2 Years Old!

2 Years Old!

Weight: 27 pounds

Length: 34.5 inches 

Favorite activity: coloring, cutting up her play food, climbing up and down the stairs, pushing her animals around in a laundry basket, helping mama cook and do chores

Favorite food: tangerines, cookie stars, graham cracker bunnies, grapes

Favorite spot: On the stairs

Cutest moment: helping mama cook

Important milestones: 2 years old! That's pretty big!

Teeth: 15-16

Words: 92 - dada, mama, woof, yes, dis (this), kack (quack), hi, thank you, uh oh, bye, wa (water), pees (please), goat, puppy, ah duh (all done), no, shoe, socks, bawll (ball, but sounds like a southern belle when she says it!), Poppy, BeeBee, Tigee, truck, airplane, cat, cheese, spoo(n), eye, nose, Gamma, book, apple, pear, dip, fork, I do, fly (butterfly), star, circle, triangle, heart, Susan, Sissa (Melissa), Dogan (Logan), Jeshka (Jessica), mik (milk), shirt, pants, pee pee, poo poo, boo boo, fire, potty, Elmo, Big Bird, Cookie, Ernie, car, bus, duck, cow, horse, house, sheep, baa, moo, nee (neigh), woof, meow, oh der (oh dear), up up, tights, lights, Oscar, Grover, Zoe, Red, purple, gee (green), lellow (yellow), hello, bye bye, Lalai (Lorelei), Fi (Fin), Ummer (Bummer), boots, sharp (knife), grampa, Feen (Finn), Ja Care (J-Care), swim, tuk (cup or milk), 

Phrases: I do, Mama shirt/pants/boots/fork, Daddy shirt/pants/boots/fork, Lala shirt/fork/pants, sheep baa, more _____

Signs: 12 (more, all done, dog, please, berry, cheese, grape, water, milk, help, thank you, cat)

How Mom's Feeling: I can't believe we're over halfway through February and I'm just getting around to writing our 2 year post. That is absolutely crazy. But this last month has just been so crazy with birthday parties, trips to the snow and just life! Mostly though, I just can't believe that Lorelei is already two years old! She's been demonstrating some definite "Terrible 2" type behavior--at least for her. She's turning into "not a morning person" taking longer to wake up, and frequently she's whiny when she does. And this is AFTER sleeping 11-12 hours! She's more selective with her hugs and kisses now. While she'll blow kisses, generally, she does not freely give kisses and hugs the way she used to :( She's also WAY more selective about people, even people she normally would smile at. Now, she seems to have a sort of stranger danger/separation anxiety. There are, of course, the people she has no problem with--BeeBee and Grandmama, Mommy and Daddy, Aunt Bonnie, Aunt Mel, Poppy, Grandma Janet and Grandpa Dan, Nick in my office, and Miss Sandra at J-Care. If anyone else tries to talk to her, she'll hide behind my legs or even cry. There's also so much fun stuff going on with her as she begins her third year. Going to the zoo is much more fun. She's actually interacting and playing with other children. And she just LOVES to help mama. Cleaning up, using the big mixer, putting away dishes or clothes. In some ways, it makes things a lot easier. In other ways, it adds more work!

The Almost Eve of Lorelei's Birthday

Lorelei is going to officially be two in two days. We've been calling her two years old for the last two weeks and she had her birthday party on Saturday. This blows my mind. How can she be two already? Really? It seems like she was just born. Of course, it also seems like she has always been this tiny, capable and independent person--which of course, she hasn't.

