Sunday, October 28, 2012

For the Birds!

Dear Sophie,

You had a couple a funny moments recently that I wanted to remember.

We were standing outside on an unusually warm, 80 degree evening in October.  You love walking through the crunchy leaves and picking up the little red berries that have been falling off the prairie fire crab apple tree in the backyard.  Because I wanted you to understand that you shouldn't eat the berries, we sat down on the back steps and I explained that the berries were food for the birds.  It just so happened that a large flock of birds was flying noisily over head at that moment.  Fully comprehending the food lesson and then dramatically gasping at nature's impeccable timing, you held up a fistful of berries up to the sky and shouted, "Heeh, beehds!  Eat, beehds!" (translated, "Here, Birds!  Eat, Birds!).  How I love that you make a seemingly uninteresting moment such an exciting one!

This next story embarrasses me, but your cuteness overrides my shame.  You were sitting quietly, coloring and playing with stickers.  I was sitting across from you, watching you color and occasionally helping to remove a sticker from its backing.  Digestion of a taco salad made itself evident when I let slip a hard-to-ignore "toot."  In great sincerity, you looked up at me with raised brows and asked, "Poop, mommy?"  I suppose I'm fair game to be asked that question, since we ask you the same question seemingly every day.  Soon, I'll be teaching you that a "toot" may be a signal that it's time to go to the potty.

I love you, Funny Face!

Mommy

Saturday, October 20, 2012

Miss Bossy?

Dear Sophie,

We went to McDonalds for dinner tonight.  You don't really care about the food, but you like to watch the kids playing on the gymnasium and the slides.  You don't yet participate in the playing yourself because I suspect that you may be intimidated by all the other kids - they are much bigger than you.   As we were eating our dinner and people watching, two little girls (about nine years old) came over to our table.  Fully engrossed in play time, they hopped up on the chair and then stepped up onto our table so that they could reach up and jump onto one of the bars of the gymnasium. In a bossy little voice, you said to those girls, "Off table! Get down!"  You repeated it a second time when the little girls did it again.  Eventually, an adult from their party came over and told the girls not to get on the table.

I wonder where you learned to be so bossy? *wink wink*  This was the first time I've seen you be bossy to anyone else besides Lucy, Blue, and Junior.

Love you,
Mommy

Sunday, October 14, 2012

FaceTime

Dear Sophie,

Thank goodness for FaceTime - this nifty Applie iPhone application that allows me to "video call" you.  I can see your cute little face even though I am far away in Washington D.C. at a conference.  And you can see my face too.  "Hi, Mommy!" is such a nice greeting.  You can hear me and interact with me on FaceTime.  You even mimicked me sticking my tongue out.  And when I asked for a "high five," you did it - unfortunately, your high five disconnected our call, but we got right back online together with a touch of a button.

What a darling little girl you are!

I'm so glad this is only a 3 day trip.  I miss your face!  I miss Daddy too, but his face is not nearly as sweet as yours. Wink wink!

Love,
Mommy

Sunday, October 7, 2012

First K-State Game

P.S.

Daddy and I took you to the K-State vs. KU game in Manhattan yesterday.  It was your first college football game.  KU lost to K-State with a horrendous score of 56 to 16!

Oh sh*t!

Dear Sophie,

Who would have ever guessed that you would learn your first naughty word from Mommy?  I've been lecturing your dad for two years that he should start modifying his language in preparation for little ears.  As it turns out, it was I who needed the lecturing.

Here's how it happened.  Daddy was out of town.  It was just you and me, which means that Mommy was probably on the "worn out" side.  I placed you on the changing table so that I could give you a fresh diaper.  You were being your usual squirmy self - anything left on the dresser is vulnerable to being kicked or knocked off.  This isn't usually a problem, because most of the time, what's on your dresser is plush or plastic (like your animals or your comb).  This time, though, it was a sizeable bottle of lotion.

With a wave of your arm, the lotion container went crashing to the flower ending with a big splat!  Lotion was everywhere!  "Oh shit," I said.  "It's broken."  Not dwelling on the mishap (yours or mine), I finished changing your diaper, and then proceeded with the cleanup.  We went on with the day.

Later that day, it was time for another diaper change.  I took you back to your room and placed you on the dresser.  You noticed the broken lotion bottle still on the dresser, and then turned to me and said with all innocence, "Shit.  Boken."  I asked you, uncertain I heard you correctly, "What did you say?"  You repeated, "Shit. Boken."

And if that wasn't confirmation enough for me, two days later, when I was changing your clothes, you said it again after accidentally dropping your shoes on to the floor:  "Oh shit."

I can hardly believe that it was me who taught you a bad word.  Of course you don't know that it's a bad word, but everyone else will know, when your repeat it in public, that someone taught you a bad word.  Everyone will suspect your Daddy, but he will be free of blame and point his finger squarely at me.

Love you!
Your Imperfect but Loving Mommy

Wednesday, October 3, 2012

No bite!

Dear Sophie,

We are still trying to figure out how to move you on past this biting stage.  Yesterday, one of the other children in your class pushed you and, in retaliation, you bit him or her on the arm.  This morning, your teacher Ms. Robin told me how you reacted when you were put in a time out after yesterday's incident.  You were crying, and you pointed with a crooked index finger to some nearby blocks and repeated, "No biting, Block!  No biting!"  Ms. Robin said she struggled not to laugh.

I relayed this story to Daddy.  He laughed too and said he was glad that you seemed to be "getting it."  I, however, felt broken-hearted to hear it.  You and I have had some talks about biting on the way home from school, and I wondered if I had been too stern with you.  After all, you're a one year-old.  Still just a baby.

Instead of the stern talks on the way home after you've had an "incident", I'm going to praise you with lots of hugs, kisses, and positive words every day that you don't have an "incident."

I sure hope that works!

I'll always love you,
Mommy