Zoo!

I forgot my camera so alas I have no pictures for this but...
I successfully dragged the family out to the local zoo on Sunday! It's been a long and especially harsh winter. The temperatures finally rose above the freezing point and we've had 40F degree weather. It was still rainy and cold but at least it wasn't freezing. But the family has been cooped up indoors and we've been sick of it. I still can't wait for springtime.

Sasha loves animals...theoretically. At least she loves animals when she sees them in books and on television so I thought it would be great for her to get out and see some real ones. Actually she did see some goats at the apple orchard last September but that seems so long ago.

She did have a good time! I think we all did. Even Cassie, who was reluctant to go at first. We went straight to the family zoo area at first. It was indoors and had a lot of activities for young infants and children. Sasha saw birds, got to play in a "nest" play area. She saw some reptiles, snakes, spiders, hamsters, guinea pigs, and even got to pet a huge rabbit. She did well with that rabbit too. She nicely pet it and said "nice!". Then she tried to make it smell her feet. (She picked that habit up with my dad's dog as it's always sniffing her feet.) Cassie painted her face up like a tiger. The family zoo area was really neat and we'll have to go see it more often. It was nice to just let Sasha run amok and see what caught her interests.
We ate some overpriced hotdogs and hit the Children's zoo. The children's zoo was mostly full of farm animals, and Sasha adored those. We all liked the children's zoo. There were ducks, geese, an eagle, a horse, a donkey, some sheep, goats, a mule, a pony, some cows, some chickens, and other farm animals.
Most of the animals at the zoo were put away for the winter. We were able to see a few indoor exhibits. Like the penguins. And the aquarium. And the monkeys. And the alligators and otters. I was hoping to see some bears but they were still hidden away from the public.

On the way out, we stopped at the carousel. Sasha seemed interested in it so the whole family took a carousel ride. Sasha rode a polar bear, and Cassie rode a tiger, while I rode a hippo because it was in front of Sasha's polar bear.

I wish it was warmer and that there were more animals to see but I think it went well. It took us long enough to see what we did see so I guess it didn't matter anyways. I think we'll probably go back again a few more times this year.

Names

There is something that Sasha yells sternly once in a while, and I couldn't figure out what it was. It sounded sort of like "Daaaa" and I thought it was "dad" because she usually yelled it when she wanted him. Then one night as I was getting Sasha settled to bed, I needed my husband to come and turn off the lights as I could not get up and do it myself. So I yelled "Jon?" across the house. Sasha then copied me: "Daaa?". That's when I realized what she's yelling. It's Jon's first name.

She won't say her own name though. We've tried to teach her that her name is Sasha but she just won't say it no matter how we try. I think she knows it though.

Everyday she continues to learn new words and new signs. She picks them up almost instantly. I got her some foam alphabet bath toys and started showing her the letters and she can say almost every letter's name when I say it (copies my words). (W is too hard of a letter for her to say).
I remember when Cassie was little, she had alphabet refridgerator magnets and somehow she learned to identify each letter of the alphabet before she was even two so I know it's possible to learn even without trying hard. I'm not going to push it but I think it's good to at least expose Sasha to that sort of stuff.

As for the picture above, sure she's being silly with Dada's glasses with some crazy wild hair. But just look at those pretty eyes.

More Teeth?

Sasha recently started spitting out food and refusing foods she usually likes. She does it even when I know she is hungry. I was so confused at first. She'll eat some foods just fine. Then what really confused me is when she asked me for a cracker and I gave it to her. She took a bite and started chewing, then spit it out. She usually loves her crackers so this was unusual for her. Suddenly she started spitting some foods out.
I finally realized later that she has two new teeth coming in (canines). It's been such a long time since we went through "teething" that I forgot about it. Teething this time is not like when she was little. She's mildly crabby, not as bad as before, and like I said she's spitting her food and eating different. She'll take foods that don't hurt her teeth. Her morning cereal (froot loops) have to be soggy or she'll spit them out.

Today she did something cute. She likes freeze dried blueberries. After her breakfast I gave her a small handful. She ate them all and asked for more. So I signed blueberry and gave her some more. It seemed like I turned my back for a second or two, and she was asking for more again. I asked her "Where are your blueberries?" because I thought maybe she dropped them on the floor or something. She proudly opened her mouth wide and pointed inside.