With her extremely impending two year birthday, also comes the TALK. You know the talk...the one about Baby Number Two. I have always wanted two kids. Always. I was an only child and I always wanted a brother or sister, even while I had tons of friends and loving cousins. It would be nice to have someone else who knows our stories, someone to complain about our parents to (sorry, mom and dad. I love you!), someone who was always there. I'm sure a large part of this is due to watching my cousins together, and watching Brian and his sisters. I KNOW their relationships weren't always this way, and that there was fighting and arguments. But I'm looking at the big picture. The thing I always think about is that, well, people grow up and apart. No matter how close you are to your cousins, eventually you all grow up and get married and have families and family obligations and work obligations and you suddenly realize you haven't seen them in over a year, even though they only live two hours away. With siblings, well, you ARE the family obligations! And, as I've seen over the past few years as Brian's grandparents have passed away, parents die. And what struck me most was the way Brian's family came together for support. It wasn't always pretty and nice, but they were there for each other...especially in the time leading up to their deaths. I'm terrified of what will happen when that happens to my parents. I don't have any siblings to fall back and lean on, share the challenges with. It comes down to me. And I know I have Brian and his family and my family and cousins, but it isn't the same.

Brian only wants one. Not that he doesn't love his sisters and the experiences they had. But he's looking at the big picture, too. Just a different big picture. The one that thinks about health insurance for a family of four, college tuition for two kids and (since we could very likely have two girls) the thought of prom dresses and weddings for two daughters. He also is thinking of the opportunities we could give one child. The places we could go, the experiences we could have. And I understand that. By the time I was thirteen years old, I had been to more places than most adults I knew. I had hiked to waterfalls in Kauai, seen the volcanoes of Hawaii, explored ancient Mayan ruins in Mexico and learned how to scuba dive in Bonaire.

Tonight, as I was making dinner, I asked Lorelei if she wanted to play with her new easel. She smiled, said "yes! Chalk!" and we walked downstairs together. I got her settled down there, then came back upstairs to finish dinner. I closed the door to the downstairs bathroom and media room and let Brian know she was down there (he was in his office). Periodically, I walked down to check on her. She was playing with her magnadoodle, coloring at her activity table and drawing on her chalkboard. Perfectly happy. After days spent negotiating sharing and kind words between kindergarteners, which will tend to involve tears, screaming, tattling and walking along the fine line of redirection, the happy, contented silence was a relief. Now she isn't always like this. There are lots of tears and melt downs and demands to watch Elmo and Big Bird. But right now, at this moment, it just seemed so EASY. And I had the thought "Do I really want to rock this boat?"

With the work I do, I've seen a lot of siblings. I know that even though Lorelei seems so mellow and easygoing, that doesn't mean that my next child will be that way. In fact, I've seen a lot of siblings that are the polar opposites of each other! I've also seen a lot of amazing relationships between siblings.

Then I thought about the things we love to do: getting out and exploring nature, going out for lunch or dinner, exploring San Francisco, even just going to the zoo. Going out to eat with Lorelei has gotten increasingly challenging as she's gotten older. What is that going to be like with two kids? Running after Lorelei at the park or zoo is fun, but I can't run in two directions! I like to think that Lorelei will grow up as one of the "City Kids," kids who are comfortable and safe walking around and experiencing San Francisco--who will have gone to the San Francisco Zoo summer camp, will know exactly where to run to see the coolest exhibits at the Exploratorium and will have her favorite tea sandwich at Lovejoy's. Can I do that with two kids? Probably. Is it daunting? Absolutely.

So to answer that question that I've already been asked "Are you going to have a second?" The answer is...I don't know. But I do think I'll be spending a large part of this next year contemplating it, discussing it with Brian. I do know that I don't want to be storing baby swings, and boxes of baby clothes indefinitely, you know, just in case.

