L at four years old

Here's another update (finally). This time it's about Second Girl.

I think she's even cuter in this July 4th photo than in the June photos.

This gorgeous girl turned four back in June, so she's four years and five months old now. Daddy was at AT as usual during more than half of that month, so we had her party in July. The party was a success, but I don't feel like uploading those photos. We had it in the church's Primary room with a few of her friends and some extended family. The kids enjoyed playing musical chairs.

Her actual birthday was fun and simple. The first fun thing was our healthy breakfast banana-oat cookies that each had four dark chocolate chunks on top. I make the cookies often (based on this recipe and I replace the oats part with oats / cooked beans / unsweetened shredded coconut) but had not put those chunks on them before. L's cookie was the biggest and we put her "numbah foh" candle in it. I think we just relaxed and did what we needed to at home. Then we went to a park we hadn't been to before and played there for a long time. She and First Girl are such good friends. It seems like we went to my mom's house, maybe for dinner. The day ended with homemade frozen fruit bars and her for some reason falling asleep on the living room floor.

She makes me so happy. She's almost always the first kid up in the morning, and she comes to find me and give me a hug. From age three to age four she became good at drawing people and other things, and she learned how to write her nickname. She doesn't need help with anything when she uses the bathroom anymore, unless it's #2.

She has learned to love preschool, which she started on October 1st. We had to wait for an opening in the free one at the elementary school -- the school First Girl attended last year. I think the preschool friend L has mentioned the most is David B. (who also has a sibling attending the other school for dual immersion, so his mom picks up First Girl for me on Tuesdays and Thursdays and I pick up her daughter on Fridays). There are also three other kids from our ward in the afternoon preschool class with her. L loves the art projects, and telling me about the stations in the classroom and the snacks. The teachers said she is quiet and behaves well. She did very well on almost everything they tested her on a few weeks ago, like knowing letter sounds and which words rhyme.

We all love the songs she makes up. She has an imaginary song folder for her songs -- I'm not sure if this was her idea or her sister's. She'll say "this is a song that I have in my song folder." There was one about colors and there's one called "There's so many of me." Last December she said, "I like to say 'hey!' at the end of songs. But always they don't say 'hey.' But in my ones they say 'hey.'" A weird song she sang just last month included "It is the best thing you could never see: curly hair."

Her speaking voice is so cute, too, with kind of lisp. I wrote down (then typed up -- I guess you can say "wrote up" but you can't say "typed down," can you?) some of the funny, imaginative, and smart things she has said since the last time. This is only a few of many L sayings I've recorded. My sentences have curly brackets around them:

{There's our car.}
This is ours van.
{Yeah.}
Yeah, tug ['cause] it's white.

(After I sang part of a song from a kids' show I had removed from our Netflix queue, so it had come off our our TV.) We yoost have it on our tee-dee, but then it cummed off.

My food just fell on the floor and I picked it up.
{Your banana?}
Yeah, and my Craisins. It’s not really good to tell your parents that.

(As we walked home from the van after taking S to school, I saw our animal on top of the bush by our patio. She said something about giving the animal to S when she gets back.)
{Because it’s S’s?}
Yeah.
{You love her, don’t you.}
Yeah! I didn’t want to look when the doctor gave her the shot. I was gonna cry.
{Aww, that’s so sweet. You’re being like Jesus. You care about people’s feelings.}
Jesus knows everything. I don’t know everything.

A dog wouldn't want to eat that [gunk I cleaned off the stove].

{But sometimes dogs eat things that people think are yucky.}

Like Bwussel pouts like I don't like?

{I don't know, but some people like me like them.}

I think a dog would like pizza.

(After talking with her and S I figured out that she was thinking of the dog in the Stephen Cartwright 1-2-3 book.)

{Are you good at coloring?}

Yeah, because I’m cute.

{Does being cute make you good at coloring?}

Yeah.

When I said I needed to go poo, it was a joke.

{You're a joke.}

Oh, I know why i'm a joke. Because I love to eat artijokes!

