Ch-ch-ch-ch-chaaaaanges

Things have been really crazy lately. I guess that's probably not a change, actually, but I think they've been even more crazy than usual. We're getting ready to move to another area of the city, and I'm very happy about that. As part of that process, we're paring down all of our stuff to only the stuff we really need and use regularly. Everything else is getting donated. We're doing a lot of weeding and pruning and purging. It's great, but it's also keeping us really busy.

And, of course, Jillian is changing so quickly. She's got a top tooth, but it's not a front one--it's on her left side. She looks a little redneck, and it's hilarious. She is still the cuteness, though. Last Sunday, when she was with Daddy, she started taking a few steps. She's close to walking, but still isn't showing all that much interest. My guess is that she'll be walking within a month or so. Time will tell! She has started saying some cute stuff. She said "doggie" the other day, and followed it with "woof woof!" She's also started shaking her head and saying, "Mmmmm-mmmmm," especially when she's doing something she knows she shouldn't. Dang, but it's cute. She's also into screeching at the top of her lungs. You'd think we were torturing her, but it's usually just to hear her own voice or to express her highness's displeasure. She also expresses displeasure by slapping anyone or anything that is annoying her or getting too close. We're still working on that.

Katherine is a wonderful big sister, even if she is the bossiest bosser who ever bossed. She is definitely 3. Independent, opinionated and whip-smart. I'm hard-pressed to get her to wear anything that is not a dress. I would end up with a girly-girl. :)

Teeth & Stuff!

Jillian FINALLY started cutting her two front bottom teeth last week. It's about time! She's such a fun little baby. She discovered (via Katherine, of course) that spitting her food is a lot of fun. Sigh. She's so independent, too. She wants to feed herself, and can put up a fight if you try to feed her (although she will occasionally allow it). She and Katherine are regularly cracking each other up. I can't wait until she can walk. Then those two will really have a good time. Well, actually, I can wait, because once she can walk, things will really get interesting. :)

More Milestones

Katherine turned 3 recently. We had told her for months that when she turned 3, she would no longer get binkies when she slept, because she would be a big girl, and big girls don't need binkies. She independently decided that she would bequeath them to Grandpa Jim, and would give one to Grandma Lyn. On her b-day, she got to have a special one-on-one day w/ Grandma Lyn, then Grandpa met them at our house before dinner. The hand-off went quite smoothly, but as expected, bedtime was a little bumpy. OK, a lot bumpy. I had the bright idea of doing a sort of "Binkie Fairy" thing, since she had just learned about the Tooth Fairy. We decided not to go the fairy route directly, but instead I went in and gave her one quarter to put in her piggy bank for every binkie she had given up. I told her that we could go buy something at the store soon with her quarters, but that if she kept fussing, I would have to take one away each time I came into her room. That worked pretty well. She's still having withdrawals a bit, but we're making it work.

Jillian is almost one. She's really starting to copy our words more and more. She said "Uh-oh!" for the first time the other day, and used it correctly. She loves saying "Hi, Daddy!" and "Hi!" in general. She's sort-of figured out "Who's/What's that?" and apparently said "Jillian" the other day (not when I was around). She's also figuring out to point at things. Her bedtime book ends with a page of stars, and we always say "Stars!" when we get to that page. I was reading it to her the other day, and asked her if she could point to some stars. To my surprise, she totally did it several times. Awesome! She has also learned "Gimme Five!" and "Gimme Kisses!" (complete w/ the "Mmmmmmmmmm-wah!" sound--so cute!). Her other big thing lately is dancing. She sways side-to-side or bounces up & down when she's standing & holding on to something or especially when she's in her feeding chair. We call it the chair dance. :)

My girls are getting so big! What a blessing they are, even when they drive me crazy. I love being their Mommy.

Mama!

Jillian finally said "Mama" in my presence yesterday (5/11/10), without crying, even! We'll see if this trend continues.

Also, I just had the following conversation with Katherine:

Me: I have a tummy ache.
K: Did you swallow a dragon?
Me: (laughing) No.
K: Oh. Did you swallow a sea monster?
Me: Noooo......
K: Oh. Then what happened?
Me: I don't know.

Edited to add: I finished telling her a story by saying, "And they lived happily after after." She added, "And they ate soup."

Mama Mia!

Apparently, Jillian is saying "Mama," but I have yet to hear it. She does it when she's mad I'm not with her, or did a few times on Saturday (5/1/10) with Daddy. Mostly while crying. I guess that means she might know what that word means. She's also starting to get a tooth on top. It's not quite out yet, but it's close!

Katherine's potty training is continuing apace, and I have hopes that she'll be good to go by her 3rd birthday next month. We shall see!

This is all happening so fast

Yesterday (or the day before?), Jillian started pulling to a standing position on things--mostly me. Today, she started pulling up on the couch and moving along the side of it while holding on. A LOT has changed in the last 2.5 weeks. Talk about a development spurt! Much of my time at the moment is spent as a human rock wall. That girl is a little monkey!

Mobile Upload

Jillian is officially crawling. She did her first real crawl on Easter (4/4/10) with both sets of grandparents present, which was really cool. Now, a couple days later, she's motoring everywhere. All she wants to do if I'm near is crawl over and climb all over me. Man, that is one grabby little girl. She can pretty much pull to a standing position by herself, mostly on me. She hasn't done it in her crib yet, that I've seen, so we haven't had to lower the mattress, but it won't be long.

By the way, when I say motoring, I'm not kidding. Her latest favorite things to do vocally are growling and blowing raspberries, and when she does them whilst crawling, she really brings to mind a little car. It's ridiculously cute. I'm trying to get a video of it to post on here. We'll see if I'm successful!

Growin' Up

During our recent overseas trip (which I hope to write about in more detail soon), Jillian started sitting up all by herself (on March 22, the day before she turned 9 months old), and Katherine started jumping with both feet off the ground. Crazy! Jillian is thisclose to crawling. I'd say she's mobile--she bootcamps around like nobody's business. My girls are getting so big!

All you do is talk, talk

Jillian started babbling "da-da-da-da-da" recently. Last Saturday is when we first heard it, I think. So, I'm gonna go with first word on 1/16. She turned 7 months old the following Saturday, the 23rd. Crazy!!! She is a joy, and she and Katherine truly enjoy one another and crack each other up. I love being a mom. More on that later.

That's how I roll

Jillian started rolling a few weeks ago. On October 20, she rolled from her back to her tummy, and she followed that up with a roll from tummy to back on the 22nd. She's growing up so fast!! Here she is in action.