23 Months

Weight: 26.2 pounds

Length: 34.5 inches 

Favorite activity: coloring, cutting up her play food, climbing up and down the stairs, pushing her animals around in a laundry basket, helping mama cook

Favorite food: tangerines, cheese, Goldfish crackers, cookies

Favorite spot: On the stairs

Cutest moment: Cuddling with her grampa

Important milestones: starting to put clothes on by herself (with lots of help)

Teeth: 15-16

Words: 88 - dada, mama, woof, yes, dis (this), kack (quack), hi, thank you, uh oh, bye, wa (water), pees (please), goat, puppy, ah duh (all done), no, shoe, socks, bawll (ball, but sounds like a southern belle when she says it!), Poppy, BeeBee, Tigee, truck, airplane, cat, cheese, spoo(n), eye, nose, Gamma, book, apple, pear, dip, fork, I do, fly (butterfly), star, circle, triangle, heart, Susan, Sissa (Melissa), Dogan (Logan), Jeshka (Jessica), mik (milk), shirt, pants, pee pee, poo poo, boo boo, fire, potty, Elmo, Big Bird, Cookie, Ernie, car, bus, duck, cow, horse, house, sheep, baa, moo, nee (neigh), woof, meow, oh der (oh dear), up up, tights, lights, Oscar, Grover, Zoe, Red, purple, gee (green), lellow (yellow), hello, bye bye, Lala (Lorelei), Fi (Fin), Ummer (Bummer), boots, sharp (knife), grampa

Phrases: I do, Mama shirt/pants/boots/fork, Daddy shirt/pants/boots/fork, Lala shirt/fork/pants, sheep baa

Signs: 12 (more, all done, dog, please, berry, cheese, grape, water, milk, help, thank you, cat)

How Mom's Feeling: Someone needs to tell Lorelei that she is not two yet, so she does not need to start the terrible twos. I have one more month! Where last month she was starting to assert her independence, she has now claimed it. While she has always been a good eater (and still is), she is now being more particular about her food--and more generous to the dogs! I have convinced her that the apple-cinnamon whole wheat muffins I give her is cake, and she generally likes those. She will only wear her purple shoes, and if possible, her purple pants. In fact, she would be pretty happy if everything was purple. Or yellow. Now, unfortunately, if what you have is not in the correct color scheme, or just what she does not wish to do, we have meltdown. We've had a lot of meltdowns lately.

22 Months

Weight: 27 pounds

Length: 34.5 inches 

Favorite activity: coloring, her alphabet puzzle, cutting up her play food, climbing up and down the stairs

Favorite food: cheese, pears, Annie's Graham Bunnies, grapes

Favorite spot: On the stairs

Cutest moment: Helping mama while saying "I do"

Important milestones: Nothing major

Teeth: 15-16

Words: 57 - dada, mama, woof, yes, dis (this), kack (quack), hi, thank you, uh oh, bye, wa (water), pees (please), goat, puppy, ah duh (all done), no, shoe, socks, bawll (ball, but sounds like a southern belle when she says it!), Poppy, BeeBee, Tigee, truck, airplane, cat, cheese, spoo(n), eye, nose, Gamma, book, apple, pear, dip, fork, I do, fly (butterfly), star, circle, triangle, heart, Susan, Sissa (Melissa), Dogan (Logan), Jeshka (Jessica), mik (mik), shirt, pants, pee pee, poo poo, boo boo, fire, potty, Elmo, Big Bird, Cookie, Ernie...I'm sure there are more.

Signs: 12 (more, all done, dog, please, berry, cheese, grape, water, milk, help, thank you, cat)

How Mom's Feeling: Wait...November is over? What? How did that happen? I don't even know where this month went. It seems like a blur of farmers' markets, art projects and planning house renovations. 

Lorelei has become much more independent this month. She now climbs up and down the stairs on her own with ease (and speed!). In many respects, this is kind of nice. When she wants to play downstairs, she just goes. I just have to make sure the doors to the rooms downstairs are shut. She also wants to "help" and sometimes she actually does. She helps me empty the dishwasher, will put her dishes and the plastic containers away (more or less), will help pull out clothes to be folded and will bring piles of clothes to me in the bedroom to put away. All the while she tells me "I do! I do!"

21 Months

Weight: 26.6 pounds

Length: 34.5 inches 

Favorite activity: coloring, her alphabet puzzle, reading books, bouncing the ball, pushing Tiger around in her potty

Favorite food: tangerines, cheese, anything she can dip

Favorite spot: on the couch, with Tiger

Cutest moment: Playing hide and seek (around mommy) with cousin Logan.

