our Ree girlie these days

We are in the process of attempting to determine whether Ree might be an undiscovered genius or not.  On the one hand, she is nearly two and seems perfectly capable of making the "N" sound - for example, if she wants to nurse - but chooses not to apply this sound to say the name of her dear big sister Nell.  On the other hand, when asked to say "Nell," more often than not her smiling response is, "Dumb!"  As to whether or not this is intentional and a mark of her giftedness, only time will tell.

I'm sharing some photos I took of her this past fall, because I was too busy to even look them over at the time when I took them, much less share them and jot down any notes or memories about Ree at the time.  So here we have photos from November combined with memories from... now.



She walked around the time she was one, and hasn't stopped moving since.  A common exchange between Nathan and myself is, "Oh, look at Ree doing ____.  Can Nell do that?"  Nell loves to have fun, but tends to err on the side of caution, whereas Ree will attempt to climb anything, reach anything, run anywhere, and do anything she can think of.

She started singing recognizable melodies when she was fourteen months old; we noticed it while visiting Grandma and Grandpa in California, and while I was wondering if I was imagining it (typical overly-proud mother, of course), my Dad commented on it first.  "Marie is singing Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star!"  And so she was.

Nowadays she uses singing to communicate at least as much as she uses words: singing "Six little ducks" when she sees a picture of a duck, "Rain, rain, go away" accompanied by wild jumping when she wants to go out and jump in puddles, "Five little monkeys jumping on the bed" when she wants to hold my hands and jump up and down, and even "Abide with me" to point out the similar cross shape on her plastic cereal bowl that reminded her of the image on the virtual CD cover that comes up when we listen to that recording on my phone.

A few of her favorite things to do include playing amongst and hiding behind the long curtains in the master bedroom, waiting quietly for me to proclaim, "Where could Marie be?!", and then yelling, still enshrouded in drapes of white, "BOOOO!"

She loves to play outside, particularly when it involves collecting gravel and small pebbles from our street, digging in the dirt, or helping with sundry outdoor chores like leaf-gathering.  (I wish I could say the leaf-gathering was all concluded in the fall when it ought to have been; sadly, the process is still ongoing here in March, since we never quite finished before winter set in!  But she is as eager to help bag up the leaves now as she was in the autumn!)

She loves grapes, clementines, kiwi, strawberries, eggs, potatoes, and rice, and despises cheese.  She hates sitting in her high chair and makes knowns via pointing and gesturing and pitifully crying "Mama!" or "Dada!" that she would really prefer to spend mealtimes in one of our laps.  

Trains, books, the play kitchen, and the car table are lots of fun, but nothing compares to the joy of putting shoes, boots, clothing, underwear, socks, and hats on and off all day long -- whether her own or someone else's.  I have to keep a watchful eye on the dirty laundry hamper, or Ree will often emerge suddenly decked in Nell's previously-worn pair of underwear, my bra, Nathan's dirty socks pulled up to her thighs, my black concert heels, and a winter hat from the hat basket to top it all off, of course.  

Her words include:
Uhbuh (other)
Muh (more)
Mah! (mine! a quintessential toddler word!)
Mama
Dada
Baby
Up
Down
Nuh (nurse)
Ashes (indicating she wants to do ring around the rosy... or perhaps she's just very liturgically inclined ever since the beginning of Lent?)
Hi
bye bye
dah! (yeah!)
No
eh-bow (elbow)
boo
ah duh (all done)
uh oh
shhhh
boom!
Aga (Uncle {Andrew})

Not a bad list in all, but the amount of frustrated screaming around here indicates that she wishes she had a considerably larger vocabulary at her disposal!



Lately she is all hugs and kisses and squeezes, and wraps her arms right around my neck, huddling her little body against mine for snuggles.  An adventurer by day and a snuggler by nap time, tired moments, and night -- oh, how we love this girlie.

oh, hello again!

For the past month or two, I've been meaning to create an altogether new blog with a new title; a space to start afresh.  Then I sort of got hung up on what said title ought to be, and the project stalled out.  As a freelance musician, my evenings at home are limited, and when I do have an evening home, it seems that a dozen different things are calling my name and vying for my attention!

I want to get back to my little corner of the web, though.  I came across a lovely blog post by Rachael back in January and the idea of it has stuck with me.  It's really a nice bit of information if you - like me, I admit - are not quite certain you've got the whole 21st century thing figured out with regards to your technology and your photo-keeping.  But what I loved the most was this part:

"Part of the trouble is that our digital lives are still often dismissed as self-indulging and ephemeral. Instagram accounts are mentioned with an eye roll. Collecting photos annually and having them printed and bound into books takes hours, truly hours to put together, and feels hard to justify when we’ve already posted it and relished the photo elsewhere. While we’d love our children to someday say “she kept a tidy lovely home” about us, it feels less important to imagine them saying “she did such a great job of documenting our family’s life together over the years.” 

