Lenore is FOUR!

Lenore Elaine turns 4 years old today. We celebrated with two parties yesterday--one for our friends and neighbors at lunchtime, and another for the grandparents and uncles at dinnertime. She was so happy to have so many people around to help celebrate her big day. When she woke up this morning, I told her happy birthday, and she immediately said she wanted to stay 3, instead. :)

Four Years Old

Her checkup appointment was this morning and went really well. The doctor said one of her ear tubes is still in place, and the other one is sort of floating around waiting to fall out. She still slightly has the sound of a heart murmur, but we've gotten the all clear from the cardiologist on that. Our pediatrician said it's normal to still hear that whooshing sound for awhile after. Everything else looks perfectly normal, which is always good to hear. She had to get 3 shots, which she was SO brave in taking, and she's all up to date until she turns 11 (minus the flu shot).

Waiting at the doctor with Uni the unicorn and her new Fingerling monkey.

Her stats:

Height:  41.3 inches tall [83rd percentile]
Weight:  41.23 pounds [87th percentile]

At 4, Lenore is...

• Such a 'strong, independent woman,' as Kevin calls her. She knows what she wants, she knows how to get it, and you better let her go ahead and do that if you know what's good for you. Not in like a spoiled/bratty way. Just that she is so decisive and stubborn once she's set her mind to something. I think this will take her far in life.
• She is kind. She loves babies and snuggles and animals and little tiny things.
• She does NOT like scary things. We went to Lewis's school's fall festival the other night, and she just shrieked and trembled at the kids in costume who were trying to scare us in the haunted hall. But she's so pragmatic afterwards--she said, 'I did not like that boy in the mask who tried to scare us by our feet.' She's not so hysterical that she can't make sense of it all, I guess. Also, we were out on the deck the other day, cleaning out a beverage tub for her party. There was a cave cricket in the bottom, so I touched it to make it jump out so I could wipe out the bin. It jumped toward her and all around her and back again, and she screamed and screamed. I was laughing so hard as she just kept jumping and screaming and jumping up on a chair. It was hilarious.
• She holds her own with Lewis. She will snatch something from him and run like hell, fully knowing he's going to be so mad, chase her down, and probably whack her. She keeps doing it, though. 
• She's really been big on imaginative play since school started again. I will be in the kitchen starting dinner, and I will hear her in her kitchen, working away as well. She also loves her dolls and loves walking them in a stroller or making food for them or food for us. She will sit for long stretches of time now and just play. She will make her toys talk and she will act out whole scenarios with them.
• She is writing her name, which seems impossible to me! And she's just really interested in letters, in general. She will see a letter and say, '__, that's in _____'s name.' Her preschool teacher is wonderful this year. She has writing homework every week and is getting stronger with tracing and holding a pencil (better with crayons, but getting better with pencil).
• She loves milk. When we go out to eat, she might choose Sprite or lemonade, but every other time, it's milk or water.
• She was a really good eater, but I would say she's gotten worse/more picky over the past few months. She will eat chicken nuggets until the sun goes down, but she gripes over grilled or baked chicken. She complains about pasta shapes (Lewis does that, too). Together, they combine to find something wrong with just about everything I cook. It's better some days than others, or I'm just becoming more numb to the complaining.
• She has been doing pre-ballet once a week for about 8 weeks, and we will finish that after two more sessions. We are either taking the winter off or looking into gymnastics. She is fearless and always has a scraped up knee or toe, so I think that would lend itself well to gymnastics. We will see.
• I am not sure what she is going to be yet when she grows up. I could see Lewis's engineering mindset from very early on. With Lenore, she has definitely always been a caregiver and 'little mama,' making sure everyone has everything they need (esp. Lewis). I could see her as a nurse or a teacher or something totally different--I'm not sure just yet. Maybe I'll have a better idea by next year. ;)
• She is wearing size 11 shoes and 5T or 4/5 clothing. 

That is our girl at 4! Life is fuller and happier and crazier than ever.

Lenore is 3!

Lenore is THREE (yesterday)! Things have been really busy with my cousin's wedding this past weekend, and (subsequently) my sister, niece, and nephew are staying with us for a few days/nights. I'm a day late.

Lenore at 3 Years

MoanaElsa (Moana's necklace + Elsa's dress with train)

Her stats (we will get at her doctor's appointment on Friday):

Height: 38.15 inches [77th percentile]

Weight: 36 pounds 6.4 ounces [91st percentile]

Her doctor's appointment went well! She didn't have to have any shots or finger pricks (Lewis was really concerned she'd have to have a finger prick). We just talked to the doctor about things, and he checked her out. All looks good!