You’re just a servant, not a pwincess. . . . [We wouldn’t break the bed] but if you jump on the bed you will, but for weal. . . . I’m pretending that I’m talluh. . . . they won’t bweak the bed, ‘cause they’re more magical -- the people that are fancy. And I have a fancy cat. . .. I have so many stuff. And my cat can talk. . . . Servant? May you please make muffins. 

{You mean waffles.}

Yeah. I forgot. I have a very silly queen. I am very silly. I get all mixed up.

Mommy, have you ever seen a baby butterfly?

{I don’t know if I have.}

I think I know why you haven’t seen one. They might not be on this earth.

{Butterflies are on Earth. You’ve seen them before.}

I know a other ansuh [answer] why you might not have seen ‘em. They might be kinda shy.

(While coloring the Daniel page and paper food from Primary.) So his mom said, ‘be very careful when you carry the food who are in dishes, because they're bweakable.’ . . . So that's what he was doing when he was cahweeing [carrying] some. But on the way he accidentally bwoke one teeny piece of the bowl. . . . If the whole dish bwakes, I'm gonna be weally mad. That's what the queen said. The queen is his mom. And he was wehwing [wearing] vewy pretty clothes. . . . If there's a problem that happened, he should tell his mom wight away.

{If something happened?}

Yeah, to the dishes, and the dwink. . . . If he dwopped the corn then his mom wouldn’t be weally mad, ‘cause it’s not in a dish, and it’s not a drink. It was only on the gwass. And he was gonna bwing his pet named Octo to the picnic.

The other pwincesses, they have black lipstick on . . . Someone fired their lipstick, so now it’s burned. . . Yeah, so that why it’s black. . . . I was so so pwitty that they didn’t wanna fire mine.

{You mean burn?}

Yes.

I don’t like the way you are talking [in a British accent].

{Why not?}

It’s funny and I don’t like funny.

{But you’re doing it, too.}

No I am not.

Another day during AT -- we sent this to Daddy in a text message. These girls both love to stand on any big rock, and they usually do a little song and dance performance on the rock, too.

three years old

In June this girl turned three. (I blog slowly nowadays.) After her baby sister's photo shoot that week, L was too tired to cooperate. We ended up doing L's ten days later -- same park, and same photographer friend who did {these}. I am so glad that Anne and the camera captured some of L's beauty. 

She smiles / has fun / loves life, but would not smile even once during the 60+ minutes that Anne took pictures of her, even though she does know her. Afterward when I told L that I was sad she hadn't smiled, she said, "I will smile for you, Mommy" -- meaning when I'm behind the camera. Maybe she hadn't had enough sleep the night before and was feeling tired, but she also refuses to "perform" in front of other people when I or anyone else (i.e. the pediatrician) asks her to. 

At this age she usually cries or makes a frustrated "uhh uhh" whine when something is wrong, and won't say any words about what the problem is. She hates getting her hair wet in the bath no matter how we do it, and her crying about that always hurts my ears. She may talk less when she's not at home, but trust me, she's very talkative. She often deserves the nickname "Freakout." It's kind of interesting that some children scream for fun. She really is a good and polite kid, though; her nursery leaders and babysitters tell us she is. She always remembers to say thank you.

Anyway . . . she has changed so much -- from a toddler to a kid -- in the 14 months that we have lived in our current home. She seems a lot older than she was when I wrote {this}. The gap between her age and Shboogoo's seems smaller. She loves being a big kid, able to do things without help. But I love that she still comes to me for cuddles and wants to hold my hand in the parking lot.

L passed her three-year well check with flying colors. She was 8th percentile for weight (she has been 1st percentile, so that's gone up a little) and 9th percentile for height. C's six-month appointment was the same day, and it was sweet that after L's shots she started to cry again just because C cried out during hers. She is a good big sister. Just now, as I was typing with C  on my lap, L came and gently touched C's cheek and looked into her eyes as she quietly sang "wa-ah-ah."

Some L Sayings (you could call some of them Funnies), in order starting with mid-November 2011, show how she's speaking more like a grownup.


One day she gave me a cup and wanted juice in it. She told me, "In there, in the fridge. Have niny fridge, too. Daddy bought." She wanted me to know where the juice was and that we had a tiny fridge also. (However, Daddy didn't buy it, it had been my grandma's.)