Sometimes I think about blogs as this century’s cross-stitch sampler. I’ve encountered criticism of them as aggrandizing digital wastes of time. A trend. People still say things like “I don’t read blogs,” as if they were a category of acquired taste. But they are the next in a long historic line of homemaking habits, small lovely tributes to our abilities and hopes. Even if the writers gloss things over, even if they make life appear too clean and breezy. Though in theory written and created for others, they will always bring the most pleasure to their creator."

You should still go read the whole post, though.  But she really voiced something I've long thought; a sort of frustration with how "mom blogs" are viewed dismissively when in fact, they can be a beautiful place to gather memories and highlights of daily life.

I'm also inspired by her to create some photo books for our family, perhaps one for each year of our recent life.  Judging from how much Nell loves the family photo calendar my sister-in-law made for us for Christmas -- she asks to look through those monthly pictures almost every day! -- I know she would love having a photo book to sit and look through, to look back on her life as a baby as well as the more recent memories we've created.

So it was that bit of writing from Rachael, in part, that reminded me to return to this neglected space, which I do hope to soon move to another corner of the internet whenever I can settle on where that corner ought to be.

In the mean time, this week is a week spent at home for me, quite welcome after several rehearsals and concerts last week.  It has been filled with everyday moments that we've enjoyed quite thoroughly so far.

Sixty-degree weather on Monday merited a trip to the park.

This particular park, just two minutes from our house, is more than just a playground - there's farm land and a barn with animals as well.

Ree yelled happily or angrily {one couldn't quite be certain which} at all the animals, over and over again: "Hiiiii!  Hiiiii!" (Which comes out more like "Iiiiii!")  I think she thought it was quite rude that they didn't acknowledge her enthusiastic greetings.

Nell was charmed to make the acquaintance of this sweet little goat.

Seeing the girls hanging on fences reminded me of similar timeless moments in my own childhood; somehow perhaps some of the most important things I ever did might have been doing nothing at all, if any sense can be made of that.  I've been pondering the nature of childhood lately, more and more as we move decidedly out of pure toddlerdom and into little girlhood and all that lies ahead.  {Very much on my mind: schooling in the future years and what we'd like to do for that!}

Nell has been faithfully helping me water our amaryllis plants in the living room, and they've all burst into bloom in the past week with a vibrancy that takes me by surprise each time I walk into that room.  I suppose it would be odd to admit that these plants were rescued from a trash bin, but there you go, I've said it.  I have to say it, because to me, it somehow makes their blooms that much more beautiful.

And finally, in hopes of more warm days soon to come, I dug up and created a branch border for a "Bit of Earth" for the girls.  They may not have a sandbox {yet}, but who doesn't love to just dig in the dirt?  And now that Ree is old enough to dig without eating said dirt, I believe it will occupy many imaginative hours of play this spring and summer.  It's a little area beside the shed and off the edge of the proper lawn.  A few pails and trowels and sticks and some pairs of play clothes are all that's needed for a very good time!

I know it's only the beginning of March, but I'm dreaming of many more warm days soon to come.

Today, on the other hand, was a bit rainy, so we found ourselves at the library and arrived home armed with some wonderful books.  Perhaps I'll write again soon and share some of our recent favorites!

a girl and her funny face

What to do when you haven't blogged in two months?  Why, blog about something insignificant, of course.  Don't overwhelm yourself thinking you need to "catch up" or "fill in the gaps" in the family chronicles of the world wide web.  Just start with something small; just go ahead and get your toes wet again.  So, here goes.

Back in April or thereabouts, little miss Marie started making the funniest face on a semi-regular basis.  We got a kick out of seeing her scrunch her face up and tip her head back in these silly grins, and would exclaim, "FUNNY FACE!" and clap when she did it.  So naturally, it became a regular occurrence.  Soon, we could get her to make the face by saying, "Hey Ree, can you do your funny face?"  She would happily oblige.

I've managed to get a few on camera, so that I can now present you with several months worth of Funny Face.  Enjoy!

We love this crazy kiddo.  But you knew that.

Ree at Eleven Months

This baby girl is turning one in a week!  So I'd better post a few 11 month pictures; I suppose it's now or never.  And can the internet live without these images?  I think not.

I mean, really.

This time last year, I was walking circles around the neighborhood and doing yard work, trying desperately to put myself into labor so I wouldn't need to be induced.

Now I have a busy little girl, crawling everywhere, cruising from one piece of furniture to another, standing unsupported for at least fifteen seconds at a time when she wants to, and walking if an obliging person will give her some hands to hold on to.