What she's up to:

• She is in 3 day 3s (half day) preschool at a new school this year and loves it. She bounds in the car every day at carpool, wanting to show me what she's made or to tell me what she's done that day. 
• She loves to dance and sing. She'll ask me to sing 'that pink circle' song or 'that song about a blue rectangle in Gramma's room,' and I have to make up songs on the spot to her requests. Some times are easier than others. :)
• Her favorite things to watch are Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Moana, SING, and Frozen (which is becoming slightly less and less).
• She loves wearing tutus and dresses and crowns and necklaces and bows in her hair. She loves pretending to be her favorite characters (Moana, Elsa, and Anna). She loves having her nails painted, and she lets me cut and fix her hair. [It's kind of fun to discover the sides of myself that I never really had time/interest/confidence in while growing up.]
• She likes to play with Lewis, but Lewis doesn't always like her to play with him or his toys. They will fight and scream and chase each other, which is hard. They are sloooowly starting to play better, which gives me glimpses of what it can be like.
• She loves to play outside and isn't afraid to get dirty. In that way, she and Lew play really well together. She likes to ride her tricycle and to play with the neighbors.
• She is potty-trained! After 2-3 false starts over the past 9 months, she's finally stuck with it and is doing really well. She was almost there when school started, but I kept her in pull-ups the first two weeks, just in case. Then we had one intensive weekend of only-underwear-commitment training (which she initiated), and we haven't looked back. We've had a few accidents when she's gotten really busy playing, but she is doing great. It was a lot easier than what I remember with Lewis. :)
• She is still napping 2-3 hours in the afternoon. I can see it waning a little bit some days--sometimes she will stay up in her bed past her 7:30 bedtime, but sometimes she still sleeps a lot. I'm trying to stick to her nap schedule as much as possible. It certainly helps with me not working this year--I can get her from school, do lunch, and get her down for nap early enough that she can wake up on her own before it's time to go to the bus stop to get Lewis. Sleep is everything.
• She also sleeps with a crib tent, like Lewis did. She started climbing out 3ish months ago, and she didn't do well in her toddler bed (getting things out of her closet, pulling off books, etc.). I think by the time the crib tent arrived from Amazon, she was STARTING to get the hang of it, but the peace of mind from the crib tent (safety/containment/etc.) is better for right now. 
• Along with climbing out of her bed, she is fearless on the playground. She will follow Lewis up any sort of climbing structure, and she might fall but pops right back up again. Fearless. I'm considering getting her signed up for a tumbling class or something similar because I think she would love it.
• She is pretty manipulative, I would say. If you tell her not to do something, she will tilt her head to the side and say 'But I'm just touching it' or 'I'm just looking at it' or something similar. She does NOT like to be told what to do or not do. :) It can be challenging, to say the least.
• She is wearing size 4T clothes and size 10 shoes.

Lenore at 2 1/2 Years

I think that they (doctors/insurance companies) must have added a well-child check at 2 1/2 years since Lewis came through that age. I feel like we went at 2 and at 3 with him, but 2 1/2 feels a bit odd. Anyway, Lenore went on Monday, and everything checked out well.

Her stats:
Height: 37.5 inches [91st percentile]
Weight: 33 pounds 3.2 ounces [89th percentile]
Head Size: 51 centimeters [98th percentile]

I feel like she's caught up/surpassed her normal growth curve. I think she was more 'average' before and now she's a little more 'above average.' She didn't have to have any shots or finger pricks, so it was a pretty basic appointment. I DID finally switch offices (still within the same hospital system, but to one more conveniently located to us and hopefully more efficiently run). The doctor was very friendly and took a lot of time with us (AND WAS ON TIME, which is a huge improvement).

What she's doing:

