A new taste

On Saturday night, Millie surprisingly ate TOMATO SOUP! And this was chunky tomato soup. I was really surprised. She had never had it before and I thought she could only push it away. But she ate it. She and I both had soup and crackers.

Testing the waters

Millie has been very testy lately, at home and at Ms. Andrea's. She had to go to time-out several times yesterday because Ms. Andrea would tell her to pick up the toys, and Millie would just stare and her and say, "No."

Then, last night, she was misbehaving at dinner and started hitting me. So I said, "Okay, that's it. Dinner's over, let's go take a bath, and you've lost your milk for tonight." She cried, kicking and screaming all the way to the bath, and cried while taking a bath. I got her ready for bed, and she then started asking for milk. I had to break the news to her.

I told her, "Millie, you've lost your milk tonight because you were being mean to Mommy and disobeying Ms. Andrea." She then started hugging me and saying, "Sorry" in sign language. I told her that I accepted her apology but that it was too late for tonight. I also explained that she couldn't act like that; that she needed to be nice. She kept hugging me and saying sorry.

But, I didn't give in....

It took her longer to go to bed last night, even though I started the process early. But that's the only way she will learn. And she knew exactly what she was doing.

JUMP!

Yes, that's right. Millie climbed out of her crib Saturday afternoon. She was supposed to be napping and I heard her through the monitor playing around. And then I heard it....a thump and a scream. Luckily she had fallen on her bottom instead of her head. So it's official. At 22 months old, Millie escapes. What to do, what to do.

Right now, we go in there a little more quickly to make sure she doesn't climb out again. I think she knows that it hurt, but still wants to do it again. We are in the process of figuring out what to do next.

There's always a new challenge.....with a toddler.

The second night

Last night, instead of eating dinner at home, I packed a little sandwiches and we headed to Stoney's house to go......FISHING! Jacade had gone earlier that day with Stoney and he wanted to go with us. So we went, but Millie just wasn't interested (go figure, she is only 22 months old). But she did have fun throwing the minnows in when we were about to leave. And she was not scared or unsure at all. She dove right in (no pun intended).

So, needless to say, we got home a little late and she sat down with us and ate a bowl of Cheerios (she was still hungry) and then she got her bath. Went to sleep around 9:30 (yikes, that's late) and woke up crying around 1:45 a.m. I went in and told her to lie down and I covered her back up. Then she just kept crying and wanted the music on. Fine. I turned the music on and left. But she then started screaming and screaming. So I went back in and asked her if she wanted to go potty. She said yes and she went. And her diaper was dry. Then she went back to sleep.

Fast forward to this morning. She woke up....DRY....but didn't want to go to the potty. So she didn't. No big deal though. I went to work and Jacade got her ready for school.

We're just taking it one day at a time. No rush. But we're still proud of her!

This is BIG!!!

Last night, before bed, Millie had her usual 3 oz of milk before bed and went to sleep (slept all night too). This morning, I had to wake her up and take her to school because Jacade got up early to go fishing with Stoney. So when I woke her up, I felt her diaper and she was......DRY! Yes, all night, she didn't use the bathroom. Whoa...this is big! So I told her that she was going to the potty. She didn't want to at first but I was so excited. She finally agreed and sat on the potty. And she PEED.....A LOT! And I was clapping my hands and praising her like crazy and told her that I was going to tell everybody! She was smiling too!

The other evening, I was cooking dinner and Jacade was talking to Kelly in the dining room and we both hear the toilet lid slam. "Jacade, go see what Millie is up to, please." He went in the bathroom and she had taken off her diaper, used the bathroom, had dumped the pee in the potty and was about to wash out the container. What? She's only 22 months old and she's doing this? So we praised her again.... A LOT!

I think she is just potty-training herself. We're not pushing her but are trying to be very encouraging and praising her afterwards.

Coincidental or for real?

Last week sometime, while Millie was taking a bath, she had all of her toys out. And typically when I tell her to clean them up, she will. Well, this time she wouldn't. So I told her, "Millie, it's about that time to get out of the bath. You need to clean up your toys." Nothing. And again, I told her the same thing. Nothing. The third time I asked her, "What do you want to lose?" Still, nothing. So then I told her, "Okay, you've just lost your milk for the night." (She usually gets a little milk before she goes to bed every night). She finally picked up her toys, which I told her thanks for doing. And when it was time for bed, she asked for milk, which I explained to her that she had lost it for not following directions.

Fast forward to last night....she was taking a bath again and I told her it was about time to get out. "Millie, please pick up your toys." Nothing. "Okay, Millie, what do you want to lose tonight? Your milk?" She then started picking up her toys. Ha! So was it coincidental or did she really make the connection? I hope it's the latter. And I really believe it's the latter.

Is this normal behavior?

