Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star

I noticed last night when I was rocking Annabelle to sleep that when the song "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" started playing through her CD player that she started opening and closing her little fist.

I've started opening and closing my fist (as if my hand is a twinkling star) when I sing "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" to her, so I think she picked up on it already! I've only done it a few times with her though. They animate it this way at the library, so that is where I picked up on it myself.

Then, she did the same thing again tonight when the song played again while I was rocking her to sleep. She didn't open and close her fist until that particular song started playing either.

7 Pc. Finger Sandwich Maker

Back in 2005, while my husband and I were taking our "trip of a lifetime" across the country, I purchased a "7 Pc. Finger Sandwich Maker" in Seattle, Washington. I actually purchased the set to use to make those cute little sandwiches at a wedding shower for a college friend of mine, but even though the shower was thrown, the "7 Pc. Finger Sandwich Maker" was never pulled out!

So, last week, probably Monday, December 3rd or Tuesday, December 4th, Annabelle ventured into the kitchen and pulled open her favorite kitchen drawer to ramble through. Out came the "7 Pc. Finger Sandwich Maker," and it was still in the box, as always! Notice the sandwich bag full of Sweetner on the floor (in the right hand corner of this next picture). Annabelle constantly pulls stuff out of my pantry! And, the Sweetner is pulled out on an everyday basis.

I thought, "Well, now is the time for me to get my $7.99 plus tax worth," so I went to the refrigerator and found a slice of Kraft American Cheese, and then I tore off a piece of wax paper and I asked Annabelle to come with me. We went to the living room and sat down on the floor, and I pulled out the pieces to the set, and we sat there and made heart and flowered shaped cheese slices. Annabelle loved it (as she got to eat the cheese slices after they were cut out).

So, we put it away for that day, and then again later in the week, probably Thursday, Annabelle opened the drawer again and pulled out the sandwich maker box and handed it to me. So, once again, we sliced some more cheese!

Well, on Saturday, December 8th, after we had finished putting the Christmas lights on our Christmas tree, Annabelle opened the drawer again to find the sandwich maker. But this time, she handed it to me, and she got upset when I wouldn't open it to cut out more cheese with her. Finally, I decided to have her Daddy grab the camera (since I cannot take pictures of us cutting out cheese by myself), and I asked her if she wanted to use the sandwich maker.

She walked right over to the refrigerator door, and she turned around and looked at me. She knew exactly what we needed to proceed. She wanted some cheese! So, we sat down and we cut out more cheese slices, and this time, we had her Daddy take pictures! Enjoy!

And, this last picture is probably my favorite! She LOVES her Teddy Bear that her Grandmama and Granddaddy gave her for her very 1st birthday!

"James and the Giant Peach" by Roald Dahl

Friday, December 7, 2007

We finished "James and the Giant Peach" by Roald Dahl on Friday! It was a really cute book, and we enjoyed it very much. A big thanks goes out to "Annabelle's Mommy" for introducing us to this book.

The book was actually due back to the library on Friday, but I renewed the book online just so I could take some time to take pictures of Annabelle with the book. She apparently really enjoyed the book too, and ever since I started reading the book to her, she will bring the book to me and she'll point to the characters on the front cover. She enjoys finding James, the Centipede, the Grasshopper and Miss Spider. I think that James has been her favorite character so far though.

When I checked out "James and the Giant Peach" from the library, I also checked out "Matilda" by Roald Dahl just because I was in a hurry, and for some reason, I thought we'd breeze through "James and the Giant Peach" in no time. Apparently not!

But, I am thinking now that I'd like to find a special Christmas book to read to Annabelle over these next few weeks between now and the new year. Does anyone have any recommendations of another short novel to read to a child with a Christmas theme?

Shadow, would you like some juice?

Friday, December 7, 2007

After I got out of the shower on Friday, and I was busy in the bathroom drying my hair and attempting to put on my makeup, Annabelle found the little, yellow baby bottle that came with her Cabbage Patch Kid newborn baby doll, named Carly, from Uncle Ken and Aunt Katie and their sons for her 1st birthday.