• Still napping. #praisejesushallelujah When she doesn't, there's hell to pay for days and days after. She typically sleeps 3 hours in the afternoon, and close to 12 hours at night. She is still in her crib, but I have started thinking about when we will transition her to a twin bed. Maybe once school is out, we will put a bed in her room and let her live with it--I feel like it's going to be a lot easier with her (vs. Lewis), but I feel like it needs to be her idea.
• If you'll recall, we had no choice with Lewis because he was climbing out of his crib at 18 months and was a danger to himself. We were forced to find a way to keep him in his bed (and naps suffered and it was a very dark period of time). I think Lenore's personality is such that she will decide to when she decides to and she won't look back.
• On a related note, potty training is going to go similarly. She decides/announces that she needs to pee occasionally, and she will go and clap and wipe and flush and all is well. It's not happening consistently for her, though, and she doesn't seem to be in any hurry.
• She has so much attitude. We joke that she's a strong, independent woman, which she is, but MAN. When she has put her mind to something being a certain way, there can be times when nothing we can do or say will sway her from getting it her way. It can be so challenging.
• She has been out of preschool since March 17 (when I quit working and pulled her). She is all set to start at a new school near our house this fall, 3 mornings a week. I'm really excited for her/us to have a fresh start, with 3 years of preschool still ahead of her, because of the way her birthday falls (October 29).
• She had tubes put in last month (finally), and we go back to have them checked tomorrow. I'm sure everything will be fine with that--she seems unphased.
• She says really funny things these days. She says 'about everybody else' in the improper context, so it cracks me up now that I recognize her doing it. 
• Example: She took a magnet off the fridge at lunch today and said, 'What is this about everybody else?'
• I think she just meant, 'What is this?'
• It was a superhero-shaped bottle opener magnet, so I think she was trying to ask who he was/what character/etc. If you spend time with her, listen for her to insert 'about everybody else' from time to time.
• She loves to walk on her own, ride her bike on her own, look for rocks on her own, etc. She really no longer allows me to take stroller walks with her. Or we will walk to a destination (i.e. the lake to look at geese), and then screams THE ENTIRE WAY HOME about how she wants to walk. I can put her in the bike trailer to get where I need to go, but, even then, she sometimes screams when I try to get her back in to go home. It really sucks not being able to drive places. It sucks having to rely on walking or riding my bike everywhere...with a screaming toddler. Any chance I can get to have some peace and quiet, I need to take it. I do get up to walk with a neighbor two mornings a week, and that is nice. But as far as being productive and getting errands run, that quiet/alone time is something I have missed and will miss until August (or beyond) rolls around.

Sorry to stray. I'll post a health update, as well. I met with my neurologist on Monday, as well, and he seems to have some theories.

Lenore, From There to Here

A look back, especially for Auntie Schwee.

A few days old

 One

 Two

 Three

 Four

 Five

 Six

 Seven

 Eight

 Nine

 Ten

Eleven 

 One Year

 Thirteen

 Fourteen

That one was rough, apparently. :/

 Fifteen

 Sixteen

Pink Sleeper Appearance #1

 Seventeen

 Eighteen

Pink Sleeper Appearance #2

 Nineteen

 Twenty

 Twenty-One

 Twenty-Two

 Twenty-Three

Verrrry rough.

Pink Sleeper Appearance #3

Two Years

Lenore is TWO!

24 Months Old

Her appointment on Tuesday was fine--it took forever (like an hour and a half) and she has a double ear infection (lovely). That explains some of her extra fussiness the past week, though I'm having trouble distinguishing when she's fussy from being sick and fussy from being herself. (It has been  a rough week.)

Her stats:
Height: 34 1/4 inches [50th-75th percentile]
Weight: 30.6 pounds [75th-90th percentile]

What she's doing this month:

• The past few weeks, her vocabulary has really taken off. She jabbers to me more, like I'm supposed to know what she's saying, which is true half of the time (probably 70% of the time). Kevin is able to understand her better as well.
• She continues to love dancing. I haven't signed her up for a tumbling or dance class, but I have been asking around to friends who have daughters, to get an idea of what is available. She loves Creative Movement and Music at school.
• She continues to mimic everything Lewis does, both good and bad. I've been talking to Lewis about being a good example, but some days are rough when they are acting up together.
• She's getting better at feeding herself with a spoon and fork (less spillage). She's been drinking out of a straw cup at school, but I'm going to stop sending it so that she can continue working on drinking out a regular cup. She will do pretty well when I let her drink out of a cup or water bottle, but there are still spills (which makes me revert back to cups with lids and spouts/straws to save me from having to clean up another mess).
• She will take a pen, marker, crayon, pencil, whatever, and scribble on paper, thanks to practicing at school.
• She loves school. The morning drop-offs have become so much smoother this month--she will walk right in, willingly, once she sees one of her teachers. No more tears. Whenever I walk by her room with my class, she'll say 'MAMA!' and point and wave.
• She is tough (physically, probably due to living with Lewis), and very strong-willed. I'm realizing that the tactics I used on Lewis will not work on her (giving two choices, standing firm on certain things, etc.). She will let me have it--crying for 20-30 minutes if I do not let her have her way. I did not have to deal with that with Lewis--he is like Kevin and I, pretty black/white on things. She is much more emotional than I am used to dealing with. I've mentioned that before--not wanting to 'give in' to her and let her get away with everything, but I've got to figure out a better way than our current way. Eventually, a switch will flip, and she'll forget why/how/what she was mad about and move on, but those 20-30 minutes are brutal.
• When she's not angry, she is so sweet and hilarious and wild and free, and I love that about her. 
• She is wearing size 3T.
• Current Tooth Count: still 20, as far as I know.

