Lily "reading" through her Christmas book. This was a gift from grandma and grandpa last year and she loves it - it has their voices recorded!
I know I've posted lots of pics, but I feel like I've been neglient in posting about all the things Lily is doing! We've been so busy (isn't everyone!?) that updating the blog has just not been a priority. I can only imagine how it'll be once Baby Cole 2 comes, but I'm going to do my best! I'll probably do a separate post on my thoughts and the excitement of upcoming Baby #2, so for now I'll focus on Lily!
Here are a couple highlights from Lily's life recently:
* Lily is a chatterbox. She has picked up so many words and phrases and can really communicate what she wants. I don't compare her to other kids, but I notice other people's reactions when we're out. People are amazed at how much she talks and expresses herself and this was all happening before she even turned 2! I can't help but be proud of her. At her 2 yr check-up her nurse was amazed at how much she was saying (and pointing out her colors etc). At her 2 year check she also weighed in at 28 pounds and is pretty tall (90th percentile - forget the actual height?) Again, it's funny because I don't notice her being tall, but then again, most of her little friends are boys who are generally taller anyway!
* Lily can identify most of her colors - red, blue, pink, black, brown, yellow, purple, green, orange, white. She also counts to about 17 (why 17 and not 18...not sure!?) and recites most of the alphabet (albeit skipping letters here and there). It's so funny to hear her say "l,m,n,o,p" because she kinda rolls them all together as I'm sure it sounds to her.
* Lily is on day 3 of the transition to her big girl bed and she's done great! The first nap in her bed was on Sunday, Nov 14. Previously she had a double ear infection so I didn't want to start anything foreign especially when she wasn't feeling well. We had been reading in her big girl room and put her books in there, but hadn't tried sleeping yet. She loves sleeping with her little Pooh Bear and I told her Pooh really wanted to sleep in the big girl bed. So on Sunday we read a few books before her nap, I tucked her in and did our routine (wrote out numbers on her back) and told her that I loved her. I anxiously closed the door and crept down to the bottom of the stairs. As I sat listening on the bottom step, I heard her say something to Pooh and then silence. I cranked the monitor so I could hear any little peeps, but she didn't get out and took a 1 1/2 hour nap. Wahoo! I think I was way more anxious than I needed to be. It wasn't as long as she normally naps which worried me a bit, but I was just happy she didn't get scared or try to come out. Then, Sunday night Greg gave her a bath, read her books and put her in bed. Not a peep! She slept from 8:30pm -8:20am - her normal! Monday nap and bedtime were a success as well! Her nap on Monday went from 2:30 until we had to wake her up at 6:30. That was unusually long partially because she had her flu shot and vaccines earlier that morning. That plus a quick shopping trip to Target I think wore her out.
I mentioned to Greg that while I love her hitting different milestones, it makes me sad at the same time. My "baby" is now sleeping in a big girl bed. I can't believe she's 2. Like Greg said, we look at these transitions in slightly different ways, and I just know I'm a lot more nostalgic about it all. Not to say it doesn't impact him also - I know it does - but he takes it a lot more in stride. I know it's good timing too because when the baby comes, Lily will have her own special room and the baby will need the crib!
* she has the cutest phrases. When I ask her something, she replies with "Yes, mommy" in just the sweetest voice. "Want to go to the store with me?" "Yes, mommy" or "Ok, mommy." I don't know where she picked it up, but she also says "ok, sure" and nods her head. She has so many funny phrases that I'll just have to write them all down sometime. She repeats everything we say and just seems to be a quick learner.
* Lily has certainly asserted her independence. She wants to do a lot of things on her own now. Even reading - she'll pick out books and sometimes instead of letting us read to her, she'll say "I want to read it" and will grab the book so she can flip through. She has memorized a few books (Sand Cake, Hungry Caterpillar, a few Suess books) and likes to "read" through the book. While these are all normal and ok things to do, we've also had to learn when we need to draw the line. Dinner for instance - she's not too picky of an eater, but she definitely has her favorites. When I make dinner I'll sometimes give her a choice of what she wants first. I usually leave the fruit 'til last because once that comes out, that's all she'll want. At times she'll insist that she wants grapes or whatever comes to her mind, but we won't cave and just give it to her. She's had a few tantrums when we don't give her exactly what she's requesting. Once kicking or crying starts, we'll tell her she needs to stop, and if that doesn't work, we'll just take her out of her chair and continue on with our dinner. She'll stand next to me and repeat "mommy, up...mommy, up" because she wants to sit on my lap. It's distracting and frustrating, but Greg and I just try to continue talking and eating our dinner. Sometimes you wish there was a magic phrase or trick to make her behave, but if there is, I haven't figured it out yet. There are definitely times she tries our patience!
* Lil' is very interested in babies. My mom took Lily to story time twice a week and my mom would tell me that there'd be 20 little kids in class and while Lily would be interested in them, as soon as she'd see a stroller with a little baby come in, Lily's eyes would just light up. She'd want to go see the baby so my mom would always walk her over so she could peer in to see. We've been reading a lot of books about being a big sibling and about little babies and she has a special baby doll she can feed and put to sleep. She also goes with me to most of my doc appointments and gets excited to her "baby heartbeat." I know she can't truly appreciate what's coming, but I do have a feeling she is just going to love having a little sister or brother. When I talk about the baby she'll say, "help change diaper" and "Lily feed baby a bottle" etc. I have a feeling I'll have a good little helper!
Those are the biggest highlights for now. Now that I'm off work, hopefully I'll have a little time to catch up on some posts and pictures. Although, I've been in a serious "nesting" phase and have organized just about every cupboard and closet, gone through clothes bins and toys and have even rolled coins and taken them to the bank. Why in the world did I feel the need to roll coins as part of what needs to get done before baby 2? I really have no idea...but it was nice to do while watching a DVR'd Oprah. Maybe it felt like I was still being productive while putting my feet up. :)
I'm going to be a big sister today!
