19 month old "Leah-isms"

Little clips about Leah at 19 months:


- Leah thinks yogurt should be a part of every meal. She begins asking for it ("a-ga!") when she first wakes up and doesn't stop until she gets some. However, if I'm lucky, I can pass off applesauce as yogurt, and sometimes other snacks will also temporarily distract her (especially "ti-ti"-- cookies, which can be anything round & sweet). She has gotten very picky with food and it is a struggle to get her to eat almost anything now.






















- For some reason, when Leah wants to color, draw, or type, she calls it "E-I." Apparently those are the only letters of the alphabet that she has picked up, so anything involved letters is "E-I." She is really getting more and more interested in coloring lately and will use a variety of colors in her scribbles. She also loves to play on the computer keyboard.




















- She is really into saying "hi" and "bye" lately. She will say hi to random strangers at the grocery store (unless of course they say hi to her first-- then she is silent). She says "bye" to Brett every day when he leaves for work. She will put her diaper bag over her shoulder and walk around saying "bye" to me as if she's leaving. Here's a video where she can be seen first of all trying to turn on the TV, and then "packing" the remote, her cup and 2 pacifiers into a box and declaring "bye." (Sorry, it might make you a little dizzy at the beginning. She loves the camera too much!)













































- She loves to put on her jacket ("die"-- don't know where that one came from) and has almost figured out how to get it off herself. When its' time to go, she will wait at the coat closet for me to get it out for her and say "die" until we put it on. She also loves her socks & shoes and will "help" to put them on as best as she can!


- She loves to "roar." She has a book called "Roar" with a lion that is one of her current favorites. She will also go into our room in the morning if Brett is sleeping and wake him up by yelling "roar!"


- She loves animals and is getting really good at recognizing them. This is her favorite puzzle. She can usually point to any animal when I name it, and knows almost all of their sounds (with the exception of the horse and sometimes the pig). When she finishes the puzzle, by the way, she exclaims, "Yay!!" and claps, very proud of herself.
















- She covers her eyes when she wants to "hide" from someone. And when playing peekaboo, she usually hides and says "Ya-ya" (her name for herself) loudly, as if we are supposed to be finding "Leah!"


- She apparently is learning motions to some songs in preschool, and imitates a few of them if I sing the song to her. Right now all she knows is "If you're happy and you know it" (she puts her fingers on her cheeks at the part that goes "and your face will surely show it" & it is very cute!) and "Jesus Loves Me" (she puts her hands across her chest, like the word "love"). I love that she is picking up things at school!


- She likes "dubbas" (bubbles) in her "bap" (bath).


- She really doesn't play with many toys, but rather finds her own things to play with. She especially loves books, though, and is almost always perfectly content to sit down and be read to (unless she is feeling more independent & then she would rather sit & read herself). She is picky about her books, too-- they cannot have a lot of words, they usually have to have either a) an animal; b) a Sesame Street character; or c) babies. She may make exceptions for pop-up books or books that have things to touch or do. She always has to have a book when she's in her car seat, and usually insists on carrying one around.























- The kid is in love with apple juice. She must have it first thing when she wakes up in the morning ("juice," said with a pouty face) & from her nap. She will sit & drink an entire cup and then promptly announce "mo'." I have to water it down or should would have teeth full of sugar.





















- She still loves Elmo and will actually sit and watch his cartoon for up to 30 minutes sometimes. I hate to use the TV as a babysitter, but sometimes I've gotta get dinner cooked.... [Insert whiny-faced Leah here]





















- She is very much going through a "mommy-only" separation anxiety phase. She doesn't mind being left at school-- she never cries, but she hates staying with Daddy when I have to leave to go work at night or just go out of the house. She gets over it, of course, and has fun, but she always pitches a fit, and it's not easy on her Daddy. I'm hoping this is a quick phase!