Lenore at 23 Months

23 Months Old

aka Here Come the Twos
aka Just realized this is the third time she's worn this sleeper for a monthly picture. 

And then sound asleep for 3 hours. Yay, Lenore. :)

She was mad about something pretty much from the time we walked in the door from school, all through lunch, and now (trying to) nap. It has been one of those days. She still has a runny nose, so that could be part of it. Hopefully she feels better after she sleeps (and stops crying!). Mama's patience tank is running low.

What she's doing this month:

• Whatever Bubba (Lewis) is having to eat, she must have the same. She is copying most everything he does, especially when it comes to food.
• She's been sick the past few weeks. It was a runny nose, then a few days of fever, then more runny nose. The doctor thought it's probably a sinus infection, so she is finishing up antibiotics now (and still has a runny nose). 'Tis the season, I know. Kevin and Lewis and I all woke up sneezing the past few days with the changing of the seasons.
• Naps have not been as good the past few weeks. What once were solid 3 hour afternoon naps have now sometimes become 1 1/2 to 2 hour naps. Sometimes she wakes up around 3pm and goes back down until 4pm, but more often, it seems, she's up at 3 and stays up (and isn't happy about it, understandably). Hopefully she gets back into a better routine soon.
• Something else that she does (she literally just did as I was typing up this post yesterday), is open the freezer drawer, get out what she wants (i.e. an ice cream sandwich), and unwraps it and starts to eat it all on her own. I need to get a lock on that drawer.
• Still wearing 2T and 3T clothes. I did jump up to size 5 diapers, finally. The 4s still fit, but were starting to get a little snug.
• Current Tooth Count: still 20

Lenore at 22 Months

22 Months Old

What she's up to this month:

• She's in school and loving it. She's made a few friends in class and knows her way around the playground, according to her teachers (read: she's wild). She does get a little sad when I leave her in the morning, but I know it will get better/easier. She will see me in the hallways during the morning and say 'Mama!' but not run to me, which I think is pretty good for a not-quite-two-year-old. Her teachers keep saying she cracks them up, which I take as a good thing.
• She thinks her name is Sissy.
• She's very big about knowing where everyone is and what they are doing. As we are driving to school, she will ask where Dada is, where Bubba is, etc. She's always checking in on her little family flock. Even when we are just sitting at the dining table, she will go around and say all of our names.
• She's also started saying 'my' cup or 'my' whatever. And she'll say Dada's cup, Bubba's cup, Mama's cup, etc.
• She loves/is obsessed with Dinosaur Train. I turned the TV on PBS one day when it was on, and she's been hooked ever since. 'MY DINOSAUR!!!' is her request.
• She has started walking up and down the stairs with more confidence the past few days. Walking upright on her feet instead of scooting down on her bottom. She will still scoot if there's no handrail or wall to hold onto for support.
• She is still napping well, but we have had some time crunches with school starting. On days when she goes to school and I go to work (W/Th/F), we get home around 12:30 (or a little past). I try to feed her lunch and get her down by 1, but she doesn't always fall asleep right away. Most days, she is still sleeping at 4 when I need to grab her to get Lewis from the bus stop. I hate waking her up, but I can't leave her (though the thought has crossed my mind!). 
• She's still showing interest in going potty but hasn't gone yet.
• She continues to express what she wants, either verbally or physically. She will grab your arm or pant leg and pull you to where she wants you to go if you don't listen to her the first time. :) 
• As I think about it, she's really a lot more verbal this month, and we are communicating both ways, which is always helpful. I get what she is saying, and she (mostly) listens to what I am saying.
• She is wearing 2T and a few 3T clothes.
• Current tooth count: still 20.

Lenore at 21 Months

21 Months Old (in my outfit from 1983)

RIP Old Dog. You're officially MIA. I contacted the owner of the condo we stayed in on vacation, and he contacted the other people who had stayed there since us, the property manager, and the cleaning staff. The dog is gone. :(

What she's doing this month:

• She likes to sit at the computer and 'take notes,' I will call it. She takes a piece of paper and un-caps a highlighter, then makes dots all over the page. And sometimes on her outfit, too. Pen on her arms. I thought highlighter would wash out easily--turns out I was wrong.
• Mealtimes are a mess. She likes to move things from container to container. Or the other day at lunch, it was from the table to the floor. Bread, cheese, turkey, methodically dropped on the floor, piece by piece.
• She has a particular way of eating sandwiches...traditional ones and sandwiched cookies and sandwiched crackers. She opens them and licks the contents (making a huge mess). I keep showing her to take bites, but it's not her natural instinct.
• She does not like being told No. I could see it going one of two ways...either she'll be tough and won't take No for an answer, or she'll be a brat. I really hope she isn't a brat. Can I say that? I just did. I can just see it going that way, and I hope it's just a phase.
• She is in an I-can-do-it phase. For instance, she can climb up on the dog bowls, reach the banana tree, pull off a banana, and open it. She will do that a few times a day, but she only ever eats about half of one banana--the rest she tries to give to me (and I can only stand so much banana/day). She just does it because she can, not out of hunger. At least bananas are cheap.
• Kind of along those lines, I noticed that she has started relying on Kevin and I to carry her down the stairs. Once I realized I was doing it, I stopped, and we've had some battles. She has stood at the top of the stairs screeeeaming for many minutes. Eventually she will come down, either enticed by going outside or to the basement or to eat or drink something.
• She continues to be fearless. She will run up to me full-speed and expect to be swooped up in the air (which I do). She will confidently step off of things (stairs, tables, fireplace, etc.) into my arms, fully expecting that I will be there to catch her. I guess I have been there, up until now, but she could really take a fall if I'm not there or not paying attention. Definitely keeps me on my toes. I am still planning to get her into some sort of tumbling class this fall because I think she'd really enjoy it.
• Speaking of fall, she is starting school in a few weeks! We decided to go ahead and put her in the Twos class, even though she misses the cutoff by 29 days (cutoff is October 1, birthday is October 29). The director said that most of the other Ones are quite a lot younger than her, so we are skipping Ones. She will do Twos (starting when she's almost 2), Threes, Fours, Pre-K, then start Kindergarten (in public school) when she's almost 6. We were also going to just do two mornings a week, but we've decided to do three instead. She does so well there, and we love it, and I know she loves being with the other kids.
• She continues to show some interest in the potty, but she hasn't gone yet. She has asked to sit on it a few times and mimics Lewis's standing-to-pee posture sometimes.
• She loves SHOES! She tries to put her own shoes on and loves to try on other people's shoes, too. She also loves bracelets, purses, sunglasses, etc. and has started playing dress-up a little.
• She has been showing some interest in dressing herself. We went shopping the other day, and she got some PJs and a swimsuit. Immediately, she had a leg through the PJ bottoms and her head through the swimsuit top. A budding fashionista, for sure!
• Along with that, her love for Minnie and Mickey continues to blossom. She picks them out of a crowd and just stares lovingly. It was a set of Minnie PJs and a Minnie swimsuit that I bought for her because she was SO excited and she caught me in a moment of weakness. ;)
• We've been seeing a LOT of Monkey See, Monkey Do this month between Lewis and Lenore. The good, bad, and ugly.
• Current Tooth Count: still 20, but I can feel her two year molars way way in the back! They're on the move.
• She's currently wearing 2T and even a few 3T items.

Lenore at 20 Months

20 Months Old

So many funny/notable things about this picture, which are totally indicative of how life is going these days:

a) WE LOST THE DOG! The dog I sewed for Kevin, the dog that we've taken all of these monthly pictures with, has disappeared. We didn't look super hard, but it isn't in any of the usual spots, so I'm calling it lost. I'm sure it will turn up tomorrow. 
b) This picture is late in the day (post-bath, pre-bedtime) because we had to wait for Kevin to get home to use his phone to take a picture. The Apple people fixed my phone (it had a twitching screen), but they also broke my phone (the camera and flashlight aren't working since the fix). And, yes, I could have used our camera, but that, too, was broken the last time I tried to use it. I think it got sand in the lens mechanisms on last year's vacation, if I remember correctly.
c) I guess that's all. We are definitely still getting back to our routine since vacation last week.

What she's up to this month:

• She and Lewis are going to camp this week at preschool. I wasn't sure how she would handle a longer day (5 hours vs. the usual 3), but she has been doing well! They eat lunch there, and then she goes right down for nap after I pick them up. It has made her naps a little later (2-5ish), so bedtime has been a little later each night this week. I still put her down by 7:30, but she's been up chattering to herself until 8:30-8:45ish. We'll get back to our regular nap schedule next week (1-4ish).
• Otherwise, it has been much of the same! There aren't many new things happening this month.
• She does say Thank You (her version of it) after I give her something (i.e. her water bottle, usually). I didn't realize she was doing it until she'd been doing it for about a week.
• Her fits have been getting stronger (emotionally), when they occur (which still isn't very often, but they do occur). I had forgotten how utterly helpless/frustrating/angry/etc. I could feel until she threw a huge fit the other night over a tortilla. I'm talking 30 minutes of screaming/crying/needing held/throwing herself on the ground/etc. All while I was trying to finish dinner and end the day without losing my #$@^. I hadn't felt that way since Lewis was around this age, I guess. Hopefully we all make it through as peacefully as possible.
• She did great at the beach! She loved to sit in the shallow water and let the water come and go around her the first few days. Mid-week, she would walk around holding a hand in the slightly deeper water. Then, as the days went on, she got more and more comfortable and liked going out in the bigger waves (in my arms) to get splashed around. She did well in the sand, too--she wouldn't stay still for too long, but for a little bit.
• She started sleeping with a small pillow at the beach--I'd packed one for the car, in case her head was falling to the side, and she took to it as a comfort item for her crib. She's never slept with a pillow until now.
• Wearing mostly size 24 months/2T now (some of her 2T cotton shorts are snug in the waist).
• Current Tooth Count: Still 20!

