From Blink to Blink

"They grow up so fast."

Before you're a parent, it's just common rhetoric. When you first become a parent, the bleary-eyed days and the endless nights seem to contradict the words everyone says to you. Then, suddenly, you're the parent of a toddler, a kindergartner, or a teenager, and you realize those people were on to something. Because suddenly, you realize you are raising a person. Not just a baby. A full-blown, pint-sized, personality-saturated person. For me, it has been both the most terrifying and awe-inspiring moment of my parental career.

They start so small, so helpless, so dependent. Everything in their lives is passive. They wait for you to hold them. Change them. Feed them. Rock them. Soothe them. Entertain them. (Of course, they wail to let you know when you're failing and smile/coo to let you know there's still hope for you to succeed yet.) But, they don't show you what hurts, express complicated emotions, engage in two-way play, and they absolutely don't tell you what they're thinking. Until the day they do.

I had heard talking was an overnight process. (Yeah right, this is coming from the same morons who told me blinking would make them grow.) So...it turns out (once again) they sure know what they're talking about. Sure, Hayley had a few words here and there (go figure most of her first words were food-centric), and she's been assigning and demonstrating animal sounds for months. But one day it just...clicked. And ever since then, she is adding words daily to her vocabulary.

You might say her vocabulary is really "taking off".     :)

 As an exercise in curiosity, I thought I'd compile a list of her words. It took me longer than I thought (mainly because it's hard to sit down and compartmentalize everything you hear in a day). So over the course of a week, I made the two lists below. And, I have to add to it every single day.

To be fair, I did include a column for animal sounds. But, still. Where did this come from?? I can't really pick a favorite, but her phrases and recognition astonish me. Also, she is willing to try most any word, so one of our favorite bath/car games is "Can you say...?". I might get slightly more enjoyment out of it...

Making these lists also made me realize how much she will change between now and 2 (only six short months away, if that is even possible). She certainly has her tough moments, as does every toddler, but she is also amazing, if only in my eyes. I can't wait to see more pieces of her personality come through. We know she is VERY active, quite the entertainer, loves making jokes, adores the center of attention, hungers for outdoor adventure, devours everything in sight (speaking of hunger), and is smitten with books. I can see so much of both of us in her, but I can also spot the ways she is becoming her own person.

What a thrilling blessing it is to be a parent and witness it all firsthand. It's the little things, every little day, that truly make you want to stop blinking, even for just a moment, to take it all in.

Little Things Link-Up via here and here

From Start to Finish:: Christmas Edition

I hope your Christmas was merry and warm. 

For someone who has always enjoyed the spirit and sights of this holiday, having a toddler in the house blew all previous Christmases out of the water. Her gasps, "ooohhh"s, and squeals pretty much made me forget what we ever did for Christmas before she was around. It must have been pretty dull. Here's a quick highlight reel:

Happy accident:: stuck at Nana's Christmas Eve (thanks, germs)

Round 2:: Christmas morning with Peaches, Pip, & the cousins

One toy. Two happy cousins.

Round 4 (#3 not pictured):: Christmas night. Home at last.

It's worth noting she was incredibly sick for all of these (and another Christmas not shown). And it was still the best Christmas ever. Such a trooper!

But, now Christmas is over. I know the holiday was last week, but we took our tree and decorations down this weekend (they typically are up until New Year's Day) so it is OVER. Except for the view out of my patio doors of an empty Christmas tree. It's a sad, lingering reminder of what was. Kind of like letters from an old relationship. Time to toss it to the curb (or in our case, pass it to a fishing friend who has other plans for it).

While it was here, we loved every minute of it. The smells, the lights, the yummy food...oh, and the presents. On the other hand, my second most favorite part about decorating for Christmas is cleaning up the decorations. It feels like a bigger (cleaner) house when it's all safely packed away. A mini "spring" cleaning. I think even Hayley appreciates the clean look. More room for her to adorn the space with new toys. By tomorrow, this clean space will once again show the aftermath of a toddler tornado. But, for today, it is a breath of fresh air.

From Presents to Stockings

Christmas is less than a week away.

Picture at The Grove Park, post Christmas Jam fun.

For some, that means it's time to scramble to complete the wrapping, the shopping, and the baking. For others, that means it's almost time to start shopping. That would be me and Graham, respectively. This year, for budget purposes (we have a toddler, enough said), we agreed to only do stockings. Well, I proposed the idea, and he sort of grunted. I assume that means he will have no recollection of that conversation come Christmas morning. But I, for one, stuck to the stockings-only policy. Here's the thing: stockings can actually be one of the best parts about gift selection. Trying to find fun, meaningful, and needful things that fit into a sock?! And, not to brag, but I do say I've done a pretty decent job. On the offchance he were to get a wild hair and read my blog, I won't post his stocking stuffers quite yet. Instead, I'll share the contents of Hayley's stocking and some wishful thinking (ahem) for my own stocking.