- And for fun, a picture of her baby brother growing inside Mommy's belly (at the end of the 5th month, week 23). I am working very hard on getting her to say "brother" or "baby" or anything! We read her a book about a little girl getting a baby brother. We talk to her about a new baby coming to her house. So far she doesn't get it. We will get there...

What's Going On...

The past few weeks have actually been pretty busy -- time is slipping away & both of my babies are growing way too fast! The weekend after my Emmaus Walk, we took a family trip to visit my parents at the beach. Since Brett has been doing church work for years now, it is often hard to get away on Sundays, so we finally had our chance and we took it! We had a lot of fun. Leah took so easily to "Papa" and "Gama" and loved for them to read her stories and play with her.




































The next weekend (this past weekend) was Brett's first week at a new church where he will be serving as Interim Worship Pastor. We are really grateful that God provided something so quickly; however, we are also very glad it is only interim because a) it does not pay much and b) it is a 45-minute drive to the church. Thankfully, they do not have Sunday evening services so he should only have to drive out there twice a week. I will probably only go with him on Sunday mornings, since Wed. evenings would end up being really late for Leah. We did move our membership back to the church we were going to when we first got married, before Brett started at CRBC, and I will probably go there more often than not. I have been going to MOPS meetings there all year and love the fellowship with people my age who have kids my kids' age.


This past week Brett has had to go to the new church every night for a revival, so I've had to stay home with Leah & I believe she's gotten spoiled. She didn't want to stay with Brett long enough for me to even take a shower this morning! But I plan to start working evenings again as soon as I can, returning to do some filing at my previous job. (It seems this might take a lot longer than I had originally thought-- we planned about a total of 75 hours but it may end up being something that lasts until July!)


I had a check-up yesterday for Baby Boy and everything seems to be progressing perfectly normal for a 21-week pregnancy. I have most definately been feeling him move more lately. At first it was only once or twice a day, but that is starting to change. He seems to really like music, and he also likes to keep me up when I first lay down at night. Actually, I don't remember the getting-up-in-the-middle-of-the-night-three-times thing starting this early in my pregnancy last time, but already I'm having to do that, whether it's to go to the bathroom or for these silly allergies that have been bugging me the past week or so. We were given a huge box of boy clothing by a friend of a friend-- mostly short-sleeved onesies, some socks & bibs. As I look at all the blue & the trucks & the sports stuff, I'm getting excited about having a little boy, although I'm getting more and more nervous about dealing with two, especially with how clingy and whiny Leah has been lately.

Apparently without me really knowing about it, one of the dr.'s in my practice had put me into a higher-risk pregnancy group because of how small Leah was when she was born. Well, when Leah was born, Dr. Fisher never mentioned any concerns about how small she was & never said she was TOO small. (And in fact, even though she's still in the 25th%, her growth is progressing perfectly normal for her age.) My appt. yesterday was with Dr. Fisher and she said that she would consult with a specialist to see if it was really necessary to place me in this higher risk group. She called back today and said it really was not. (I think perhaps if Leah hadn't come 10 days early she probably would have been bigger, anyway!) She said they'll still be cautious of my measurements as we get closer to the due date and if an extra ultrasound is necessary, they'll decide then. I really just have this feeling that this baby isn't going to be so early, and will probably end up being bigger.

I will have to do a separate post later on funny Leah-isms, as she is really coming in to her own now as a toddler. Most of the time she is fun to be around-- as long as she's gotten enough sleep! She has been sleeping in until 7 or 7:30 every morning, even with the time change, and still napping 2, sometimes 2 1/2 hours in the afternoon. I'm hoping this pattern will continue until I can at least get her baby brother on some sort of a predictable schedule. My summer goals for her include: moving into a toddler bed, getting rid of the paci, and maybe [hopefully] getting potty trained (maybe a little too early, but I want to at least try, with the help of a friend who will be her summer "nanny"). Though at times I'm anxious for her to get past this toddler stage, I also don't want to wish away her childhood and know I will miss it when it's gone!