Some outtakes of her advising me on what she'd like me to do, as per usual. She wanted the footrest up for her pictures, so the footrest went up:

 Put the footrest up!

Stinker Queen Lenore, on her throne

Lenore at 19 Months

19 Months Old

----------
UPDATED 6/1: She still has a small perforation (hole) between the left and right atrium of her heart, but it's pretty small. That is the Atrial Septal Defect portion of her issues. The doctor said that we should come back to have it checked in another year, and he's hoping it will have closed itself up by then without having to do anything to it (which is what he said a year ago). He said that they usually close up by the time kids are 2 or 3 years old, but it just depends.

He also said that her pulmonary valve looks great (so no more Pulmonary Stenosis, which was the report last year, as well). And her heart is normal-sized, which is great. He said we shouldn't be concerned, but of course I'm a little disappointed it wasn't an all clear report.

I thought of a few more things she's doing this month, too. She legitimately helps me unload the dishwasher. Primarily the silverware--she'll hand it to me, one-at-a-time, as I put it away in the drawer. She will grab a few other dishes, too. Such a little helper.

She also has started announcing her poops, so I have a feeling potty training will be a lot easier with her than it was with Lewis.
----------

What she's up to this month:

• She has sass! We have known this, but she's really asserting herself this month and has opinions on things. She might shake her head and say 'Nah nah nah!' Or steal a toy and take off running (from Lewis) like her life depends on it. It's usually funny. Occasionally, she doesn't want to get dressed and bucks and screams, but that's not very often.
• She LOVES to be outside. She loves to walk the dogs with me (riding in the stroller). She loves to walk the mower down the road. She loves to walk down the neighbor's driveway and into her backyard (only rarely).
• She loves pointing to the parts on her face and my face. Nose, eyes, mouth, ears, hair, etc. It's usually when we're saying goodbye at nap time or bedtime. I'll get down to give her a kiss in the crib, and she'll stick her finger up my nose and start through her list of parts.
• She loves the same books, over and over again. Her favorite this month is one that Kevin actually got her for Christmas, I am a Bunny. We found it in on the bookshelf in the basement a few weeks ago, and she instantly fell in love. It's fitting because her class at school was the Bunnies, so it was meant to be. She has nibbled the corners and the cover has fallen off, but it's still readable.
• She has really clung to comfort items this month for nap and bedtime. She sleeps with I am a Bunny and a Winnie the Pooh book, plus two stuffed animals, and a couple of pairs of her PJ pants. She will drag one of the stuffed animals (a hot pink monkey) around the house sometimes, too, and even wanted to take it to dinner the other day. (Lewis never took to comfort items, really.)
• She will say 'Ooo-ooo-aah-aah' like a monkey, too, which is adorable.
• Naps and sleep are going well. Twelve hours at night, plus a 3 hour nap (most days). We will be able to have a more consistent nap schedule this summer with Lewis out of school, which is good. She was starting to have trouble taking a late morning nap because it was too early.
• She notices when I paint my toes a new color, so I painted hers for the first time last week. She sat surprisingly still in the stroller while I put on one coat. In the time it took me to run inside to get the dogs to walk, she had smudged a couple of them, but not bad for the first time.
• She is much stronger on going down the stairs safely this month. She slides down on her belly, and I feel like I don't have to be right on top of her now. I still like to be below her, just in case she misses a step, but she's had no incidences so far.
• She is still wearing a few 18 months clothes, but leaning more towards 24 months.
• Current Tooth Count: SO MANY! She got 8 new ones, finally, so I guess the total is 20.

Lenore at 18 Months

18 Months Old
(and ready for nap)

Her stats (from the pediatrician's office):
Height: 32 1/4 inches [66th percentile]
Weight: 27 pounds 7 ounces [94th percentile]
Head Size: 49.2 centimeters [98th percentile]

She had her 18 month check-up this morning, which went pretty well. We did have to wait a really long time, but Lenore checked out ok. Her iron level was up into the 'normal' range, which is great (she's been taking a vitamin with iron the past few months). It's still on the low end of normal, but on the way up. She did well through the finger prick process, but she was pretty sad about her vaccination.