Her expertise includes emptying all the kitchen cupboards she can reach in a minute or less, seizing the most delicate hairs at the nape of my neck and pulling hard, and splashing enough to create small tidal waves in the bath.  She stands up in her high chair and the bathtub 7,000 times a day despite repeated admonitions, but understands the word "danger" and avoids steps, bedside edges, and lunging off of couches.  

She adores her Aunt Hannah and Uncle Andrew, but lately seems to prefer Uncle Andrew above others -- including above Mama, at times!  She makes a beeline for people she loves, crawling fast or lunging out of my arms if I'm holding her.  She also tries to fling herself out of my arms to get down on the ground when she wants to be on the move, particularly when we go outside, an activity which makes her all smiles.

Three top teeth and one bottom tooth, she demolishes eggs and yogurt and strawberries and peas and green beans and applesauce and all manner of other delectable items.  

I call her "Goofy Girl," because those top teeth came in first, and, well, two prominent top teeth... need I say more?  

Uncle Andrew calls her "Fluff," because she's so downright fluffy and squishable.

She's using the potty pretty reliably, happy to hold and shred a small square of toilet paper while she sits for a moment, and my diaper pail is happy to be filled mostly with just slightly wet diapers.  We often put the same diaper on and off of her throughout the better part of a day, if she's staying dry.  And no poopy diapers?!  Elimination Communication for the win!

People tell me she looks like me!  I think it's the double chin.

She has a word that's really two words: "All Done!"  She says it reliably and repeatably: "Ahh duhh!"  Used in the context of eating or of using the potty.  Sweetest little voice.  And then she lunges off the potty into my arms, or tries to climb out of her chair, because she is a daredevil.  She also says "Mama" on rare occasion, and "Dada" quite frequently, but we aren't sure she uses either of those specifically or not.  Since she says the latter so much more than the former, it's probably meaningless drivel, obviously.

Oh Ree, my baby!  You're going to be a genuine certifiable toddler any day now, I think.  And warmer weather has finally arrived.  We're going to have a delightful summer, I think, you and your sister and your Dad and I.  But before summer, let's have a birthday party, shall we, sweet girl?  We love you!

P.S.:

Ree at Ten Months

Finding myself wide awake and up playing with a certain baby at 1:30 in the morning seems like as good a time as any to record some 10 month memories, I suppose.  We're on Night #2 of baby party extravaganzas from 11:30 or thereabouts until after 2:00 am.  No amount of patting, shushing, nursing, rocking, or walking will get her back to sleep until she gets up, grins, babbles, crawls around, and plays for a while, it seems.  My personal theory?  She wants some play time sans her older sister getting in her way.  Sorry, Ree, but this time of night isn't really good for me.  Can you go back to sleeping normally (which means waking every few hours but then actually going back to sleep!) starting tomorrow night?  Please?

But for now, I'll write.



I'm not sure it makes sense to have a "favorite age" for babies in general, but for this baby in particular, ten months has been a really, really good age.  Having met her lofty goals of pulling up, crawling, and cruising around furniture, she decided she could pay attention to the people in her life again, with novelties like sustained eye contact and babbling and giggles.  I've been loving it.

Her soothing object of choice when falling asleep is first and foremost a fistful of my hair, and should that be unavailable, she reaches her little hand up and clings to a fistful of her own as she sleeps.  It's the kind of sleeping gesture that parents and grandparents find adorable, and the rest of the world probably finds... uninteresting, I suppose.  Being in the former group, I find it hard to understand those in the latter, though.

"Who is this person stopping by our photo shoot?"

"Oh, it's Daddy!  I like that guy!"

"I love you, Dad... as long as you don't try to pick me up and take me somewhere away from Mom."

On the day she turned ten months old, a top tooth emerged.  Followed closely two days later by the other top tooth!  By the time she was over her most recent bout of illness {it's been a near constant thing this winter} and I took these photos, these two beauties were featuring prominently.

We canceled the order we had placed for baby dentures.  Phew.

She's still taking two naps a day, which often keeps us fairly homebound with a schedule consisting of: Breakfast, Ree's Nap, Lunch, Nell's Nap, Ree's nap and Mama's teaching, Dinner, Bed.  We are living it up around here, I tell you.

Would you look at that face?  It's a pretty good life.

The night partying babe is showing signs of giving up her wakeful reign of terror.  I'm going to seize the moment!  Wish me luck.

Dear Marie,

You are squishy and sweet and I can hardly wait for the weather to warm up so I can dress you in rompers and onesies with all that exposed skin to kiss all the time.  That's what's on my mind lately!  We're going to have such fun this spring and summer.  I promise.

Sleep deprivedly yours, 
Mama

Ree at Nine Months

After trying quite earnestly for a month or more, just a week or so before turning nine months old, Marie crawled!