As soon as she had the little, yellow bottle in her hand, she came into the bathroom where Shadow, our black cat, was lying on the vent, and she put the baby bottle to Shadow's mouth to offer her some juice (without me even asking her)! She's been offering her baby doll, Carly, some juice for awhile as we'll ask her, "Will you give your baby doll, Carly, some juice?" And, I've seen her offer juice to her Teddy Bear as well, but she's never offered any juice to Shadow, our black cat, before.

It was another priceless moment, and I was able to grab the camera this time for the photo op!

Excuse the purple shirt with black flowered pants and blue socks! These were actually her pajamas, and I typically dress her better than this, even for bedtime. However, I'm a little (okay, a lot) behind on the laundry this week. At least I didn't take her out in public dressed like this!

Keeper of the Paci

Annabelle has officially designated me as "Keeper of the Paci." Well, I think I was actually designated with this title awhile ago. But, the point being that every time Annabelle goes down for a nap or "night night," and it is time for her to nurse, she will hand the paci to me to hold and protect. I think she feels that it is safe with me. She cannot fall asleep without the paci, so I am caretaker of the paci until she is finished eating.

Also, Annabelle only really needs her paci when she is tired and ready to go "night night" or "nap nap." But, when she first wakes up in the morning or when she first wakes up from her morning and afternoon naps, she'll continue to suck on the paci until she is herself again (since she's not much of a morning person and she's pretty grumpy after she wakes up from her naps too). If I hand apple juice to her or a snack to her, she'll hand the paci to me in return. It is really precious (especially to know that she trusts me so very much)!

So, typically, we are able to put our hands on at least one paci at all times, and we still have all three original paci's from the hospital (from over a year ago)! She will only take these particular type of paci's called Gumdrops. They are wonderful, and I've actually thought about giving them as baby shower gifts in the future as I don't think the hospitals typically hand these out around here unless your baby is in NICU. And, you cannot find these in the stores. I've been able to find where to order them online, but we have yet to order any yet. They come in scented pacifiers too, but I'm not sure that Annabelle's was every scented. I think she must have had the "natural" scent pacifier. And, it looks like now they come in pink and blue! Too cool! I will definitely order more for the next one!

The website is: http://www.gumdroppacifiers.com/

Yesterday, though, we almost had a paci go missing in action as Annabelle ventured into the office and laid her paci down on top of one of the Christmas storage boxes. However, it was out of view because she laid it down on the back of the box. Fortunately, I was right behind her, so I caught her in action, and the paci was recovered and strategically placed on top of the chiffarobe in her bedroom so we could find it when we needed it later for bedtime.

We typically store her paci on top of the chiffarobe in her bedroom. She now knows that though, so when she's ready for bed, she'll point to the top of the chiffarobe until she has it in hand. And, she gets pretty ornery if you don't hand her the paci right away.

The CD Player and the Toilet Paper Roll

So, yesterday, Monday, December 3rd, Annabelle was found playing in the bathroom with the toilet paper roll. By the time I arrived at the scene of the crime, that little booger had almost completely unrolled a half roll of toilet paper (a half roll because only a half roll was remaining). I started to stop the violence, but instead, I ran to grab the camera as this was a picture moment. Before I even left the bathroom, she had unrolled the entire half roll remaining with the last sheet still clinging to the roll. Naturally though, before I could even arrive back to the scene of the crime, she had come to find me herself in the office (with a stream of toilet paper following her). Again, naturally, the toilet paper ripped off of her, so the somewhat bit of a great picture moment, was somewhat ruined until I decided to take a picture of the long stream hanging over her shoulder with sheets in front of her and sheets trailing down her back.

Okay, so you get the picture, right? Even if I didn't.

Well, I'm determined to get at least one picture of her with the toilet paper hanging on her, so I go to take the picture (only to realize the lens cap is still on). Urrggg!