What she's up to this month:

• She is starting to say more and more words. BYE! is the newest, and she says it very loudly and very twangy, which is adorable. She also says 'UH OH,' but not always at the appropriate time. Like the other day, she said a pre-emptive 'uh oh' and THEN pushed her spoon on the ground. Lewis used to do that, too.
• She continues to eat and sleep the same as last month. She IS finally drinking milk, sporadically (hooray!).
• She is finally pretty sure-footed on the stairs, but I still stay with her in case she misses a step. She will fly up them on her hands and knees and scoot down them on her butt. 
• She is tall enough to reach door handles and things on countertops/tables/etc. now. Not quite tall enough to turn a door handle, but tall enough to pull on them, and we have quite a few doors that just pull open. There was also a flipping-of-Lewis's-Cheerios-bowl incident before school a few weeks ago. And I worry about her in the kitchen while I'm cooking--a couple of times, she's walked by the oven door and grabbed the handle and tilted it open a little. Nothing has happened, but I have to be  extra careful that she doesn't reach up and burn herself on something on the stove or otherwise. On the bright side, though, she can put dishes in the sink for me.
• She 'gets' so much. I can tell her to do something, and she'll hesitate for a second while she processes it, then she's off to do the task. It's just little things, of course, but she seems proud of what she's accomplished, and I'm happy to see her being more and more independent.
• She is crazy-brave when it comes to climbing on things. Like from a chair to the tabletop to swinging on the light fixture, in 10 seconds, flat. The only time I am at peace is when she is napping or at night. I'm looking into tumbling classes for her to get out and harness some of her energy.
• She is wearing mostly 24 month clothes now.
• Current Tooth Count: STILL 12, but she has 4-8 of them so close to coming in. We had a week or so of having to use Orajel around the clock this month, but now she doesn't seem to be in pain anymore.

Here she was at the doctor's office this morning, trying to unlock the cabinet with my car keys while we waited:

The cabinet was actually open, but I thought it was cute that she tried with the keys. It wasn't so cute after she started opening all of the drawers over and over, but I was able to hold them closed with my leg.

Lenore at 17 Months

 

Happy Girl at 17 Months Old

What she's doing this month:

• She continues to know what she wants, and she will get her point across, no matter what. She points and grunts, mostly, until we have answered her.
• She has started to vocalize more, overall. She babbles, but has also started repeating words. For instance, she loves putting on her socks and shoes, so I've started saying sock-sock-sock when she brings them to me. She'll say 'dock-dock-dock.' Or shoe-shoe-shoe is 'djoo-djoo-djoo.' She hasn't really said many new words, but the repeating words back is new this month.
• She's also remembering her animal sounds this month! Last month was just 'boof boof' for the dog's bark, but this month she's doing her best chicken (bock bock), cow (some sort of moo), and bunny (hop hop).
• She continues to be a good little helper. If I'm yelling at Lewis to get ready, she will get his shoes and deliver them to him, without even a prompting. :) She loves to help carry a water bottle or Lewis's lunch or someone's jacket when we are going out the door, too. She'll also go under the kitchen sink (which is/was locked/childproofed, but she's broken through it), and gets a spray bottle and washcloth and walks around to clean up. She doesn't know how to spray, of course, and it's just vinegar/water, so there's no worries of her doing great harm. It's just too cute, the way she's taken to mimicking certain tasks. She's a blossoming little mama's helper.
• She is a bowl bandit. She 'gets' that we put our food into bowls, so every time I offer her food, she runs over to the kids' cabinet and gets a bowl. That is fine, but then 3-4 more bowls make their way out by the time snack/the meal is over, and before long, we have no clean bowls. She, like Lewis, insists on having a separate bowl for each food, as well.
• She is getting better and better at feeding herself with a spoon. She still makes a mess of her shirt, but I'd say 70% makes it to her mouth.
• She loves to pick up tiny pieces of trash and either give them to me or put them in the trash.
• She loves to get a piece of paper and a pen/highlighter/marker/whatever she can get her hands on, and she'll pretend to draw/write. Lewis was never into putting pen to paper, so it's neat to see how they are different.
• She is tough! Currently, she has a scratched knee and nose (how did that happen?!) and a bruise on her cheek (from falling off the couch and hitting the coffee table). She pulled a play kitchen down on herself at open gym yesterday and didn't react much at all. She just laid still until I came over and picked it up off of her, and she got up and played with it again. I'm sure being around Lewis has helped.
• She looooves to be outside. At some point, though, she will decide to walk into the road or onto the neighbor's driveway (and then down said neighbor's driveway and into her backyard), so then playtime is over. She thinks it's funny, of course, to run away from me, so I'm doing my best to kibosh that action. Until we reach that point, though, outside time is good.
• Sleep is still going well. She sleeps from about 7:30-7:30 at night, plus a 2-3 hour nap during the day. The 2nd nap has gone away this month, and her midday nap ranges from 10:45-1:45 or 1-4, depending on whether we have to pick up Lewis at 12 or 2.
• She has also just started sleeping with snuggly items this month. She has a seahorse that lights up plays music for 5 minutes or so, and she has a monkey that my mom got her at the zoo. Last week she was also snuggling with an extra pair of pajamas, Lewis's (clean) underwear, and a John Deere hat. I got rid of those, though, and just stuck to the stuffed animals. ;)
• She is still in her 18 month clothes, inching ever so closer to her cache of 24 months.
• Current Tooth Count: STILL 12. She's been gnawing on her finger on one side the past few days, so maybe they're on the move again. Or maybe not! Maybe she'll have 12 teeth forever. ;)

