March equals spring around here... first half of March

We've been so blessed with beautiful weather this March.  I hear about all the snow and frigid weather back in WI and am glad it's been warm enough for me to go outside with Mya a lot.  AND it hasn't even rained that much!  Of course now that I've finally gotten around to posting, the rain has started up again... but I am grateful my first weeks home with Mya was an easy transition due to lovely opportunities outdoors :)

Mya is such an outdoorsy girl.  I love how adventurous she is... she really keeps me busy and active.  We typically have a morning and afternoon outing, and since we don't have a car, that means lots of walks and just wandering around- picking up rocks mostly.  The only populated place within walking distance is a strip mall, which fortunately includes our grocery store, credit union, drug store, our doctors office, a small library, and a little pond.  Mya loves to walk around the pond and watch the fountains and ducks in it.  Unfortunately signs strictly forbid feeding the ducks, but we enjoy spending time there. 

Mya was watching the ducks, and when the moved behind a bush, she did her sign for "more."  I didn't teach her many sign language signs, but this one has been very helpful.  She started really just using it for food type things, but it's been so cute to see her apply it to other things, like if we're playing a game or song she likes.

Mya loves playing with pots and pans- luckily for me!  It keeps her pretty busy while I'm cooking (or I should say we're cooking).  She likes to think that she's helping so I have to play along and include her in my meal preparation.  Now she always insists on stirring whatever I'm making- she get's so excited and looks at me with a big smile :)

Another picture with her friend, Kinsey.  They are doing this silly thing Mya often does for Kinsey's mom, where Mya clinches her fists and stresses her face, "grrrrrr..."

Mya spent a few day span walking around with a mirror in front of her face.  I have no idea why- she would trip and fall and run into things... such a goofball.

I filled a container with dried beans for Mya to scoop and play around with since she loves gravel and rocks... it's been keeping her busy to scoop and dump.  She also loves to get in the box, but always needs help getting up.

Chalk, pigtails, and bubbles... my little baby is growing up.  She just barely has enough hair now for me to put in little pigtails... though she fights me so hard she usually wins.  She still wants to be outside all the time and will grab her chalk and go to the door... I sure don't mind when it's nice out, and will just bundle us up if it's not.  Outside time is a daily "must."  Mya LOVES bubbles.  She brings the bottle to me so I can blow bubbles over and over- so much so that I'm pretty sure our carpeting is super soapy :P

Concluding February

To pick up where I left off in February, Mya is demonstrating her daredevil tendencies more and more lately.  I can't really trust to turn my back for an instant because I keep catching her climbing things or standing on things.  She likes to sit by herself in her rocking chair and will often go to her room, shutting the door behind her and spend some quality alone time rocking in her chair.  However, I have gone in on numerous occasions to find her standing on the chair- without holding onto anything- and swaying almost like she's surfing.  She knows she's busted when I catch her and definitely pouts and gives me the eye when I take her off the chair. 

She also likes to do flips and rough-house with daddy.  She will do this over and over again; I just caught them at the tail end of their routine:

Mya loves dancing!  We have lots of dance parties during the day with Pandora.  Usually we listen the the Kid's Worship channel, or Disney, or something like Monsters of Men- anything we can find upbeat and she goes nuts:  running around arms flailing, stomping her feet, and she loves when I pick her up and dance with her flying through the air.  We will be out in public and if she hears a song she likes, she will stop and just start dancing :)

She has been insisting on eating with a utensil now- no matter how messy! Yogurt is still one of her all-time favorites she won't ever turn down.  I have to say, I really love this bib!

Here is Mya with her best friend, Kinsey.  I met her mom about a year ago at a children's shop and,  through casual conversation, discovered our daughters were born just a few days apart at the same hospital.  We started getting the girls together occasionally and have all really become great friends. It has been so fun to see the two of them growing up at the same time and watch their unique qualities emerge.  Kinsey is so sweet and gentle- much more cautious and quieter than Mya.  I think they compliment each other well and I am so happy Mya has such a great friend already.

 Here (below) is Mya with her first friend, Audriana.  Her mom was the excellent child care provider who watched Mya from three months to about one year old and her daughter was such a sweet friend to her as well. She is about nine months older than Mya.

Alright, time to wrap up February even though I'm leaving  things out... I need to get on to current times though so it will have to do.

15 Month Old Mya Bear

Ooops- I promised to write more often... I'm really relating now to what people commonly say about kids growing up so fast and how it just goes faster and faster- it is so true!  We had so many changes the last few weeks with deciding to have me stay home full time that I have written nothing down about what Miss Mya has been up to!  I don't know why it's so hard for me to commit to writing one thing a day- since there really is something new every day... so here goes my mommy memory...

Ok, first of all:  expressions
Mya's social development is so fun to see.  She has so many expressions and tells you a lot with her eyes.  This has made her seem so much more "present" and engaged in the moment.  If she hears something surprising, she'll turn to you with her mouth real small like an oooo...