Oh and image above: Sasha put on my baby carrier and carried her baby around. She likes to give her babies lots of hugs and kisses. She's a good little mommy.

Dance Dance Revolution, Baby!

At the arcade place during Grandpa's visit. Sasha was watching the people play Dance Dance Revolution and wanted to play too. She was keeping an eye on the other players like a hawk and mimicking their moves.

Easter

Wearing Grandpa's hat
Happy Easter!
My father came down to visit us and spent the night overnight. That was very nice. I forgot to ask him about his dog, and he brought the dog with him. We were hesitant about that at first (we're not allowed pets in our apartment) but it wasn't so bad. He didn't bark or make any messes, and didn't jump all over Sasha. My dad mostly kept the dog in his cage or on a leash so he couldn't get in trouble. Sasha was very suspicious of the dog at first but eventually she warmed up to him and had fun.
We went out to eat and stopped at an arcade for a little bit. But for the most part we just visited with each other. I was very glad to see him. I worry about him a lot. Sasha warmed up to her Grandpa too so that made me happy.

Grandma Pat had mentioned that she wanted Cassie to visit and had promised that she and her husband would drive Cassie back home if we sent Cassie with my dad, so Cassie left with my dad. Like I said before, I feel better about her visiting than sitting herself in front of a computer all day long for her whole spring break.

Big Sister

It's been over 11-12 years since I've had a toddler, so my memory is cloudy. But for some reason I seem to recall that Cassie would never want to hold my hand when I walked with her. She'd always run off and I was always chasing her around and yelling at her to get back to me. I'd tell her to hold my hand and she wouldn't. I'd grab her hand and she'd throw herself to the ground in a tantrum. I was always a frantic, exasperated young mother.

On the other hand, if I ask Sasha to take my hand, she will walk hand in hand with me with no problem or complaints at all. It doesn't matter how busy the environment is or where we are. She's great with it. And as you can see above, she is just fine holding her big sister's hand too.
Sasha LOVES elevators. She knows the routine. She walks up to the elevator and tries to push the call button. I usually lift her up so she can press it. Then she stands and waits patiently. She tries to guess which one will show up by standing in front of one expectantly. When the elevator arrives, she walks right on it. The little crack in front of the elevator used to give her pause but not anymore. She then patiently stands and waits for everyone else to get on, the doors to close, and the elevator to move. Once it stops, she positions herself in front of the door and tries to push the doors open. I usually tell her to "open the door" and let her think that she was the one opening the doors. Once it opens, she knows the correct path to walk to get herself all the way to our car. Sometimes the trip can be slow but we can be patient. She doesn't really run off very often on us, thankfully.
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Cassie's last day of school was Thursday, and now she's on spring break for 10 days. She wanted to spend the whole time playing Warcraft, but that's not exactly a healthy use of her time off. It's sad for us that Grandma isn't with us anymore. If Grandma was here, she would have had plans for Cassie I'm certain.
Fortunately, Grandma Pat, Cassie's long time babysitter, wanted Cassie to visit so Cassie is going to do that. While she's up there visiting, Cassie can also visit my brother and my dad.

18-month Well Baby Exam

We had Sasha's 18-month well baby exam today.
She weighed in at 19lbs 7oz, and is now 31 inches long.
She grew an inch in height, and gained 7oz since her last weight check. She was 18lb 8oz at her 15 month well-baby exam so she's gained just an ounce short of a pound since then. Yay! I was hoping that she had gained more than that but oh well. She's still at the 3rd percentile for weight, and she's halfway between the 25th and 50th percentile for height according to the doctor's charts. I'll have to look up her height and weight for age on the World Health Organization (WHO) charts as our pediatrician is not using those.
Sasha fell asleep in the car on the way to the doctor's office and was sound asleep as I carried her in. So she had a rude awakening when she was in the exam room and we started undressing her. She waved hello to the mean nurse. (She's not mean, but she's the one that ALWAYS gives Sasha the shots so Sasha is very suspicious of her). She's been more sociable lately so I wasn't surprised although my husband thought Sasha would hate the nurse on sight.
Sasha protested during the weight, height, and head measurements. She kept yelling "BYE BYE!" at the nurse, as if to say "go away!". The nurse left, and after a few minutes the doctor came in. We had the female doctor this exam and Sasha said "Hi!" to her a few times.
The doctor mostly talked at first, then she did a thorough exam, which Sasha did not like. The doctor listened to Sasha's chest with a stethoscope, stuck a popsicle stick down Sasha's throat until she gagged, and felt Sasha's spine and head. Again Sasha started yelling "BYE BYE!" at the doctor between sobs.
The doc discussed the foods and drinks that Sasha consumes. She told us to cut back on Sasha's juice intake, as she believes it will help Sasha to eat more. Made sense to me actually. She asked us how much milk/dairy Sasha had a day and said she should get between 16-24oz a day but not more than that.
Then it was time for the shots. We had a dtp and a polio shot. One in each leg. I held Sasha down for those shots and my husband cringed at each one. For this exam, we did what we usually do. I was the parent that held her down for all the mean stuff, and my husband was the one who picked her up and comforted her afterwards. He got to be the good guy and I was the bad guy.
Sasha slept well when she got home. She was cranky in the evening and went to bed earlier than I thought she would. But otherwise no other effects from the immunizations.
We will be going back for a weight check in 3 months, otherwise she won't have another well-baby exam until she's 2.

