Addy has definitely inherited her dad’s sense of humor. She is such a hoot and always making us laugh. She’s really been catching on to the idea of “teasing” and likes to show us that she knows what she’s not supposed to be doing. She will walk casually over to the electrical outlets and slowly reach out, pretending to touch them while grinning at us. We’ve discovered her “petting” the freestanding lamps in the living room, and when we ask for something back that she’s not supposed to be playing with, it promptly gets whipped across the room as if to say, “What are you talking about? I don’t have anything!”
There was a recent accident with Addy’s “princess-mobile,” or “cruiser,” as Daddy likes to call it. Car and driver were both involved in the sideway rollover, but no major injuries were reported. A dispute between Addy and Eli ensued after the accident over who was going to set the car upright, so the princess-mobile headed to the body shop (AKA the bathroom) for the afternoon.
Mommy has had to employ some creative strategies with the daycare kids including toys in “timeout” when there are arguments over sharing, bathroom fans on to create “white noise” during naps, and big praise for helpers who throw away diapers and assist with other daily chores.
One night before bed, Addy would not let go of her plastic bathtime book. Daddy decided to choose his battles and let her take it to bed. When he snuck in later to remove it from the crib, Addy was clutching it tightly to her chest.
When Addy was being particularly wiggly on the changing table, Mommy said, “Lyddia!” That story made everyone laugh as they recalled that Mommy did not change very many of Lyddia’s diapers.
A lady at church was so kind to suggest that we attend 10 a.m. mass on Sunday mornings, when “the nursery is available.” Obviously, we are still working on appropriate church behavior.
Addy loves spotting birds and airplanes outside. She will notice and point out birds on top of lightposts or flying in the sky. She will stop what she is doing in the house if she hears a plane flying over.
After reading more of Tracy Hogg’s “Secrets of the Baby Whisperer for Toddlers,” Mommy is convinced she classified Addy and Eli incorrectly as babies. She thought Addy was a “textbook” baby who adhered to a strict schedule (in reality, it was Mommy who adhered to the strict schedule!), and Eli seemed like a “touchy” baby, who was sensitive to change. Toddlerhood has made things more apparent. Eli is hands down an “angel” baby who adapts easily and naps like a champ, and Addy is “spirited.” No wonder we are always so exhausted, and the Longs are well rested! Spirited kids have the most energy and are the most active of all babies and toddlers. They also push limits, get sassy, and are extremely persistent. Why did Mommy ever think her offspring would be spared these traits? The book does note that spirited kids grow up to be great leaders. Now if we can just keep working on toning down that sass. The good news is that it only took Mommy twenty-two years or so!
Timeouts have officially begun. With three little ones running around during the day, we need some separation from the group at times. The timeout ratio is about five for Addy to every one for Eli and Lily. Oh man, we are in trouble during adolescence, aren’t we?
When Mommy went to get Lily up from her nap, Addy felt compelled to help herself to some Triscuit crackers. Addy has always enjoyed unloading the snack cabinet, but now she knows how to open the packages. She had one Triscuit down and several more in her hands before Mommy made the discovery!
At lunchtime, if one baby/toddler is still eating, the other two are like little scavengers, circling the highchair, waiting for food to drop or a chance to sneak something off the tray.
Addy was pushing her car from her bedroom down the hallway to the living room. This required a turn to navigate into the hallway. Mommy was encouraging Addy to keep trying as she rammed the front of the car into the wall over and over again instead of making any attempt to turn the wheels. Daddy was watching in disbelief as Addy eventually just gave up and walked away. Mommy had to break the news to Daddy that Addy has apparently inherited Mommy’s engineering/mechanical skills!
Mommy was making sweet potato fries one night before bedtime. Addy caught a glimpse of them and immediately started signing “please” over and over again. This was literally five minutes before bedtime, and the fries weren’t even done baking yet. The meltdown that followed was one for the record books. Mommy had to go through a big “goodnight sweet potato fries” routine and put them “back to sleep” in the oven. It was a still a rough bedtime.
Addy likes to rub her eyes with her toes. She’s our yoga girl!
Addy will point to her eyes, mouth, toes, and nose. She pretends to put her socks and shoes on her feet by setting them on top and then looking at Mommy and Daddy.
On our family trip to the apple orchard, Addy was very intrigued by the sheep. She loved running around under the apple trees. It was somewhat comical to watch as she would lose her balance occasionally when she stepped directly on top of a fallen apple! Addy was also interested in taking bites of apples, which Mommy and Daddy learned when she picked up a worm-infested, rotten apple and took a huge bite before anyone could stop her!
Addy’s new favorite book is a nursery rhymes pop-up book. We read it approximately 100 times per day, especially “Baa Baa Black Sheep.”
Addy was exposed to her first swear word this month. Mommy had just cleaned out Addy’s diaper into the toilet and pressed the handle to flush when Addy came running in and decided to throw a wooden puzzle piece into the swirling water. Apparently, the natural reaction to this happening is saying, “SHIT,” as you stick your hand into the poop to retrieve the puzzle piece. Thankfully, it wasn’t the puzzle pieces Grandma Gretchen and Grandpa Bob made, and even more of a relief was that Addy has yet to repeat the “new word” she learned! Oops.
Addy is Mommy’s little helper. She likes to sweep the kitchen with her little broom, throw diapers away in the Genie, and attempt to feed Lily. When Mommy had her back turned, Addy grabbed Lily’s spoonful of garden vegetables and ran at Lily in her highchair trying to put the spoon in her mouth. Luckily, Mommy intervened before any injuries occurred, but it was really cute!
Addy’s newest words are NA NA for banana, DOG, DUCK, HOT, and BALL. She also says MUM MUM MUM MUM in front of the pantry cabinet whenever she thinks she should have a Mum Mum rice cracker. This is usually several times a day, to which Mommy has to say, “No, we just had lunch,” or “No, we just had a snack after nap.”
Addy’s one-year molars are coming in on the bottom and top. Her bottom set popped through around her first birthday, and the top two made their appearance at about 14 months.
Addy enjoys throwing away tiny pieces of fuzz or dirt from the floor. She is very proud that she can lift the cover of the garbage can now. Of course, this led to her seeing a piece of bread from breakfast in the trash and proceeding to take it out and eat it before Mommy knew what was going on.
Addy enjoys teasing Mommy by touching the outlets and floor lamps in the living room. She usually “pets” them while grinning mischievously.
Addy loves playing “ghost” with her blanket. She covers her entire head with the blanket and then walks around like a ghost until she runs into something.
Addy is really into “snuggling” with her blankets. She carries them around and buries her face in them.
Addy learned about somersaults, so she now places her head on the floor, butt in the air, and waits for you to flip her forward.
Addy now signs the following words consistently: MORE, MILK, PLEASE, YES, ALL DONE, and EAT. She also growls like a bear, pants like a puppy, shakes her head NO, and follows simple commands when she feels like it.
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