Thursday, March 13, 2008

Long time no write



At 18 months, Ada is officially a full-time toddler, and she takes her role very seriously. Gone are the days when I could sit on the couch while she amused herself by exploring the room. Now she expects me to enthusiastically take part in her explorations by answering every "DaaAA?!?" (Translation: "What's that?"). She knows every book from cover to cover, every toy and how it could possibly be played with, and every nook and cranny of our new house (well, at least the baby-safe main floor where she spends her awake time). On to bigger and more exciting things, mum! I haven't run enough today! Let's meet more people! Explore more environments! Try new foods, new chairs, new stairs, new anything! And when nap time or bed time comes around, she is out like a light. She is now an expert napper (usually about 1 1/2 to 2 hours midday) and sleeps soundly from 8pm to about 7:30am the next morning with no nighttime waking. All that running and eating can exhaust a toddler. Besides, she still has a lot of growing to do, and a lot more learning ahead of her. That's what makes her such a special little creature, and me the exhausted mommy I am today. Luckily, we now live in a fabulous neighbourhood that has oodles of opportunity for FREE play. I have always loved having access to local libraries, community centres, and schools, but now I have so much more appreciation. We are so fortunate to have these amazing programs available to us.

The following will be an extremely quick update to the past four busy months. Let's start with December.

December:

Packed. Cleaned. Gutted. Painted. Worked our butts off. Moved. Started unpacking. Somehow squeezed in Christmas celebrations. Played with fire engines.











January:

More unpacking. Worked on house. Explored new neighbourhood. Crawled through blue tubes.



February:

Unpacked some more. More work on house. Shovelled way too much snow. Made snowforts in our new backyard. Made cardboard forts in our new living room. Learned how to use a fork. Learned how to brush teeth on our own.















March:

Still unpacking. That bathroom will get done one day. Installed a dishwasher! Played dress up in Papa's clothes. Sat in boxes. Had our first playgroup in our new house.







Ada has been working on new words and signs every day. She now has a very clear and regular "Mama" and "Da-dee", which I can't get enough of. She loves sitting on her potty, but she believes it's for reading books with your pants at your ankles. She has a huge appetite, and will eat just about anything you put in front of her. She is a master at recognizing and giving the sounds for five different letters (M, P, H, F, and S), and she knows the numbers 1-5 on a good day, and 1-9 on an even better day. She loves banging on the piano, dancing, watching videos of herself, twirling, "vacuuming", and running around non-stop. I love that she will play with taking care of her dolly one minute (insisting it needs a diaper change, or giving it cuddles) then she will drive her toy cars around the floor the next. One day she might play with each of her toys for a total of 10 seconds each, and then will want to spend the rest of the afternoon looking at books with mama. She loves the sound of her own voice. She knows all her body parts, and loves pointing them out on everyone she meets. She loves "If You're Happy and You Know It", especially when she gets to stomp her feet. She hates having her face wiped. She loves to give kisses, and receiving them even more. Daddy tickles are the best. So are daddy shoulder-rides. She can't get enough of streetcars, buses, and subway trains. She loves shoes. She loves to declare things "Doooone!", such as books and empty bowls. And this post. DoooOOONE!