Finally, the camera is ready, and if I'm recalling correctly, I think I did manage to snap a few pictures before she disappeared again into her bedroom this time.

And then I hear something that sounds very much like a CD from her CD player being pulled out of the CD player. I thought, "I thought for sure that I took that CD out of the CD player this morning when she got up." So, off I go to find her to take away the CD from her before she scratches it up even more than she's already done. She started opening the lid to the CD player a few weeks ago, and she'd pull the CD out and bring it to me. As a result, now, whenever I get her up in the morning and after naps, I take the CD out of the CD player first thing.

Well, it turns out that this wasn't her Baby Einstein music CD at all. Instead, she had found a CD of digital pictures from her 1st birthday party in the office (while I was busy trying to capture a photo moment), and she, obviously, knew (or thought she knew) that the CD belonged in the CD player. It is unbelievable to me that she made that connection! I guess the time should come some day, right? But, she's still so young, and she's still my baby!

So, I take the picture CD away from her so she doesn't scratch it, and low and behold, she's off to the office again. She went right back to where she found the 1st picture CD, and she finds another one to test yet again. This time, the CD looked like an unused CD, so I left her alone, and instead, I followed her with the camera in hand. Once again, she took that CD to the CD player, put it in the CD player, and she closed the lid. And this time, I did snap a few pictures!

What is next? Calculus? Ha! Ha! I hope not because I'm not sure how much I can remember myself!

"Nana"

On Sunday, December 2nd, my husband and I were in the kitchen with our daughter, and I was holding her. She looked over at something on the counter, pointed and muttered something in her own little words. My husband said, "Banana. Yes, that's a banana." She was saying "Nana," and she was actually pointing at a banana on the counter.

She actually was trying to say banana a few weeks ago when Grandmama, Granddaddy, me and Annabelle went to the Varsity for dinner on Monday, November 12th (after the final 12 month photo shoot). She also had a taste of my Frosted Orange (from the Varsity) for the first time then as well. She's a smart girl, as she loved it too! Of course, she should because I somewhat craved the Frosted Orange when I was pregnant with her. The baby store that we bought her baby furniture from, New Baby Products, and that we visited very frequently towards the end of my pregnancy, is right down the road from the Varsity, so after I tasted one Frosted Orange while I was pregnant, I wanted another and another and another! They are yummy!

So, anyhow, this past Sunday, I think she actually realized that it was a "nana" she was pointing at. It was a good thing my husband was there for translation though! I think I am going to be a very critical mother. I expect the words to come out very clear...it should be "ba-na-na," NOT "nana." I only answer to "ba-na-na."

All joking aside, I really hope I get better at this translating! She talks up a little storm in her own little words, but I have no clue what she is saying. I think "Ju" means "Juice" though.

Where is the dishwasher?

On Sunday, I asked Annabelle, "Where is the refrigerator?" because last week (maybe Friday), I asked her where the refrigerator was, and she walked herself right into the kitchen from the office to point out the refrigerator to me.

So, on Sunday, as I was washing dishes, I asked Annabelle, "Where is the dishwasher?" She looked around for a minute, and she approached the dishwasher as if she was going to point to the dishwasher, but then, instead, she looked up at me and pointed directly at me. I just laughed because I thought it was too funny.

I said, "No, Mommy is not the dishwasher" and I just laughed. So, she laughed too. She thought that was funny. I told her, "Mommy is washing the dishes, but I am not the dishwasher." I pointed out the dishwasher to her.

I tell her all the time whenever I am washing dishes that "Mommy is washing the dishes," so something about "dish" and "wash" must have clicked for her, so she must have thought that was what I was asking her.

Of course, I had to call her Daddy to tell him too, and he thought it was hilarious. Of course, what man wouldn't, right?

Boy, she has a lot to learn, doesn't she? If I believed in reincarnation, I still would swear that she is my MamaGordon reincarnated. And, I only say that it is fitting for this particular occurence because my MamaGordon was born in 1902. In the sense that she thought her Mommy was the "dishwasher," that probably has nothing to do with MamaGordon's personality at all as my MamaGordon was a very independent woman. Not that she would have ever claimed herself to be a "feminist," because these duties were definitely hers as the woman of the household. However, if she had been born in the 70's or 80's, I think that she also would feel that these duties should be shared.

