..."

Me:  "What????"

Channing:  "She....she flicked my junk!"

Me:  "Oh my God what?  What does she flicked my junk mean...specifically."

Channing:  "I was drying my face and she just walked right up to me and flicked my junk and says "Bell Butt???" (she is obsessed with people's belly buttons right now and demands to see them upon command) And then.  And then... she started laughing!!!"

Me:  "(Dying laughing) I have no words.  Let's just act like this never happened.  Denial is our friend right now OK?"

Channing:  "(Not dying laughing) Perfect.  I'm totally on board with that.  Except for the fact that I am totally scarred for life."

What can I say?  We put the "fun" back in dysfunctional.

I think I'll leave this story out of the baby book.