Missing the girl

I said goodbye to Carya on Friday- it is Thursday and I am counting the minutes I get to grab her and hear her laugh! I always get pretty weepy on my last day of travel- it was a great trip (to Belgium) with Travis and my coworkers. But oy! I need to get home to this girl!! 

Long time no post!

Not sure if anyone is out there anymore, but I just realized it has been a loooong time since I have written.

A lot of things have changed since March, 2013 (it is October, 2013...) I got a new job, Carya speaks!, she runs, she has opinions (!many!), and we bought a house! Since this is Carya's blog I will stick to her milestones. She said a lot of words for a while, picking up new ones (she had over 40 in May, if I remember correctly) often but once she hit the 19mo mark she started stringing words and thoughts together and actually making sense! Her favorite statement (at 19mo) was: No, mommy/daddy/eldas (Elvis), no!

Which brings us to her sass! Oh my, is she sassy! She is very opinionated (she picks out her clothes and gets very upset if I dress her- though I try to give her a choice, sometimes she does not like my choices). She LOVES Dora. LOVES. Dora, Boots and Maps (yes she calls the Map, Maps) may be her favorite people after Connor, Gracie and Sidney- her cousins (if we want her to do anything we tell her Connor/Gracie does it, or if she does it she can talk to/see photos of "Seeny." Bribery at it's best!) Mommy and daddy fall somewhere behind the cousins :)

She is scared of the raccoon from Over the Hedge (she saw 5min of the movie in August and still talks about the "bahcoon eating chips!") so obviously she is going to be a raccoon for halloween ;-) silly, Mommy.

And she has all her teeth! Finally! The two year old molars are in and I hear we are done for a bit after that! She did not get another ear infection after our trip to the ER (ear infection #5), as if she knew (or summer came around) that if she got another one she would need surgery.

But the fun stuff is all still there, she is ticklish, affectionate, calm, loves to read, play at the park, throw the ball for Elvis, she loves to eat ice cream, mac and cheese, and pickles, and the color green (and purple).

The Sassy Lady

Mis-adventures

I have been doing a lot of reading about raising toddlers. My favorite one of the moment is "bringing up Bebe" which is a story about an American mother raising her children in Paris. There is a lot of talk about making your kids wait and making them realize they are not the center of the world. And this self control and realization translates to many wonderful adult attributes. And many attributes most parents (me!) strive for-- primarily- being able to take your kids out to a restaurant or friend's house for dinner. Carya is notoriously bad at acting appropriately in public places: supermarkets, restaurants, friend's houses, and this leaves Travis and me unable to talk to friends and not seem like crazy parents chasing our child around with toys, bags of cheerios, and when all else fails-- our cell phones. We made it through a course of our Seder dinner tonight thanks to Elmo's World. I feel like a terrible parent because I have to resort to this. I wish she would sit with a fork and a plate full of interesting new food and entertain herself. But alas, no.

Giving her the benefit of the doubt, she is sick, with her fifth ear infection... tubes are imminent, but until then we have another round of antibiotics to get through. They are slow to work, quick to upset her stomach, and we trade off on ibuprofen and acetaminophen as often as we medically are allowed. So yes, maybe she has a reason to act up- but it is in trying times that you think this toddler must be doing all of this just to challenge me.

We went to the ER on Friday. She was in a lot of pain and could not settle down enough to take any drugs, nap, or drink. So as Murphy's law dictates, as we parked in the ER parking garage, she settled down and  began playing happily in her carseat. I decided to bring her in anyway, because 4 hours of crying is not normal. And we did discover she did have an ear infection. Poor thing, Carya inherited mommy and daddy's intolerance of pain. Makes me think she may also become a red-head since they are supposed to have less tolerance for pain (how is that for a genetic generalization!?).

I am not sure where I am going with this rambling. Just venting maybe. I know she is frustrated since she can not communicate to me what she is feeling. I know she is a good girl. I know with time she will say more than mama, dada, up, hot, dah (yes and no... very confusing), ball, baba, and aqua. I just need to be patient and cuddle my baby every chance I get. Even if she is exhausting me and making no sense....