She had Daddy's older iPhone in the new iPhone box, and said something like this: "Bad guys. not. get. phone keep fafe [safe] . . . Bad guys. not. get daddy’s phone. out this box. It my box for my phone.. . . It Daddy’s phone."

Did someone have a tiny hole in their shorts? "Niny hole in yois hoits [your shorts]?"

At bedtime she asked, "I dress up little minute? I put on priiiiiidy dress, be princess!"

L: I have more soy milk? 

Mommy: Have another bite of your peanut butter bread. 

L: Soy milk not candy.

(Meaning, "it’s not bad for me like candy is, so I can have more." Smart thinking!)

 

About The Emperor’s New Groove: [When] we watchin’ this funny show, him say “no touchy. No touchy.”

L: I brush my hair with this baby brush? 

Mommy: Yeah. 

L: Otay. Waint you [thank you].

Can you believe she scowled like that?

Mommy, at 8 a.m.: Do you want some oatmeal?

Yeah. Let I see if it’s morning time. [Runs to the patio door.] It is!

Layin' on Mommy.

Singing about getting something in the right order: I dog it in right oh-duh! I dog it in right oh-duh! 

After I drank almond milk from her cereal bowl: I didn’t know you can drink milk even a spoon is in.

Forcing the smile didn't work. Neither did getting out fruit snacks and showing her that whenever another kid smiled, he/she got a fruit snack.

Mommy: We need to get a little stool so you can get on and off the potty. And learn to wipe yourself. 

L: You can teach me to do anything. 

Mommy: I can? 

L: Yeah. And Daddy can.

Look at me. I can do amazing things. (She was holding her praying bear upside down with just her thumb through the loop of the tag.)  

I a good -- big girl, S! Do you know that?

On her birthday, she slept in. When she came in my room around 8:45 a.m. I said, "Happy Birthday, L!" She said so adorably, "But I still two and a half." I asked her, "Do you want me to tell you when it's the time that you were born?" She answered, "Yeah." Love her!

Edited to add: 

During her third year:

• She started to like drawing scribbles ("fribbles') on paper. 
• She potty trained (started just before age two and was good at it, with an adult's help, by two years and four months, then had more accidents for a little bit after baby sister was born). She is always dry in the morning, but we have some Pull-ups just for her to wear when she sleeps at one of the grandparents' houses, just in case. She has peed in her undies, maybe once a month?, if she is busy playing and doesn't tell anyone soon enough that she needs to go. She just starts to cry as she wets herself. Poor girl. Enough about that, though.
• She learned how to count to 10; sometimes to 18 or so, but she usually leaves out at least one of the numbers. 
• She can identify colors, shapes, and letters.
• She sings the whole alphabet song with other people. When she sings it by herself she starts with the middle of the tune and says "abcdefg" over and over again.
• She learned how to give a real kiss (at 24 months she couldn't do the smack).

L loves:

• the colors red, pink, and green
• running around, with or without her sister
• our little board book Maisy's Favorite Clothes, and other books
• her Mickey (my Steamboat Willie stuffed animal her daddy gave me when I was 17)
• jumping onto the couch from the coffee table
• watching a kid show on Netflix when she first wakes up; she is almost always the first child awake
• choosing what clothes she will wear
• "tacking" (snacking) on anything
• "helping" mom or dad cook or -- if we make it seem fun -- do chores, and "helping" dad play video games

"day wime!"

This girl amuses me. I love the things she has said in the last few months as she has been trying to figure out how the English language works.

do they?
She likes words that rhyme. She thought she was so smart as she said things like this:

Beans, peas! Day wime!
Swimming suit, swimming pool! Day wime!
Peanuts, peanut butter! Day wime!

One time she said her three names with pauses in between, and then said "day wime." Yep, not even close. But adorable. 