Damn

Another milestone that doesn't quite fit in the baby book. Sasha said her first bad word. Two days in a row. Bad mommy!
I came home from work during my lunch break to feed the baby a bowl of cereal. As I was spooning fruit loops into her mouth, I looked at my watch and realized that my lunch break was over. It was time to return back to work.
"Damn!", I said.
"Damn!", said Sasha. "Damn! Damn! Damn!".
I didn't know what to do. She kept saying it over and over and was laughing.
What's really strange is this same scenario repeated itself two days in a row!

UPDATE 3/20/08- Well this word seems to be a regular part of her vocabulary now. She likes to chant "damn! damn! damn!" and laugh at our reactions. Bleh!

Blinky Shoes!

On Sunday, the girls and I went out to some stores to window shop. We just wanted to get out of the house. Winter is starting to wear on us and Sasha and I are really feeling cooped up in the apartment. (I'm pretty sure my husband feels the same). So I try to get Sasha out of the house whenever I can.
During our window shopping, we found some blinky shoes. They're the shoes with the lights in them that blink whenever the child wearing them takes a step. We tried them on Sasha's feet and she loved them and had a blast. They only cost like $14 so we got them even though I didn't plan on spending any money.
The shoes don't fit very well. They're still big. But Sasha just LOVES them. Playing with her shoes is like her favorite activity. Walking now goes like this: step, step, stop and look at shoes, sign "light", say "light", point at shoes and admire, repeat.
They have velcro fasteners, so she's figured out how to put the shoes on and take them off. Her shoes are her favorite "toy" this week. When I put her shoes away, she'll sign "where shoes?" at me!

Growing Vocabulary

A day at work
Sasha's vocabulary is growing by leaps and bounds and it is so fun to watch! It's also funny and educational to see her mimic us, especially when she copies nuances that we didn't realize she was paying attention to.
For example, when I walk into the bathroom, she'll follow me in and will sternly tell me "out! out! out!" while she points for me to leave. This is probably due to all the times I have to kick her out of the bathroom when she tries to shove q-tips in her ear or play in my makeup.
Tonight, she took her box of milk and squeezed it out the straw all over the living room carpet. She pointed at the spilled puddle of milk on the carpet, sternly scowled at it, pointed, and said BAD! Of course she had to try to help wipe it up with a paper towel.
There is no way I could possibly list all her new words. There are just so many of them. She can ask us for rice. She can say "all done" or "all gone". Her sign language (and mine too) is also growing. As situations come up, I look new words up in my sign language dictionary and teach them to her; she picks them up almost immediately. Today she learned the sign for PIZZA. She gleefully copied the sign and shoved more pizza in her mouth.

Where is our growth spurt?

