Christmas Tree Exploration

Sydney and Aunt Terra were there, too! And so were a few of Phoebe's other friends.  

Disco Inferno

Attempted break dancing? Phoebe went to her first disco dance party on November 12. She loved it! But because of the low lighting and all the movements, the pictures didn't really turn out.

Rockin' out with Daddy 

16 months

Hello, beautiful eyes!
Phoebe is doing great. She is happy and well adjusted at day care, and she is generally happy at home. Her vocabulary grows every day. She has about 30-40 words that she says consistently and knows what she is referring to. I guess that's pretty much on target because the average 2 year old has about 200 words. It probably isn't so amazing that she says a new word or even a few new words everyday, since you have to learn somehow, but it seems pretty impressive to me. It is just so interesting to witness that process. She got the last of her infant immunizations a week ago--hooray hooray. The next round of shots doesn't happen until kindergarten :) She was pretty mad about this last set, but she handled them well and only cried briefly.

Halloween

"Please let me out with the other kids. I just want to go trick-or-treating."
Grandpa Shobe carved an awesome witch for us!

fetishism

Phoebe has become obsessed with underwear. Every time she finds a pair, she puts them around her neck. These were all clean--brand new, in fact. She took them out of the bag and insisted on wearing them. When I made her get dressed, I took them off of her head in order to get her shirt on. She would not allow me to finish, however. She immediately put them back over her head as soon as her shirt was on. Another post she will appreciate in years to come. :)

scary

All hail Pope Phoebe, or is that aluminum alien cone-head Phoebe? Really, she is supposed to be a Hershey kiss, but she looks a bit scary/creepy in the one close-up of her standing--she definitely looks like someone else entirely. I didn't figure out until that evening that I was supposed to do something else to the hat to make it look more like a Hershey kiss top than a cone head--oh well--it will look better for the actual Halloween pictures. She will have a couple more costume days in the next week--most notably, the pet parade and her classroom Halloween party. On this particular day, we were at BOO at the Zoo (Brookfield). She and Sydney (the little witch) had a great day. We also met some other friends up there briefly, but for some reason, I didn't get their pictures with my camera. I think Grandma Shobe got them.

cold weather

A new hat for a new season. This year she can actually experience and enjoy the changing weather.

exploring

Well, it won't quite work that way, but she has the right idea. Phoebe has a new interest in her potty seat. She has the need to open the lid and sit on it any time anyone goes into the bathroom. At least she is getting comfortable with it :)

so sad

What a pitiful little face. I am sure she will not appreciate these pictures capturing her runny nose and teary eyes, but Brett couldn't help himself. It had to be done. She just needed a little Mommy comfort.

Phoebe, this one's for you

You'll be 15 months old on Friday. You are solely walking now, having given up crawling two weeks ago. You are getting better at it every day--much less teetering and more stability. You prefer to carry something at all times, but it does not matter what you carry. You like your purple fleece coat. You love your shoes. You like the theory and ritual of reading books, but you could do without the actual reading. (You love to pick out a book--say "book"--and bring it to Daddy or me; then you turn yourself around and back up until you are right next to one of our laps and plop yourself down; then you wait patiently for us to open the book and begin to read. You like to turn a page or two, but you often get up as soon as the reading begins. Then you will pick out another book and start the process over again--we do this at least 10 times a day and actually only completely read two or three books.) You also love to jettison your books through the slots of the gate at the top of the stairs. Actually anything that poses as a slot gets items slipped through it. You like to put your legos through the slot created by the lever that lowers the side rail on your crib. You are great at mimicking--you will copy almost any noise we make and you try to say most words that we say--if you can't pronounce the actual word (which is most of the time) you copy the inflection of our voice and the length of the sound. The difference in your pronunciation of "juice" and "shoes" is indistinguishable, but you enjoy saying both words. You smile with four teeth and you laugh hysterically when you think you are getting away with something--like crawling up the bottom steps and waiting for me to notice. You love giving and receiving high 5's and playing peek-a-boo in any variety. Climbing in and out of your hamper is endlessly amusing. You make a kissing face, scrunch up your nose and breath audibly when you are intently working on something. You clap your hands when you accomplish something new. You love to put your hands in my mouth to find my teeth. You love to hug and pet Henry and watch him run around when he gets excited. You are good natured and generally happy--although you have your crabby spells especially when you are tired. You take a while to warm up to new people or people you don't see every day. You don't willingly go to the arms of a stranger. You are curious but cautious. You are beautiful and amazing, and you teach me something everyday. I just thought you should know. I love discovering life with you.

fun at the zoo

It was a gorgeous day, so we headed out to the zoo. Phoebe has gone several times this summer because we bought the membership, but this was probably the best experience for her because she was awake and alert the whole time and she got to walk around and explore on her own a bit. It was great. She really liked watching the gorillas and the dolphins and playing with the goats in the petting zoo.

musically talented--any bands looking for a kazoo player? 

This is Phoebe's school. I was coming to pick her up--she's walking to me :) 

fun at daycare! 

apple picking 

hanging out at the fuzz fest 

first pony ride--hooray! She liked it a lot, but she had some trouble staying on. 

play time 

out for a spin 

Phoebe 

I know I need to post new pictures, but I don't have access to them at the moment. The first month of day care has come and gone. It has been difficult for all of us, but things are getting better. For some children, adapting to day care takes a day, a week, a couple of weeks; for Phoebe it has taken a month. The first day was a sign that this was not going to be an easy transition for her. We both spent the day crying, and Phoebe refused to eat for the whole day. Any time they brought food near her, she pursed her lips and got angry. That little one is stubborn! She did better the second day--she ate a little. And most days she does really well, now. Tuesday, September 19 was the first day that she did not cry when I dropped her off. She didn't cry Wednesday or Thursday, either. She got a little sad Friday and this morning, however. Overall, though she is doing very well. It is just the morning goodbye that is hard. She plays happily all day and eats extremely well. Now when I get her report cards at the end of the day where it reports how much she ate, they usually have checked the box labeled "extra" as opposed to "all," "half," or "none." She is still very good natured. She went through a spell of crabbiness at night for a couple of weeks, but that is getting much better. And she is walking a lot. Yesterday she walked for a couple of hours straight. She refused to sit down--she'll walk 10-20 feet at a time, maybe more, and then either fall down or grab onto something. As soon as she falls, though, she gets right back up and keeps going. She especially likes to carry something while she walks. I guess it gives her a sense of purpose. She did seem to lose some of her vocabulary over the last month that I hope comes back. When she started, she asked "what's that" constantly. They were even impressed at day care, but she doesn't say it all anymore. She still says some things, but she isn't really progressing in that area. It will come back, I know.
For me, work is going well. I don't feel I've lost any ground in my teaching by taking the year off. I do miss spending so much time with my little girl. It is much more gratifying to spend the day with someone who loves you unconditionally than with those who would rather you were absent. :) More soon. Must get work done.