Snowmen at Christmas :: My mom started a tradition of a book on Christmas Eve for me as a child. I love it. It's something I always wanted to continue with my own children. So this is Hayley's second annual Christmas Eve book. I'm just so thrilled she adores books. I mean sits-in-her-crib-alone-slowly-flipping-pages adores. Makes my heart happy.

The Snowy Day :: So, of course I had to include a book in her stocking. This is a classic.

Christmas Ornament :: I also got an ornament every year. I am continuing that for Hayley, as well. I snagged a good sale on this one (in ornament form, not a mobile), and I love supporting small businesses (especially mommy-owned!).

B. Fun Keys :: She loves keys and has lost or outgrown her sets. So, to avoid handing mine over on a permanent basis, I thought these would be a fun introduction to the car toy bag.

Toddler Apron (similar, but waaaay more expensive here) :: I snagged a deal in the Target dollar spot (Cartwheel sometimes offers additional discounts on those items!). We had originally planned a hand-crafted play kitchen for this Christmas, but we since decided to hold off one more year. But, this apron will still be fun as she starts being more helpful in the kitchen. And I'm pleased with my $2.40 purchase. Sure, it may not be as cute, but it was a tenth of the price. I'll take it.

iPhone 4s case :: What?? I don't have an iPhone 4s, or any iPhone, for that matter. That's about to change. Graham gets the upgrade, and I adopt his castoff so I can ditch the ever-disappointing Android. I was solidly in the Android corner. Until I had a child and had no patience for lagging apps and cameras that miss EVERY good photo. Also, the little income I do get relies on me having a fast, dependable phone. Buh-bye, Droid.

Moccasins :: I have literally worn holes through the bottom of mine. I love them. But, I would be just as happy if the mister used the coupons and Cartwheel offers available to get these similar ones.

Brookside Dark Chocolate Pomegranate :: Yum. And readily available at stores.

Target gift card :: It seems odd to ask for this from the hubs, but when you don't really have income, and you spend a good portion of your life at Target buying necessities and toddler things, a little momma shopping would be welcome. Especially at after-Christmas sales!

A pedicure :: Do I really need to explain this one? (and I wouldn't mind repeating the day I had with these ladies)

A finished, edited copy of Hayley's one year video. Currently, this is still in pieces.

Anyone else love picking out stuffers for stockings almost more than buying presents?!

From Thanksgiving to Christmas

Plans don't always rarely seem to work out when there is a kid involved. Thanksgiving was another casualty of that phenomenon. Hayley and I both got sick Monday morning before Thanksgiving and didn't recover in time to travel to either of our planned celebrations. So...we spent a very quiet day at home. Just the two of us (Graham had committed to making the only turkey product served at his mom's dinner). I actually didn't mind. Thanksgiving has always been a perk holiday for me. It's nice, but at the end of the day it's a meal and a time to reflect on being thankful. It's really something you can do anywhere. And that's exactly what we did.

She clapped along with the TV :)

We watched the parade. We napped. We made our own feast of chicken and rice, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, corn, and pumpkin cake. (Plus, we got to enjoy leftovers when Graham got home!) We played outside, took walks, and even spent time just being thankful. Hayley did this while eating. No surprises there. Don't get me wrong, this isn't how I want to spend every Thanksgiving. But it was a gentle reminder to go with the flow and to make the best of everything that comes along. Even if it's the flu/cold/cough/general icky-ness.

Finally, the germs seem to be leaving. Just in time to decorate for and celebrate the Christmas season! (I'm sure we'll see germs again soon, but I'm trying to savor the healthy days.) Against my better judgment, we are going to put up a tree this year (cue the No-No Patrol). We'll see how it goes...

 

 Keeping it simple: laughter

 

And letting a toddler go nuts in Christmas paper.

 

I tried to keep it simple this year. Very simple. The décor is minimal. The lights outside will be (they are not up yet...) few. The tree will be mostly lights since a lot of our ornaments are breakable and not toddler-friendly. Even my gift buying was kept small this year (although I need to stop shopping all the great sales!). It just feels like a good year to focus on the things that really matter. (Also, overboard equals overbudget.) Baking cookies, surprising the neighbors with goodies, participating in an Angel Tree drive, enjoying family, and making memories. It's astonishing how putting yourself in this mindset is so freeing. There's still plenty I wanted to do this year (pick out a tree with Hayley, create a few special gifts, do a Christmas photo shoot) that I didn't get to do. But, there is so much to enjoy, who cares??! Next year is another chance to try. But, for this year, I just want to enjoy the everyday moments of the season and reflect on the true source of our joy at Christmas. Love. Christ. Joy. Peace.

Side note, Graham has decided to teach Hayley how to throw the peace sign. It's adorable.