Good Night Moon at the bookstore. I love this picture.
The signs are all there. Sasha has been eating like Ms Pacman, nearly non-stop all day. No bite of food is refused. She'll even mow down strange suspicious foods she's never seen before.
She sleeps a bit more too. She usually likes to sleep 10 hours straight at 'night'. Now she's doing almost 12. She takes naps.
Eating lots of food and sleeping more is usually a sign of a growth spurt, no? Any day now, she should be growing like a weed. I took her to her Monday playgroup and the teacher there said that even though she hasn't seen Sasha for a month, she doesn't look like she's grown at all. So it's not just me; even people that haven't seen her in a while still think she hasn't grown.
Any day now! Just you wait! She's going to grow in a huge spurt. Maybe it'll happen overnight like I hear some kids do. Maybe I'll get to buy her some new shoes :)

Today she had an adult sized bowl of cereal for breakfast. She stopped eating her breakfast because the bowl was empty, milk and all, not because she was full. When my husband woke up he made a breakfast skillet, and Sasha ate some of that too. She ate a tub of ice cream, a whole slice of pizza, a tub of yogurt, cheese and apple. Plus she drank plenty of juice and whole milk. She's been eating wonderfully and taking her daily vitamins. That makes me very happy.

Making a sweater

Well I've been knitting up a storm lately. My latest fun project is a baby jacket/sweater for Sasha. This is what it is supposed to look like when it's done:

I'm about half done and it's going well so far! Can't wait to see it on my little girl.

UPDATE: Sweater is done!

Just needs some buttons. It was nice and easy. I really like the way it turned out. The body fits perfectly on Sasha, however the hood is too small. If I make another, which is likely, I'll have to find a way to make the hood bigger.
I'll add a pic of my little model wearing it when I get a chance.

Tea Party

Would you like to join me for a tea party?

Yay! I'll make your tea for you.
Would you like some sugar in your tea?

I'm really busy stirring this tea.

Enjoy!

NUM!!!!

I haven't been updating as much as I should lately and I probably have a lot to catch up on.

My little Sasha, thank goodness, is now eating like a garbage disposal. Consistantly! Since I got sick with food poisoning and had to cut back on nursing, it helped us to start the weaning process. She now nurses about once a day, and I have no idea if she's getting any milk or if it's just a habit. If I'm not around, she's fine without nursing.
Her appetite has increased inversely proportionate to her decrease in nursing. I sort of expected this. She is now eating a LOT.
She cracks me up when she eats. She gets so hungry that she eats quickly. Sometimes she eats so quickly that she runs herself out of breath and has to stop and catch her breath to continue on.

If she likes what she's eating, she will loudly declare "NUM!!!!!!!" after her first bite, and will continue eating. I live for those moments. It's so satisfying to see her eat and enjoy what she's eating.
She can put away bowls of cereal for breakfast. Adult sized servings even! She loves noodles and rice and chicken. If she eats chicken, she will cluck like a chicken and pretend to wave her "wings" up and down. She now loves drinking milk and probably drinks way too much of it. She puts away many juice boxes a day.
She is just generally eating MUCH more than she ever has before. I fully expect a nice growth spurt soon.

Walking Through The Forest

Since Sasha was born, and even before, I sort of made up some stupid songs on the spot. I thought I'd record them for my memory for when I get old and forgetful.

When Sasha was still a little baby in my belly, sometimes she would move around a lot and make my belly shake. Or other times, I'd jiggle my belly around and pretend I was making her dance. And I would sing a little repetitive but simple song:
"Dance dance baby, dance dance dance baby. Dance dance baby dance. Woo!". Cassie is the one that added the WOO! part to the song :) Anyways, even after Sasha was born, I liked to make her 'dance' to the song as I sang it to her.

There's another song that I'd sing to Sasha whenever bathtime was over. I'd just mostly say "All done! All done baby girl" repeatedly in a sing song voice. It eventually evolved into a song with a second verse that says "I love you! Love you baby girl".

Then the third song, which makes diaper changes easier on me, is more elaborate. Walking through the forest! I grab her legs and make them "walk" while I sing:
Walking through the forest, walking through the forest
What do you see? What do you see?
I saw a bear! I saw a bear!
Run! Run! Run! Run! Run!
Run! Run! Run! Run! Run!
Walk, walk, walk, walk!
Oh no! There he is again!
Run! Run! Run! Run! Run!
Run! Run! Run! Run! Run!
Oh no, he's mauling me, gah! He's eating me!
At the beginning, I make her legs walk. Then at the running parts I make her legs run really fast. Then she walks again. Then I "maul" her when she's getting attacked by a bear and pretend I'm eating her :P
I know it sounds so silly but she loves it and she looks forward to it at diaper time. She insists upon it if I forget.