My Emmaus Walk

This past weekend I went on something called an Emmaus Walk. Basically this is a 72-hour spiritual "retreat"-- a course in Christianity that has "lectures," worship, and times for prayer & meditation. Brett went on one back in October, and ideally husbands and wives are supposed to each go on a walk so they can share in the experience (they are separate for men & women). We were sponsored by Brett's friend Steve, who goes to a Methodist church. It is primarily a Methodist "thing," although they claim to be non-denominational. I got there Thurs. night at 7pm and left around Sunday night at 7pm. The entire weekend, we were not allowed cell phones or watches, or any contact with the outside world (except in case of emergency, of course). So here are the positives & negatives I got out of the weekend:

Positives-

- It was a great getaway from everyday life. I didn't have to worry about cooking or cleaning or taking care of Leah. I could just spend time focusing on myself and my relationship with God.

- The times of worship were really meaningful, very reverent, and powerful. The music was really worshipful and I was really able to focus on what was important during them. (However, there is a negative to the worship services too-- see below.)

- There is a great sense of community among the people on my walk and among all people who have been on an Emmaus walk. There were tons of people behind the scenes the entire time we were there (all who have been on Walks), serving food, cleaning, praying, etc... and all because they genuinely care about our experience and want to make it meaningful. They really emphasize joining a "reunion group," or accountability group, once you are home so that the experience is not just a "mountain top" thing but rather a life change.

Negatives-

- Although they claim to be non-denominational, many of the "talks" (or lectures) were Methodist doctrine, some of which I didn't necessarily agree with. Now, I don't think that Methodists are not Christians, nor that they are not going to heaven because of things they believe. I went in with an open mind, knowing that there were some differences in beliefs. I went to Baptist seminary-- I was taught to be discerning of what the Bible teaches. So during most of the discussion times, I just listened, didn't try to contradict or judge. So this was not necessarily a "negative" thing, but I thought some of the talks could have been used to talk about things that were more important.

- At some points, it felt almost like I was becoming part of a cult, or that I was part of a service that was specifically crafted to make me emotional. I don't want to give away some of the "secrets" but there were certain "ceremonies" where I felt like I was supposed to get all sentimental and if I didn't maybe I wasn't really allowing God to work on my heart. Now, many of the people who attend are young in their faith and have never experienced anything like this before. So many of them probably were experiencing surrender for the first time. They were experiencing a turning point in their spiritual relationship. Again I tried to keep an open mind, but many times I just didn't feel it. I just felt like I was being forced to find areas in my life that needed work. And I'm sorry, but I don't know who in their right mind can pray silently for over an hour when it's well past 10pm.

- I had to share a room with 10 other women, many who snored. I don't normally sleep well, even in the comfort of my own bed. I am 4 months pregnant and the bathroom was all the way downstairs. I don't think I need to say more. (I will say, though, that by night 2, they've tired you out enough that it's not nearly as difficult to get to sleep.) And when you wake up in the middle of the night with no idea what time it is, it can be hard to get back to sleep. (That was the only time that not having a clock really bugged me, though.)

Overall I had a great weekend and I'm glad I did it. I would recommend it if you have an entire weekend that you can get away. I did learn a lot and renewed my relationship with Christ.

18 Months Old/ 4 Months Pregnant

Leah @ 18 Months Old:


- Still weighs only about 21 1/2 lbs. (although it feels a little heavier now that I'm pregnant!) and isn't much taller than she was at her last dr.'s appt.



- Is finally bottle-free! She still wants to eat as soon as she wakes up & sometimes asks for a "ba-ba" but is definately a morning person & for the most part happy & ready to go when we go to get her from her bed. She is not very good about drinking milk with her meals (she always asks for juice) so I make sure she has plenty of yogurt, cheese, and other milk products so she gets enough. She has stopped eating some of her old favorites (like bananas and chicken nuggets).



- Has been waking up during the night these past two weeks, and crying enough to where she needs to be consoled to get back to sleep. Maybe she's preparing me for her baby brother? She's also not been easy to put to bed. She cries and cries and acts as if she's not even tired when it's way past 8:00. Nap time is still okay on school days, but weekends are unpredictable.