On leap day I wrote this down because she did get it right: "Funny, bunny! Day wime. . . . My bunny's name is Funny." (Actually, it was a Pikachu figurine.)


backwords 
puck = cup 
dig = get 
tug = cut 
MANgur = grandma
doog = good  
lape = plate 
dang = game

possessives 
L says hims when she should say his, and adds an s to your. It was so awesome when she asked her dad if they could play more Mario (a.k.a. No-no):

We play last one shine sprite on yours No-no dang?

copycat 
First Girl, seeing that Third Girl was about to cry, said "Here comes the cryin'." So Second Girl immediately said it, too, with her own interesting pronunciation: "Here pung the fwyin." We laughed out loud every time she said that sentence. Also, when she wants me to come with her she says, "Mommy, pung on! pung on!"

"Silly me." Apparently I say that a lot, so both of our older girls have made it part of their vocabulary.

Sometimes she complains, "Aaa-aww," when we tell her it's time to do something that she doesn't want to do. She learned that from First Girl. 


wrong words (these are pretty typical for young children, I think)
She confuses is and are: 

You is safe, baby.
What are this?

She uses I instead of me, us instead of we and vice versa, and not instead of don't or won't: 

Let I see!
Us not draw on puhtah [computer].
Nana gave we these.

missing words

I dress up little minute?
That tiny pen size of me.
I not how [I don't know how].
I need get weddy church.

SUCH a fun age! :o)

Scripture Sunday: Mosiah 18:11

I am thankful for the Book of Mormon and the way I feel when I study and ponder its words that testify of Christ. Latter-day Saints are often reminded of verses 8 through 10 in Mosiah. Alma is teaching a group of people before baptizing them, so the verses are also known as the baptismal covenant: 

8 And it came to pass that he said unto them: Behold, here are the waters of Mormon (for thus were they called) and now, as ye are desirous to come into the fold of God, and to be called his people, and are willing to bear one another’s burdens, that they may be light;

 9 Yea, and are willing to mourn with those that mourn; yea, and comfort those that stand in need of comfort, and to stand as witnesses of God at all times and in all things, and in all places that ye may be in, even until death, that ye may be redeemed of God, and be numbered with those of the first resurrection, that ye may have eternal life—

 10 Now I say unto you, if this be the desire of your hearts, what have you against being baptized in the name of the Lord, as a witness before him that ye have entered into a covenant with him, that ye will serve him and keep his commandments, that he may pour out his Spirit more abundantly upon you?

And then, when teaching a lesson in church, we usually stop there. However, verse 11 is my favorite one in the chapter!

And now when the people had heard these words, they clapped their hands for joy, and exclaimed: This is the desire of our hearts.

I love to see the word "joy" in the scriptures. These people (Mosiah 18:16 says that about 204 were baptized) wanted to bear each other's burdens and do all of the other things that Alma described. They understood that being baptized is a beginning. They clapped their hands for joy because they wanted to serve God and have his Spirit with them. They are great examples to me.

nineteen months

L is 19 months old; she's growing and changing and a lot of fun. I have a video of her touching or looking at each of these on her body: hair, forehead (she does the top of her head), ears, eyes, nose, mouth, teeth, tongue, chin, neck, hands, belly button, and toes.

Remember me asking about baby sign language? I had to return that book to the library and I have been doing other reading. However, I did teach her a few signs that she uses sometimes. Her favorite is "car". She'll sign it (which is really cute as she looks at me and smiles) or say the word. It seems like she hasn't done both at the same time, although I have. She signs "eat," but pretty much only if I ask her to. The other word she will sometimes sign, but prefers to say, is "baby." Several times I have signed "drink" while asking if she wants one; she hasn't wanted to do the sign, but that's okay with me.

Words she speaks: "yuck" (often she holds out the "y" for a while, and her "ck" makes her sound German): when she picks up a crumb or sees her dirty diaper.

"Mama" for me and "dada" for her dad (but she loves to combine them or call anything "dada.") She's been saying "dada" much longer than "yuck." Looking at photos, I point to dad and ask her who he is and she says "dada." But, also, when I ask who she is she usually says "dada," and then I tell her to say "me," which she can do.

"mo" = more

"pwee" or "pweez" = please

"uh oh"

 "beh" = bed (similar word for bread, too)

"bee-bee" or "beh-beh" = baby

 "bee" for just about every bird she sees in a book.