Walking Backwards?

Is that a milestone? I guess so!

It just clicked (to me) yesterday that Annabelle has learned to walk backwards. We were starting to decorate our tree last night, and we pulled out the lights shortly before Annabelle's bedtime. My husband laid a string of lights on the floor and plugged them in to see if they still worked. I brought Annabelle in the room, and she just smiled!

Then, she proceeded to march backwards towards the couch and the recliner smiling the entire time. I just wish I could have had the video camera running at the time. It was such a precious sight to see! Naturally, she wouldn't do it again when I did finally grab the video camera.

Then, this morning when I went to get her up from her crib, she had her "Teddy Bear" and "Bunny" in hand, and she proceeded to march backwards again in the crib. Again, she was smiling! And, smiling in the morning before she's been fed is not a norm with my little girl. She is not a morning person (much like her Mommy). I am quickly learning what everyone has had to deal with over the years with me not being a morning person.

The funny thing about her walking backwards is that she really seems to march, not walk. She pulls and puts each leg down with such determination.

Can she pull herself to a sitting position yet?

Almost! Actually, I think today that she may have done it for the very first time. When we were lying in bed this morning, she leaned her little body to the left a little bit, and then she leaned in on her left hand, and she pulled herself up to a sitting position without my help. Of course, I am not referring to the sitting position that they accomplish after they learn to crawl. I am talking about actually lying on your back and bringing your body to a sitting position from your back. In essence, a sit-up.

So, this was the question that my mother-in-law asked me when I was so very proud that Annabelle was able to "sit" on her own. Sitting, you know, probably one of the third major milestones. 1st being smiling. 2nd being rolling over. And, 3rd, sitting.

Well, when they "sit" for the first time, it is typically because you, as a parent, prop them into a sitting position with their little arms in front of them. Basically, so they can learn to balance. And, so Mommy can walk away for a minute to go wash the dirty dishes from breakfast. Hee! Hee! Those days are long gone! No more sitting Annabelle down for just a second knowing that she'll go absolutely nowhere because she can barely sit, let alone crawl!

So, anyhow, here I was, proud mom of my beautiful and very smart daughter, and I just had to show off her new talent to everyone. Okay, not everyone, but you at least have to be able to flaunt their talents to family, right?!?!

The next thing my mother-in-law says is "Oh yeah, well, can she pull herself to a sitting position yet?" What?!?! I thought, "Is she kidding?" So, I say, "No. It will be awhile before she'll be able to do that. I've read that they don't typically do that until '8 months'. They learn to crawl before they can learn to sit on their own." I don't remember if the "8 months" is correct on what I had read since we are long past that milestone, but you get the gist, right?

She has two children of her own, so I thought, maybe she just forgot. Well, she asked the question again and again every time we were together. Finally, my husband said, "Mom, why do you keep asking that?" or he said something like that. She hasn't said a word since then.

Of course, it has been an ongoing joke between my husband and myself since she started making the comment continuously. Every time Annabelle would do a "sit up" holding onto our fingers, we would just hoot and holler for her, "Come on Annabelle! You can do it! Finally, come on, you can sit up on your own!"

Since then I have learned, babies don't get into a sitting position on their own from their backs. I mean, seriously, try it for yourself! It isn't all that easy to do, and it requires stomach muscles! I, honestly, could not even do it myself 3 months after Annabelle was born because my stomach muscles were non-existent! And, believe me, I tried! I tried doing Pilates for awhile after Annabelle was 3 months old. Let me just say, crazy!

So, instead, they go from an all fours position to a sitting position OR they go from a standing position to a sitting position, Ker plunk! on their little behind!