I just hope it is not too late for us. I see more dinners in our future....

Playing in the hospital bed. Acting like a perfectly healthy baby who did not spend the previous 4 hours screaming her head off and scaring everyone who cares for her.....

"But I don't want tooo....."

This is a sassy face. 

Yes. We see this whiny face a lot these days. This fit is caused by the fact that she hates having her hands covered. Mittens. The devil's work. 

Toddler-tude at 14 months

Carya has been getting frustrated lately because we just don't understand all her requests. TV! Food! Read! ???! She has been grunting a lot- "ah agh ahh!" and she gets very upset very quickly when it becomes apparent that we either don't understand or disagree with her. One of the nurses in the hospital told us she goes from 0 to 60 in seconds and that is still true.
I am reading some toddler-how-to books to help us navigate this time. Sign language works sometimes but she uses it selectively. But we know she knows the words- by sound at least. For example, last night she was eating peas and I kept saying "Peas" when she pointed to them and then she would make the sign for please. She is smart, we just need her language to catch up with her mind.
She also just had her 4th ear infection and I am currently sitting in the car outside the chiropractor's office, letting Carya sleep until our 10:45 appointment. Apparently chiropractic alignments can help cure ear infections. I will do whatever it takes to keep her off of antibiotics for her whole childhood. So while I wait for the tubes consult we will try some alternative methods!
She remains to be a wonderful, sweet, sensitive little girl who loves her doggy Elvis, her books, her school, to eat and sing and dance.

Work Life Balance?

Travis has been traveling to the other side of the world for work lately, leaving me to take care of Carya and Elvis alone. Usually it goes fine as long as Carya (and Elvis) stays healthy and the dog walkers are available. But during Travis' last two trips, Carya has gotten sick within days (or hours!) of Travis' return.

Both times I had to bring her into work with me. I am thankful to have that flexibility- but it makes things a bit stressful. I know to be a successful woman in science (or in anything) you need to balance work life and home life and maybe even keep them a bit separate. But today my coworkers saw me as a mom, talking and singing to Carya, while doing experiments. I was mom first. I am not sure if it will have any long term impact on my career but it makes me a little uncomfortable.

But even this sick face makes me happy and helps me not care too much about the future :)

Frankenstein-walker

Our little girl is walking!

Mostly...

She looks a bit like Frankenstein while walking but slowly but surely she will get there. Running that is.

We went to a home inspection for a friend today. The house had a cat and Carya was thrilled. She is a real animal lover.

She still has a bit of "sass" and really likes to get her way but she is so affectionate and happy. Her laugh makes it all worth it!

One year

Where did the time go?

The little miss is getting BIG!
At her one year appointment she weighed 21lbs 1oz (71%) and was 30in long (80%)
She is becoming a little person. She has opinions- and she lets you know what they are-- even if most of her words sound like DADA (Elvis is EE-DAH) or EH (that, or heard in a whine) or HAT-AH (light).

My new year's resolution is to keep up with this blog. One post per week so that I can look back on everything later -- when I am amazed when she turns two, three or four!

So here are some specs:
Loves: Fruit. All fruit all the time. Favorite fruits: blueberries and blackberries.
           Books: Moo (from Aunt Erica), How Do Dinosaurs Eat Their Food and anything from the 12 pack of Sesame Street board books (from Susan G.).
           Elvis. She loves him no matter how cranky he is- she is learning to throw his yellow Cuz ball (Pep-      Pep).
           Her cousins, Connor (6) and Gracie (almost 4).
           Her pacifier and bottle (how are we ever going to get rid of them!?).

She is taking a few steps, but is very cautious and nervous (a bit like her mommy?!). She eats well, she sleeps very well unless she has an ear infection (has had 3 so far), and is generally a very happy little girl.

Everyone is all smiles at Fiore's bakery!

Learning to color!

She is funny! Making faces at Mommy.

Catching some extra time before bedtime with Uncle Bill!

Cousins!

Dinner time

Peek-a-boo!

The Sesame Street books!

Family portrait from Christmas at the farm