Her biggest fan and devoted cheerleader, Nell, could hardly contain her excitement.

Her enthusiasm was short-lived, however, as it soon became apparently that Ree's newfound mobility made it that much more possible for her to access all the things that Nell considers hers and hers alone.



Since Nell was only marginally mobile - in the form of scooting - when she was nine months old, having a crawling nine month old is uncharted territory for us.  The places she goes!  The trouble she can get into in the blink of an eye!  The sweetness when she makes a beeline for me, pushes herself up on my feet, pulls herself to a stand while holding to my knees for dear life, and makes it clear that, were she able, she would scale the heights of my entire body to climb into my arms.  It's enough to make one's heart explode.



In addition to crawling, Marie's mobility extends to flipping over faster than you can blink an eye {particularly when you're trying to put a diaper on her}, going from her tummy to a sitting position, pulling herself up on everything and everyone, and practicing her push-up position on all fours.

{don't worry; I had my camera in one hand and the other hand extended to catch her while she practiced these wild acrobatics on the chair}

Ree seems to understand a lot of what's going on, and when I ask her, "Do you want me to pick you up?", she responds by reaching her arms up towards me.  Once she's in my arms, she has the sweetest way of trying to scramble up my torso, burrowing into my shoulder and putting her arms around my neck and nuzzling in as close as possible.

This girl likes to eat food, which is further uncharted territory for us, since Nell has essentially no interest in food whatsoever until she was 11 months old.  Marie, although not a single tooth has yet emerged, eyes our food eagerly and devours almost anything she is offered with great enthusiasm.

Despite her passion for solid food and her frequent nursing sessions, if my memory is correct, she weighed in at about 17.5 pounds at her 9 month appointment, putting her a good five pounds under what her big sister weighed at this age!  {Previously: Nell at nine months.}  Nell was always in the 90-somethings for percentiles as a baby, and Ree was in the 36th percentile for weight at her appointment.

I briefly contemplated trading her for a chubbier one, but then I squished her thighs and found them more than adequate, so, we're keeping her.



Nicknames: Ree, Ree-Ree, Riesling, Maroo, Marizzle (this one is compliments of Aunt Hannah), Baby Wee, and... Martin.  Because Aunt Hannah says with her very straight hair, she resembles Martin Luther.  Point taken, Aunt Hannah.  I shall make more frequent use of those baby hair clips.

Expertise: peeing in the potty, slobbery open mouthed expressions of love all over Mama's face, making messes, finding every electrical cord in the house, grabbing the glasses off your face before you can do anything in self-defense, pulling people's hair and trying to stuff it into her mouth with gleeful abandon.

Favorite things: peek-a-boo, trying to eat paper, her big sister's amusing antics, snuggling with Mama and other family members and friends.

Favorite foods: pears, plain yogurt, scrambled eggs, sweet potatoes, peas.

Vocabulary: gagaga, bababa, dadada.  A month ago, to her mother's delight, she said quite clearly and on several occasions, "Ma-ma-ma," but she is impertinent, and these days when I ask her to say "Mama," she replies, "Dada!"

Aspires to: set a world record for greatest number of night wakings; continue to be Master of The Forty Minute Nap; eat an entire sheet of paper in solitude before being discovered.



Dear Marie,

You are not what one might call a good sleeper.  Your little friend Lydia, for example, can be placed in her carseat or bed and will just fall asleep quietly and contentedly.  Can you imagine that?!  I can't.  You nap on our guest bed, where I can lie beside you while you fall asleep and then use my best ninja moves to escape without waking you.  You usually start the night on the guest bed, too -with pillows all around the edges as barriers - but after a couple of wakings, I bring you into our bed and you finish the night snuggled with me.  Sometimes I wish I could just spread out like a starfish and have the whole bed to myself for a while, but then when you wake up smiling at me each morning, I find myself quite glad you're there with us.  I'm sure you'll sleep on your own when you're ready!

This morning, Daddy brought Nell into bed to snuggle with us, and I sat there feeling like the luckiest woman in the world.  Nell squealed with delight to see you, you absolutely lit up in return, and the two of you proceeded to play together with squeals of glee - well, and the occasional squeal of a baby being squished by an overly-enthusiastic big sister.  Is it overly optimistic of me to hope that, loving each other as much as you now do, you'll be friends for life?  Maybe so, but I can't help hoping.  

The truth is, I probably hear the words, "NOOOOO MAWIE!  That's MIIIIINEEEE!" at least a dozen times a day.  But it doesn't even compare to the number of times I hear, "You're so SWEET you little SWEETIE!" and "You're so cute!" and "I love you!"  And you, Marie, you're pretty patient with all of the above - the toy-snatching and the affection-smothering alike.  

Lovelovelove,
Mama