Secondly, Mya has the best sense of humor!  She loves to laugh and laugh hard!  A lot of times it's for no reason at all; she will just walk around throwing her head back and crack up laughing.  Then there's the times when adults will be talking about something (not even having to do with Mya at all) but if anyone starts laughing, she'll surly chime in just a few seconds late.  And finally, there are the times she makes her self laugh.  Whether she physically does something silly that she finds amusing, or lately she's been telling jokes in her own language.  It follows the pattern of a joke:  "baadum bo doobee da.... da ba desho a baba... ooo boba seeda---- badaroo!!! (punch line)" Then she throws her head back because she is so funny :)

More to come.... I need to go to bed!

SAHM Time!

I have been a full time stay at home mom for one week now officially.  I put my notice in at the chiropractic clinic I was working as a receptionist at mid-February, which I really had no intention of doing until just a couple days before when Mya's sitter quit.  It hadn't been working out with her anyways, but her text message we received on a Saturday night didn't give us a whole lot of time to figure things out for Monday.  We lost our trust in in-home day cares situations like we had, and would only do one again if we knew the person pretty well (so we didn't have any options there).  And all of the daycares we looked into either quoted us at $200/wk for two days a week, or one was $55/day but such a small room for how many kids they had.  After lots of thinking, discussing, praying, and budget crunching, we concluded that it was best that I stay home with Mya. 

I am very happy with this decision (so is Brooks, and so is Mya!)  Our budget has never been tighter, but my house has never been cleaner :)  I know we fill find a way to manage financially.  We had been saving to buy a house, but are putting that on hold, and can use the money in a pinch.  My biggest concern is Mya and I going completely stir crazy!  About the same time all of this was going on, we took our old Ford Taurus in to be fixed finally.  It runs fine, but is super loud and we suspected there were a number of issues too.  Well, turns out the entire frame is so rusted they can't even work on it and recommend not to drive it at all anymore because it could just crumble in a crash.  Needless to say, I don't want to drive my precious child around in it, so we are stuck being homebodies for a while.  Both of us get antsy at home and enjoy being out and about so we will see how long we last before going completely crazy ;)

2/1/13

She’s at a stage where everything is so amusing to her which is  fun for everyone :) All I have to do is make a silly face or sound and she’s cracking up!  Peek-a-boo is still her favorite- she’ll go hide behind her crib and pop out with arms stretched saying “Ahhhh “ really high pitched.  She’ll do it a few times, then point to me to go hide- whether she’s the one scaring or being scared, she gets the biggest kick out of it.  We play this game everywhere and is guaranteed to get her so excited she kicks, squirms, and squeels!

She likes when you put things on her head- she’ll grin and move real slowly til it falls out- it’s so cute to see her try to put it back on her head because her proportions are still so her hands just barely reach the top of her head- she especially loves this game in the tub…

            The tub… she loves baths!  When I ask her if she wants a bath, she says “baaaa” and runs into the bathroom- trys to climb in the tub!  She has an Ariel bath toy that I will make to sing like “ah ah ahhhh… ah ah ahhhh (like in the movie)” and Mya will join in (in her own way)  So now she knows what singing means and will hum if you ask her to sing or if she finds Ariel ;)

She is suddenly really showing that she knows what words mean and tries to say them:  I often tell her when food is “hot” and blow on it so now she says “hot” (in a sweet whisper) and blows back and forth.

            Mya says “nanana” for “banana”

            I think she said “duppy” the other day when we saw a dog- she still makes her squeaky high-pitched puppy whimper sound when she sees or hears “puppy.”

            She “ooooohs” really high pitched for a cow’s “moo” and goes “ah-ah-ah” for monkey.

Her super strong head nods and shakes is still her most prominent form of communication .  She has learned she gets something to eat when she nods her head and points so she does it a LOT  and to try to get out of taking naps.  I got her something to eat when she first nodded her head when I laid her in her crib because I didn’t want her to be hungry when napping.  Now I’ve learned that she is smart and sees the nod as her ticket out. 

Recap from 1/12/13

“Now that Mya is really good at walking it’s all she wants to do.  She refuses to have me carry her anymore and squirms and fights til I set her down. She lets us know she wants to go out and walk around by pointing to the front door and waving her hand “bye-bye”  She’ll also get her shoes and bring them to me so I can put them on her (or bring us our shoes)

Recap from 1/7/13

 “Mya does this head-stand/downward dog yoga pose so she can see you upside down- it’s the cutest thing cuz she’ll hold the pose until you poke your head down to look at her.  Then she immediately laughs and falls flat on her belly.”

“She nods her head “yes” a LOT now.  If you say “Mya, would you like something to eat? (or food or milk or lunch) she will always stop whatever she’s doing to look you in the eye with a BIG nod “yes.”  When I try to imitate it, it hurts my neck to nod as forcefully as she does!  She definitely makes it clear she wants food and she would like it NOW :)  It will immediately stop her crying.  Sometimes I ask Brooks if he wants some food and she comes running from the other room nodding her head dramatically!”

“She has been walking very well for a couple of weeks now and is getting so fast!  She still falls a lot but I think she likes to fall :)”

“We took Mya to the Children’s Museum and every area we went, she would grab some objects and quickly hurry out with them- very serious.  We ‘ll have to watch our little thief.”