October 3-12, 2011

All those days:

Yup...it's been over a week since I've added anything, and while I can make stuff, I figured the honesty of parenthood is much better and touches on the reality of it more.

I'd have to start by what is freshest on my mind.  Annabelle pottying.  I'll admit, I've been a slacker with it all.  We've been using diapers and I haven't been offering it as much, and I have realized when she pees and poops on the floor, it's still just as aggravating.  Like tonight, she did all kinds of grunting a tooting in her high chair and after dinner, she was dry in her diaper and I took her to the potty and she only peed.  Not 10 minutes later, she poops on the floor.  Liam announced with great enthusiasm, "Anbel DooDoo!"  The other aggravating thing she has started to do is stop playing, look at me, give a loud grunt, and the when I proceed toward her, she hastily crawls away from me giggling.  Little twirt.

Her sleeping has gotten pretty crazy, which adds to the fatigue, which means I don't write daily about the kids.  I even had Nanny Frances over on Friday night to wake up with her so I could sleep all night.  They both enjoyed it.  Phillip and I have worked out a deal now that if I'm up with her at night, I get to sleep in come morning.  That works for me!  After further investigation of child-sleep-rebellion (which consisted of talking to mom friends) I determined that upon the brink of a major milestone, children will eat more, sleep less and be all day long cranks.  Pretty much explains Annabelle right now.  So, knowing this, I've been encouraging her to walk more, and been stuffing her full before bed.  This also gives me more patience when I wake up with her at night.  I know I'm doing nothing wrong putting her to sleep, she's just going through a phase.

Let's see, what else....Oh, we went to the park one day, something we are doing quite a lot now since the weather is nicer and Phillip is working late.  She likes it a lot.  There's no keeping her in the baby wrap, she'd much rather be down trying to eat rocks.  We bring some cars and trucks and she and Liam have a great time.  She likes to also climb on the slides and stand up and bounce up and down while holding onto the side.  She thinks it's the greatest thing in the world.

Annabelle is also really into books.  When I don't hear her, I go looking for her in the house and find her sitting down somewhere, usually on the futon in her room or on Liam's bed, and she's 'reading' a book.  Here's a cute picture of her studiously learning her words while on the commode. I decided not to break her train of thought and tell her it was upside down. 

Like I mentioned before, Annabelle loves baby dolls.  She found the one I keep in the box with all my wraps and slings, the one I use for demoing carriers.  She pulled it out and gave it some serious snuggles.  She's too cute.  So loving.  She even snuggles random babies this same way too.