Now, I also am thinking that maybe my mother-in-law was referring to her being able to sit by herself from the typical crawling position. I don't know. If she reads my blog, maybe she can provide some insight on what she really did mean. I don't think she meant any harm by her comment, but as a new mother, I took it very personally.

Aren't our children a reflection of our mothering skills? Probably not always, but I am sure that whatever the outcome, as mothers (and parents, for that matter), we will always blame or pride ourselves on the adults that our children become.

Mother and Daddy, I hope I make you proud, and I hope you aren't blaming yourselves!

So, at the time, I would have blamed myself if Annabelle reached a milestone later than other babies her same age. Now I don't know how much it really has to do with the parenting though. I think a lot has to do with the child too. And, I do mean "too" because I think you have to encourage your children to reach certain milestones. If you don't encourage them and show them how to succeed, they will probably be a little slower in that aspect.

I, personally, have found things that my parents have thought to point out to teach Annabelle, and she caught on very quickly, but she probably wouldn't have learned it for awhile because I hadn't thought of it yet. For example, I just learned after reading my moms blog that she taught Annabelle where the buttons were on her clothes and my parent's clothes. I haven't pointed those out yet...probably because Annabelle doesn't typically have too many buttons on her clothes, but, I haven't seen Annabelle find the buttons yet on hers or on mine. I guess I'll try that one tomorrow.

That is why it is great to be around and to hear from other mothers! We can ALL learn from each other because everyone has their own talent. And, our babies learn from us!

The Rocking Horse

After Annabelle nursed this morning, I took her to our bedroom, and we sat in the bed with her Daddy. She had brought along a little board book of hers, "The Velveteen Rabbit." She flipped through the pages, and she pointed at the rocking horse in the book. I told her, "That is a rocking horse." As soon as I said "rocking horse," she started rocking back and forward, back and forward, back and forward and she just smiled ear to ear.

I looked at her Daddy and said, "That's new, isn't it? Where did she learn to rock?" All I can guess is that she understands that we "rock" her to sleep in the glider in her bedroom.

Wow! She learns something new every single day! This is such a fun age!

Tips for Keeping a Clean House

1. Start the dishwasher in the evening right before bed, AND empty the dishwasher first thing in the morning before you do anything else to prevent dishes from piling up in the sink while you wait to "find the time" later in the day to unload the dishwasher.
2. Run a sink full of warm, soapy water before breakfast, lunch and dinner so that the dishes and high chair tray that cannot go into the dishwasher are ready to wash right after mealtimes.

Daily Goals - Sunday, December 2, 2007

1. Complete rebate form for my husband's contacts. This does not include submitting the rebate form at this point as I'll need my husband to make copies on Monday before I can submit the rebate for reimbursement. I thought this should be next on my list as it has already been listed twice (by accident) on two separate lists.
2. Clean out car.

Mission Accomplished!

Okay, so far, only # 2 was accomplished on Sunday, December 2, 2007. I did clean out my car, but I failed to complete the rebate form. Instead, my husband and I spent the evening tidying up the house. I think that should have been listed as # 1 instead of the rebate form. Maybe tomorrow!

The Hands of the Bride and Groom

http://www.thepurplehouse.net/wedding/hands.html

Click on the link above. I just thought I would share this writing with everyone. It is called "The Hands of the Bride and Groom." I heard it for the first time just recently when we attended a wedding for some friends of ours (my husband graduated from college with the groom) on November 10th. If I had heard of the above writing when my husband and I got married back in 2000, I probably would have included it in our marriage ceremony as well.

I think it is beautiful, and the parts that hit me the most were:

"These are the hands you will place with expectant joy against your stomach, until he too, feels his child stir within your womb."

"These are the hands that look so large and clumsy, yet will be so gentle as he holds your baby for the first time."

When the priest recited those two verses during the ceremony, it really made me tear up as I thought of all the times that I held my husband's hands to my stomach while I was pregnant so that he could also feel our baby move within me. It brings tears to my eyes just thinking about it.