Is this normal behavior for a 22-mo. old? On Friday, when we got home, I was trying to open a bag of dog food for Bella. And I was struggling a little...you know how hard it is to pry apart those bags?? So Millie saw my struggle and went into the kitchen, opened the top drawer where all the utensils are (which, by the way she cannot see into) and fished around for a second. She then found what she was "looking" for and brought me the SCISSORS! What. How did she know that? We've definitely never taught her that, although we are constantly teaching while we are living. But I was really amazed and couldn't believe that she had put 2 & 2 together.

Just a sweet face

Going on a bear hunt

Going on a bear hunt, a bear hunt, a bear hunt...

Didn't find a bear but we did find this funny face in the Enchanted Forest

Driving the vintage firetruck

Walking in the Children's Garden

Walking with Daddy (it was time to go)

Okay, we really didn't go on a bear hunt, but we did go to Indian Springs last Sunday for Bonita's birthday party at Pinky's Cafe. And it was very delightful, by the way. After we ate lunch (which Millie actually ate turkey breast, and then had some cake!) we went exploring in the garden areas. We strolled through the Enchanted Forest, complete with fairies and gnomes and then went to the Children's Garden and checked out the Indian teepee, the 18-wheeler graveyard, and all the other fun attractions. Here are a few pictures of that day. And the weather was gorgeous. Actually hot!

A new challenge

So we have a new challenge at our house with Millie....

She can now open the refrigerator door. Hmm... Do they make locks for those big doors? I doubt it. Just can't take your eye off her for one second.

She also can now open the doors going out of the house. The best remedy for that is that we have to remember to lock the deadbolt. Problem solved.

A surprise

Millie got to bed a little late last night and I thought she was asleep and then I heard her in her room whimpering. So I gave her a few minutes and she was still whining. So I went in and she started laughing. Hmm.... I looked in the bed and she was whining because she had her sleeper unzipped, almost to the feet and was grabbing her diaper. I asked her if she wanted to go potty and she said yes. So we went in the bathroom, took off her diaper (which was dry) and she went to the bathroom. And I put her diaper back on and put her back to bed.

Millie has figured it out

Well, Millie has been watching one too many times. She now knows how to get the tray off of her high chair. She knows where to pull up on the underside to get it to unlatch. So as soon as I put the tray on and turn my back, she reaches under and unlatches it and it hits the floor.

What are we going to do with her? Maybe she is telling me that she is ready to give up the high chair? But she's not ready to sit in a regular chair yet, nor is she tall enough.

Any suggestions?

Potty time!

What is the exact age/time to start potty-training your child? I've been told by different sources, many different things. Maybe it depends on your child.
At any rate, we have been introducing Millie to the potty, since about 18 mos. old. First we used an insert on the big potty, and then we got a small potty from Aunt Barbara and she's been using that now.
She even likes to pee in it and then take the insert off and pour it in the big potty. She is quite observant.
But last night, we got home from eating out (didn't feel like cooking) and I was getting ready to give her a bath. She laid down on the floor in our bedroom, unsnapped her overalls, took off her soaked diaper, and went into her bathroom, sat on the potty, and USED IT!!! As soon as it hits the bottom, she starts smiling and gets all excited!!!
I then gave her a bath and after her bath she wanted to sit on it again. So she did, and USED IT AGAIN! Good job, Millie.
This morning, when she woke up, she tinkled again and was so proud of herself.

Maybe it's too early, maybe not. But we're just going with the flow (no pun intended!)!!!

Blanket of white

Here are just a few pictures of our backyard. I wish I had taken a picture of the front of our house, but it was an afterthought. 

Snowing in Griffin?

On Sunday, on our way home from church, it started snowing. We couldn't believe it. But Millie fell asleep on the way home, so she was very surprised when she woke up in the afternoon. She was screaming and clapping her hands. She wanted to go "side" (which is how she says outside). We went over to Mawt Maw's house for lunch and then went out afterwards. She liked it for a second, until her hands got cold and then she was ready to go inside. It snowed from about 11 a.m. until 9ish. It was really pretty. 

Playing in the rain

This past Saturday, it rained cats and dogs and buckets of water too, and I decided to let Millie go out and play in the water puddles. It's just water, and she would dry. But she had so much fun. I wish she had had rain boots though. But her other boots were dry the next day. 

Stickerssssss

Millie found some stickers and decided to put them all over her face. They didn't stay that long though. 

And a side note: one of our friends, Kelly, was at our house doing his laundry (it's a long story) and Millie looked in his suitcase, and found a couple of coins. She picked them up and said, "bank." She wanted to put them in her bank to save. We're starting her out early. 

Out playing

These are just some pictures that I took of Millie last weekend, playing outside in the backyard. And check out that cute dress. It's really for the spring and summer, but I couldn't wait and wanted her to wear it now. 

Bear for Breakfast

Two weekends ago, I made pancakes for breakfast and Jacade fixed this one for Millie. She ate some of it, but we actually ate the rest. Pancakes are really good with whipped cream.