She's pretty darn sweet! (Minus the fussing and demanding for food she'll pull occasionally.)

Lenore at 16 Months

16 Months Old

Today is Lenore's 16 month birthday, and it dawned on me the other evening that she normally would have to celebrate such an occasion on March 1. Today is Leap Day!

We started the day/week out at the pediatrician's office this morning. I was on the fence about whether to take her in, once I realized her thick, yellow-greenish snot has been around for two weeks. I decided to take her, and it turns out it's just a cold. :( Her ears had a little bit of fluid but no pus, and a strep test came back negative. The doctor said since it's been so long, we could try antibiotics for a sinus infection, but I decided to just wait it out and see if we can clear her up with saline and the NoseFrida (snot sucker). Unfortunately we had to wait in the room for an hour before seeing the doctor, so it's kind of a crummy way to start our week, but oh well.

She weighed 26.5 pounds [75th-90th percentile] and was 31.5 inches tall [50th to 75th percentile] this morning.

What she's been up to:

• She's had this runny nose for a few weeks now, and before that, she was in a lot of teething pain. I still haven't seen any new teeth, but they're apparently on their way. Must be those terrible, awful molars coming through.
• She is sleeping well (probably from feeling crummy). She's still going between one to two naps a day, depending on the day. If we have to pick Lewis up at 12, I keep her up until after lunch. On days when he stays until 2, she'll take a mid-morning nap that is usually 10:30-1:30ish, and that's it for the day. If her morning nap lasts 3 hours, that's all we'll do, but she's had a few days of napping 1 1/2 hours in the morning and again in the afternoon. She is clear with communicating her napping needs, way more so than Lewis ever was.
• Her appetite has been a little puny from the snot, but she continues to eat pretty well. She HAS started to throw food on the ground once she's finished, which is super annoying. She has also started gagging herself at mealtimes, which I remember Lewis doing as well. I haven't seen her do it since last week, so hopefully she's forgotten about it.
• At certain times of the day, she might point to a banana, go to the pantry and grabs raisins and bread, and wants in the fridge. All at once, in that moment, she wants it all (though she rarely eats much of it, she is very demanding). She eats way more than Lewis does, overall, though he drinks milk and she still doesn't. 
• She's getting better at feeding herself with a spoon. She's got the scooping part down pretty well, but then she flips the spoon over and dumps out its contents half of the time. She's getting there, though.
• I might have said this last month--she loves to pick up little pieces of trash, dog hair, etc. around the house and take them to the trash. She loves to 'clean up' with a wash cloth or paper towel--she'll wipe her face and her body, wipe off her high chair, clean the floor. 
• She is back to waving. The other day, I was at the computer and she was playing next to me (we were by the front window), and I saw that Kevin was pulling in the driveway. I said, 'Who is here?' She looked out the window and started full-body waving like crazy, saying 'Dadadadadada!' The cutest thing.
• She doesn't say much beyond an occasional Dada, Bubba, or Mama. She has started trying to say Peter and Hattie--she'll point to one and say 'Buttah' for Peter or '___' for Hattie (I forget). She's got shrieking down pat. Otherwise, she gets around pointing and grunting at us. Oh, she also says 'woof' when reading one of her peek-a-boo books. Two cute, little 'boof boof' and that's it. 
• She looooves to play outside. I keep having to wipe down her shoes because they're constantly covered in mud. Or her socks or pajama feet. I did find some outdoor shoes for her over the weekend, so we'll try to keep those as the designated muddy shoes. I'm definitely looking forward to consistently nicer weather because Mama loves being outside, too!
• In clothing, she is still wearing 18 months for the most part (a few sleepers are getting snug). She has a few smaller 24 months/2T pieces that are working, too.
• Current Tooth Count: still 12, but I expect some molars to make their grand entrance soon.