And, it brings more tears of joy and happiness when I think of him holding Annabelle for the very first time. He waited so long to hold her as he wasn't able to hold her the day she was born. He had to wait until the next day because of her complications in the hospital. I was fortunate enough to hold her for 5 minutes or so shortly after she was born before they whisked her away quickly to the NICU. And, when we visited her in the NICU, and they offered to let us hold her again for the very first time after they had whisked her away, he never once asked to hold her before me. I know he must have been anxious to hold her, and I, obviously, was still overwhelmed after giving birth that I didn't even realize until later in the evening that he had yet to hold our baby that we created together. I hope that one day Annabelle will be as unselfish as her father.

Thank you God for such a beautiful miracle! And, thank you for blessing us with a little fighter!

Daily Goals - Saturday, December 1, 2007

1. Compile list of Annabelle's birthday gifts so I can finally start writing thank you notes some time next week and so I can move all of the bags with Annabelle clothes, etc. out of our living room and so I can take Annabelle's birthday gift money to the bank next week.
2. Trip to Sam's to take back both coats for Annabelle, 12 month PJ's for Annabelle and 12 month outfit for Annabelle. But first, I must find all of the receipts!

These two "goals" seem rather easy, I know. But, keep in mind, #1 has been on my original "to do" list for a very long time (since October 21st, 2007).

Mission Accomplished on Saturday, December 1, 2007!

Hooray! I completed both of the above goals before midnight.

And, I became creative in the process. I decided to jot down Annabelle's birthday gifts on the back of the little cards I had everyone fill out at Annabelle's birthday party. So, the gift they brought for her is on the back of their card with a note about how she reacted to certain gifts at the party and after the party. So, now she has a record of who all was there with their special little note to her, and a record of the gift they gave her.

On the clothes I took back to Sam's this afternoon, I returned $77 worth of clothes for Annabelle that I decided we just didn't need because of her already overflowing wardrobe! This just goes to show that you should always hang onto receipts, and always leave the tags on outfits until you are ready to use them.

Mission Accomplished Four-Fold!

In addition to the above two goals, I also completed the following that would have eventually "made" the written list as it was already on the unwritten list in my head.

1. Trip to Linens and Things to take back scrub brush and sifter.
2. Request Sam's eye center to print out receipt for contacts purchased to request reimbursement from the insurance company for out-of-pocket expenses.

Daily Goals Summary

I think I am going to try something new here. I am a huge fan of lists, and unfortunately, I create these lists of "important" items, and I then find them on my list and not crossed through several months after the item was listed as a "to do."

And, just based on my profession, I am very deadline oriented! If I don't set a deadline, the project will rarely ever get completed no matter how "important" it was when it made the list.

Did I mention that I am quite the perfectionist as well? Or, at least I try to be a perfectionist. Again, another reason why nothing every seems to get done for me. I am too busy trying to make everything perfect.

And, I am quite the procrastinator. When I don't want to do something (whatever the reason), I will find anything else that seems more important at the moment just so I don't have to complete the task at hand.

So, you probably wonder how I ever got anything done at work when I was working full-time. Well, almost everything had a deadline...April 15th, August 15th and October 15th. There were many more deadlines (monthly), but these are the more obvious ones. And, I am quick to finish tasks at hand that are business related and not personal tasks. I have aways procrastinated in my personal life, but when it comes to business, I try to be on top of everything!

So, anyhow, I am going to try to post my daily goals for the next day every night. Since my to-do list is, obviously, ongoing, I am only going to post 2 goals for the day that I feel I should and can complete by the end of the day. I read somewhere that you should focus on only two items per day off of your to-do list, and then once these items are completed, if you have additional time to accomplish more tasks, you can start chipping away at other items.

Okay, all of that being said, I am going to post 2 goals per day with the blog title "Daily Goals." The label for these daily goals each day will be "Daily Goals" as well. However, once the items are completed, I will change the label to "Mission Accomplished," and I will edit the post to show the date of completion. This way, I can hold myself accountable somehow.

Daily goals for December 1st, 2007 to follow in another post.

Wish me luck!