20 Months

This has been quite the month...Jill has become such a big girl, and she's only four months away from being 2!

New Accomplishments

• using the potty TWICE!
• saying, "Ah yuh you" (I love you)
• saying, "O-tay, Mama!"
• saying, "Right, Dada!"
• liking hummus a lot
• falling in love with Sesame Street
• making best friends with Bert and Ernie
• calling for her toys, "Bewt..Ewnie!" when she can't see them
• watching Sesame Street videos on YouTube for hours
• spending hours and hours at the park with kids she meets there
• going down the slide by herself
• getting grass/mud stains on her pants daily
• discovering the Biscuit books at the library
• discovering the Mr. Putter and Tabby series at the library
• falling in love with Caroline Jayne Church's books...from the library
• using stickers on every picture she colors
• eating lunch in front of the tv sometimes so she can watch WordWorld
• getting her "Ewnie boon" at QFC
• playing "Cooey" (Ring Around the Rosie) with, "Bewt too too" (we have to hold Bert's hands so he can spin with us)
• signing more and saying, "mo" about everything: hot tea (ice cream), night night, shicka (stickers), side (slide), baba (water)...everything!

I'm sure there's more that I'm forgetting, but that's what stands out right now. Enjoy these photos and the 2 videos in which she sings songs from Sesame Street.

wearing Mama's shoes...she calls them all "boots"

the Ewnie Boon...Jill spotted it halfway across the store and we had to bring it home with us

at the park with Grammi

sticker on her cheek and her new "fwog boots"

the "cheese face"--ask her to say, "Cheese" and this is what you get

naptime friends Grover, Snuffy, Oscar, and Elmo

And two shots of the water from our front yard...too bad our neighbors have those power lines going to their house, huh?

February Videos

Here is Jill on a typical weekday morning, dancing and talking it up!

Sesame Street is HUGE in our house right now, as you can see!

Fun at the zoo

Jill and I had an evening alone on Friday night, so here she is, enjoying her "hot tea" (ice cream) and Mama's company.

Valentine's Day

Jill got Daddy a HUGE bottle of bubbles for Valentine's Day, so we played outside with them and Henny's new camera. I want to steal it, but at least I get to use it when she's home!

Bubbles!

pretty Jilly

Hi Mama

Daddy and Jill

Jill's favorite rock

just before throwing the rock

a huge bubble

Fun Like Never Before

These past few weeks have been a ton of fun, even though we have just been doing ordinary stuff. We had a playdate, hung out at home and went to the playground. We pretty much live at playgrounds now on any day that it's not pouring rain. Thankfully we've had plenty of those days this "winter." It's been amazing!

Jill had her first playdate with Anna

Anna was wonderful with Jill, holding her hand everywhere they went!

peek-a-boo

Hi Mama!

at the playground

in the tub

I love this face!

Here is Jill after breakfast, just hanging out, calling for pizza!

Here we are, waiting for Daddy to come home. We do lots of driveway playing and can organizing.

Here is Jill, sliding by herself. She's quite good at it, as you can see!
an se

Here is Jill playing one of her most favorite games, doorbell ringing and having Mommy answer the door.

This one needs a little background: Jill HATES to have her teeth brushed, so Steve has to hold her down and I brush. Afterward she's always really upset and cries for her "bit" (blanket) and "po" (pacifier). To get her to laugh, I throw my head back and cry loudly for them like she does. This is her imitating me, which she does CONSTANTLY now.

19 Months

Wow, 19 months...it's crazy to think she's so close to 2 now! Our (not so) little Bean has been having lots of fun around here this month. Trips to Story Time, to the zoo, to the park, pizza, doughnuts, ice cream, slides, a metric ton of oatmeal and blueberries, a newly discovered love of Word World and Play With Me Sesame, lots of reading, coloring, willingness to eat vegetables in stew and soup, and a lot of tickling have made this past month very special.

My Favorite "Jill Sayings" from this month:

• BahBah TOOP (Rocket Soup, from Little Einsteins)
• BahBah DEE (Rocket's Grammi--Jill LOVES that Rocket has one too)
• Pease, pease, pease (Please, please, please
• Dada HOBE, Heenee HOBE (Dada home, Henny home)
• Bewt, Ewnie (Bert, Ernie)
• E, o, p, o, e (Jill reading, thanks to Word World but EVERY book says this)
• Cuhguh (color)
• Peetay cuhguh (pizza cutter)
• BirDay TATE (birthday cake)
• gahtgaht (doughnut)
• ot gah (hot dog)
• Bobwee (strawberry)

She has progressed by leaps and bounds this month, starting to include one again when she counts, reading books aloud, building words with her bathtub letters because of Word World, falling asleep on her own (really late) in her crib, and a million other things that let us know she's growing up. What a great thing to witness; I'm grateful everyday for the opportunity.

We took Jill to Marvista to play since none of us had been there to see the new building. It was a little sad to walk onto the grounds and not see my classroom, but Jill didn't care. As you can see she had a great time, and REALLY wanted to get into the building!

Grammi came to visit and watch "Bewt, Ewnie"--can you tell Jill's tired?

Here's Jill reading her new favorite book by Dan Brown. Seriously, she LOVES this book. She takes it all over the house to read it. This one and my book of Sudoku puzzles (which I've never done, by the way) are her two biggest hits right now.

Coloring and reading at her new table and chairs with Daddy.