"book" (but without the "k") 

"baw!" = ball or bye

{You're never too young to "hold to the rod, the iron rod . . ."}

"dah!" = dog (points to the window when we hear one bark outside) or car or star.

"eye," if I say it first.

 Most recently: I tell her to say "love you" and she says "wuh woo" or something like "wuh boo." :-)

 

 {I think she thought the sword was a trumpet.}

scripture sunday: "for gladness"

In my opinion, section 19 is one of the best in the whole Doctrine and Covenants (a book of scripture containing revelations from the Lord to modern prophets). I love the Savior's explanation of His commandments -- which are for our benefit and joy in this life and beyond! -- that we pray, repent, and preach repentance. Jesus Christ said that He suffered for every person, so "that they might not suffer if they would repent" (verse 16). I am so grateful for His sacrifice.

My love for verse 23 has increased over the years:

                   ^{Learn of me, and listen to my words; walk in the meekness of my Spirit, and you shall have peace in me.}


Doctrine and Covenants section 19, verses 38-41 (39 is my very favorite in this section): 

    Pray always, and I will pour out my Spirit upon you, and great shall be your blessing—yea, even more than if you should obtain treasures of earth and corruptibleness to the extent thereof.

    Behold, canst thou read this without rejoicing and lifting up thy heart for gladness?

    Or canst thou run about longer as a blind guide?

    Or canst thou be humble and meek, and conduct thyself wisely before me? Yea, come unto me thy Savior. Amen.

Can we be humble and meek and conduct ourselves wisely? Yes, if we come unto our Savior. I believe that Jesus communicates all of these things to individuals. Scripture study is personal, and I hope you don't mind me being personal with this kind of blog post. I want to be better at feasting on the scriptures and prayer every day. I know that that is how I learn of Him, have peace in Him, and have the Holy Ghost poured out upon me. I want to be guided (by someone who knows much more than I do), not blind. I love the blessings Heavenly Father has already given me that are more valuable than treasures of the world. When I read and ponder D&C 19, my heart is lifted up for gladness.

four years old

Shboogoo eating breakfast -- and dancing to James Taylor's Covers album -- on her birthday! She said the ribbon was a worm.

We celebrated Shboogoo's fourth birthday at home, just us. She and I made birthday oatmeal-chocolate chip-Craisin cookies. Her dad had just enough time at home between school and work for us to sing "Happy Birthday" and watch her blow out the candles and open "presnents."

 

Shboogoo's grandparents and some extended family gave her presents when we saw them Thanksgiving Day. 

 (a red dress, Tinkerbell blanket, and a Slinky)

 This picture, also at my mom's on Thanksgiving, represents Shboogoo perfectly! She is always creating a bed and having a baby sleep on it, and she likes to line things up.

(Tangled book/cd)

Then a couple of weeks later -- I procrastinated inviting but I also didn't want to bother people close to the holiday -- we had five of her friends over for a party. They played Candy Land, danced to some "kid music," played musical chairs, and ate vegan cupcakes (which Shboogoo had helped me make) with chocolate frosting. Her friends brought such cute gifts and everyone had fun. We let them each take a balloon home. Next time we could prepare better to have more of a theme, party favors, etc. but my husband was a big help to me. 

When we went to borrow some vanilla, the coconut oil hardened, so I put the pan on the stove to melt the oil again.

This friend got to help blow out the candles because she had won Candy Land.

Our "big girl" is really lovable.  She's constantly learning -- here are a few examples I had written down. 

• One day as we walked toward our car after a doctor appointment she said, "Hey, 'car' has the same word as 'shopping cart!'" She recognizes words that have a common letter in them, and says that "__ and __ rhyme!" (Sometimes she's right that they rhyme, and other times they just start with the same sound.)
• In June we saw a TV commercial for Magic Button. In September she told me, "Daddy should get the Magic Button."  I was amazed that she remembered.
• She and her daddy watched some of the Star Wars movies (episodes IV, V, VI and part of I) and she told me a lot about the plots: ". . . And Luke cried about it. Yeah, because he doesn't want a bad guy for his father."
• Now whenever we have four of anything she says, "Like I'm four years old!"