Important milestones: Nothing major

Teeth: 15

Words: 30 - dada, mama, woof, yes, dis (this), kack (quack), hi, thank you, uh oh, bye, wa (water), pees (please), goat, puppy, ah duh (all done), no, shoe, socks, bawll (ball, but sounds like a southern belle when she says it!), Poppy, BeeBee, Tigee, truck, airplane, cat, cheese, spoo(n), eye, nose, Gamma, book, apple, pear, dip

Signs: 12 (more, all done, dog, please, berry, cheese, grape, water, milk, help, thank you, cat)

How Mom's Feeling: Happy the month is just about over! It's been an absolutely crazy busy month of parties and playdates and teething. So much teething.

A few new things we've started this month: 

-Farmers' Market Thursdays. The Daly City Farmers' Market is pretty amazing and at a time I can actually go. Which means, I don't have to go grocery shopping Saturday morning. Yay! I can get almost everything we need at the market and it's fun to boot. So win!

-Family Day. We've started taking one day a month and doing something just the three of us as a family. Something on the schedule, so we can plan around it. This month it was Ardenwood Farm and Pumpkin Patch. We visited the pumpkin patch, took some pictures, then explored the farm. Next month, we will be going to Lemos Farm.

As for Lorelei this month, in some respects, I feel she has gotten needier and clingier, but also so grown up. It could be the cooler weather, but in her little jeans, sweaters, Converse sneakers, and pigtails, she looks so much more like a little girl!

20 months

Weight: 26.6 pounds

Length: 32.5 inches 

Favorite activity: coloring, blocks, reading books, bouncing the ball

Favorite food: pears, rice, beans

Favorite spot: at her coloring table

Cutest moment: Giving kisses to her favorite stuffed animal, Tiger.

Important milestones: First (and hopefully last) case of Hand, Foot and Mouth.

Teeth: 13

Words: 22 - dada, mama, woof, yes, dis (this), kack (quack), hi, thank you, uh oh, bye, wa (water), buh (book), pees (please), goat, puppy, ah duh (all done), no, shoe, socks, bawll (ball, but sounds like a southern belle when she says it!), Poppy, BeeBee

Signs: 12 (more, all done, dog, please, berry, cheese, grape, water, milk, help, thank you, cat)

How Mom's Feeling: Pooped. Nothing to do with Lorelei, so much, as how things are going at work. I got a promotion (yay!) and a pay increase (double yay!), but I've also got an extremely young and very challenging group of kids to work with. Each day I feel like I come home completely drained.

On the plus side this month, I had a lot of days off for various Jewish holidays. It's kind of a nice way to ease into the school year. Lorelei got to spend a lot of time with me running errands and going to fun places. Of course, that makes it harder when I have to go back to work on a regular schedule!

Another positive addition this month is that we found an interesting new church to go to. We've been hunting for a good one since before I was pregnant. We want one with a relatively young demographic, young families, with a perspective that doesn't just accept what the bible says, but also questions it. I feel that this church meets most of these goals. They also meet on Sunday evenings and serves dinner after. This is so much easier for us! It means we can go down to Gilroy for the weekend, and still come back without missing church (and I don't have to worry about cooking dinner one night a week). Time will tell, but I'm hoping this will be a good fit for us.

Pics of our Week

We're getting to that time of year again, my very favorite time of year...Indian Summer! While June, July and August are summer for most, it was generally foggy and cool here. But this weekend, the forecast is for 80's in Daly City (what what?)! The other reason this is my favorite time of year: The Jewish High Holy Days--which means I get a lot of days off!

Some pictures from the last few weeks:

Bath time!

Proud to master the stairs!

And the slide!

Happy morning baby!

Cuddling with Tiger

Pizza is so delicious!

Reading to the dogs!