March 2016

Another fun, busy month has passed!

You wanted to take your toys ice skating so we froze a thin layer of water in a Tupperware container to make them a rink.  You played with it over and over for days.  Usually you ended up eating most of the ice as it melted.

We went to a little St. Patrick's Day "gold hunt" at the library.  There were crafts and prizes but the first thing you wanted to do was get your face painted.  You sat so quiet and still while she did it.  Now you sometimes pretend to paint Daddy's and my faces at home.

3 year doctor's appointment.  All healthy.

I fractured my toe when I ran into one of your stools, not paying attention to where I was going.  While I went to urgent care to have it x-rayed, you and Daddy went to CVS and you picked out this duck to make me feel better.  You now expect me to have it with me at all times and bring it to me wherever I am in the house if it's not within reach.  I love it.

Grandma Norma sent you a little Easter care package which included this doll that was Aunt Brandee's when she was a little girl.  It has quickly jumped to the top of the list of favorite toys.  You've named her Baby and you remind me often that you are her mommy.  She goes everywhere with you and teach her how to do things, pretend to breastfeed, change her clothes, brush her teeth, and put her to bed at night.

Beach day with some of your favorite toys.  We made them sand castles, buried them in the sand, and of course, gave them baths when we got home.

Smoothie in a fancy glass!

For awhile you were galloping everywhere you went around the house.

You've gotten so tall you don't really need a step stool at the sink or potty anymore, though if you take the time to notice it's not there you prefer to go get one anyway.

For awhile step stools were just holding devices around here.  You turn them over and use them as containers to haul around your baby, toys, whatever you need to carry.

Sometimes you get so excited telling me about whatever you are playing that you get out of breath.

You got a toy tool set for your birthday so lots of things suddenly need fixing.  This was the day that you "fixed" your baby's bed, smoothed it with "sandpaper," and wiped it all clean.  You're very thorough.

You have learned to mimic sounds you hear, which means now you often ask, "what was that _______?"  (Fill in the blank with your impression of whatever sound you may be asking about.)  It's actually quite useful and fun for me to hear you trying to mimic the different sounds.

Some other favorite phrases:
"Renember" = remember
"Mmmm, not so much."  Do you like _____?  Mmmm, not so much.
"What a disaster!  It was a milk disaster!"  (After dropping a cup of milk on the floor.)

We went through your toys to pick out a few things to pass along that you no longer use.  In doing so you found a few old favorites that you'd forgotten about.  One day you were playing with your barrel of monkeys in your room while I was making dinner.  You came running to the kitchen, clearly very distraught.  "Where is the thing in Mommy & Daddy's room?"  ?????  After several minutes of questioning I was finally able to determine you were looking for a leaf ornament that I'd hung on my nightstand in the fall that you like to use as a swing for the monkeys.  Keep in mind, this had been put away since Thanksgiving when I'd decorated for Christmas.  4 months ago.

Oh to be 3 again when you're biggest concern in life is the disappearance of your monkey swing.

You love to help in the kitchen so I'm always trying to find things that you can help me with.  This day we were making pizzas and I let you do pretty much every step until it went into the oven.  You love this.  Here you are putting your special dairy-free cheese on the section separated for you.

We have lots of conversations about what things you can and cannot eat.  Here's the summary:  You cannot have dairy.  You cannot have caffeine.  You CAN eat gluten.  Your baby can eat dairy.

You love to wash your outdoor toys in the wagon when we play on the balcony.

Your first lesson in sewing.  We were fixing a hole in a mesh bag so we just used a plastic yarn needle and you did pretty good!

Before you got your tool set you were "fixing" your car using a pair of headphones.

Coloring eggs!

Since we had all that pretty colored water I decided we may as well put it to use and let you decorate some coffee filters with a medicine dropper.

Your Mega Blocks have been getting a lot of use lately.

Easter morning!

I found you making monsters out of bracelets and googly eyes.  I love children's creativity.

I've been working on a set of zoo animals for your school's Mayfair fundraiser coming up.  I think they turned out pretty well!

You received several sets of Play-Doh tools for your birthday and it's been a huge hit.  It's great for me too because you can entertain yourself for long stretches of time all on your own.  One day we had the following conversation:

you:  "I stepped in Play-Doh!"
me:  "What was the Play-Doh doing on the floor?"
you:  "Well, you have a point, but...."

One of your friends from school, Talia, just moved to Woodstock, NY.  This was her last day of school here.  It's tough explaining that to a 3-year old in a positive light.

Your hooded towels were in the laundry, but you were excited to try the towel on your head like Mommy.

Here are a couple of pictures that Ms. Sunshine shared with us from school.

One more conversation, after pretending a "guy" told her there were monsters in the living room:

me:  "Who do you trust?  Pretend guy in the chair or Mommy?"
you:  "Pretend guy in the chair AND Mommy."