- Knows the name of at least 5 Sesame Street characters, although I can't say she's ever even watched an episode (aside from one or two sing-along DVD's we have).


- Has reached a lot of other cool "kid" milestones that sometimes go unnoticed: she can kick a ball, she can stack blocks, she can put together a small puzzle, she can recognize 6 or 7 different animals by name, she scribbles well...

























- Loves to play peek-a-boo on her own now. She will cover up her face with her hands or a blanket or hide behind a door until we say "Where's Leah?" and then she'll peek out and say "boo!" She also hides behind doors and comes out to say "boo." I must get a video of this-- it is really funny!


- Has become quite the imitator. If you repeat a word to her enough, she will try to say it. Same goes for her actions. Sometimes I will catch her doing something and wonder where she's learned it until I realize she must have seen me or someone else doing it before.

- Her favorite new phrase is "No, mine!" And she says "no!" to a lot of other things. And here I thought we'd have plenty more time till the sassiness began.


- Has hair long enough to put in pig-tails, but won't sit still long enough for me to put them in-- and even if she did, she'd probably pull them right out. Here's the best I could do-- and they came out only seconds later.





















- Loves to "help" around the house. She will help me pick things up if I drop them (which is great for a pregnant mommy!) and will occasionally go get things I ask her for. She also loves to get involved if we are working on something around the house. Like when I went to put batteries in her toy:















- Has learned her own name now, even though it sounds something like "Ya-ya." When she goes around pointing at herself & saying "baby," we're quick to tell her, no, "Leah-- big girl." If I'm in the other room, she will start yelling her own name, as if she's calling me, but has gotten confused!























The pregnancy @ the 4th month/ 19 weeks:


- As usual, I was a little over-eager with the gift registering and getting baby stuff ready. I still think it's a part of my "nesting" instinct, although technically I don't think that's supposed to kick in til later. Anyway, I went to Target & Babies 'R Us "just to look" at boy stuff & ended up doing registries at both places. I don't know if we'll have a shower this time, but at least now I have an idea of what I want/ need. We did agree on a bedding set we really like (of course it is one of the most expensive!). It's not blue, but rather browns & reds-- pretty masculine!
















I also went through Leah's old baby clothes and managed (out of 3 huge bags) to pull out about 8 or 9 things that a boy could possibly wear, along with some plain white onesies & some blue receiving blankets & gender-neutral pants. I have already heard from several people that they have some boy clothes they want to give me. So we're going to have to get him a new dresser pretty soon!

We plan to sell the furniture from Brett's office & convert that to the new baby's room. It is already painted a dark blue, but we may change it to a neutral tan color. He will use Leah's crib & she will (hopefully) move into a toddler bed. So the only furniture we will really need for his room will be a dresser/ changing table. And Leah will need a toddler bed, and I would also like to get her either a table & chairs or a nice plush reading chair. We've moved the desk I had in Leah's room downstairs into the kitchen & that will serve as our "office" area until we can get a bigger house.


- Although I haven't really gained much weight at all-- like less than 5 lbs.-- I am most definately in maternity clothes now & have a distinctive "big belly."

- I think I can feel the baby moving sometimes-- mostly in the evening when I'm sitting down resting, although I'm not 100% sure that's what it is, since it is so subtle, almost just like a little butterfly. I mean, I should know what it feels like, and I'm sure I will once it is all-out kicking, but right now it is still a little early for that.



- While pregnant with Leah, I could eat anything and everything. However, this time it seems like I can only eat about half as much as I normally would before I feel extremely full/ bloated. Perhaps it's just a phase, but it's rather uncomfortable...


- We're pretty sure we have a name picked out for baby boy, but I'm not going to reveal it just yet. We will tell some of you, but not everyone. We're still kind of going back & forth between 2 or 3 different ones, anyway.













19 weeks: March 1, 2010