All Smiles

This week Anna learned to smile on command. We're not quite sure how she learned - we didn't teach her. But she did. So now, all day long, we're having fun pointing to her & saying, "Hey Anna! Smile!" Tonight, she pointed at me & said," 'mile". Of course, I did. How could I have not.




Hey Anna! SMILE! (That's mom's hat on Anna. It's a favorite make-shift toy.)

A Second Lesson in Anna-ese

New words seem to come every day. I find myself constantly surprised & looking at Traci, saying, "did she really just say that?" I promise not to post Anna's new words every week, but a few others came to mind & a few new ones rolled off her lips.

A Second Lesson in Anna-ese

up = up - this week "up" also means "up" as in pick me up
bané = banana
ome = home
chicka-chicka-chicka = chicken
heh = head
eye = eyes
no = nose
muh = mouth
ear = ears
chee = cheek
koat = coat (but, in Anna-ese I'm certain it's spelt with a 'k'. It's such a hard, sharp sound you could cut yourself on it.)

This evening in the car Anna was singing to herself. We weren't quite sure what she was singing. At one point I thought it was the ABC's because I thought I recognized a letter. Mostly it was just rhythmic jibber-jabber. Then, out of nowhere, clear as day came "RowRowRow". DID SHE REALLY JUST SAY THAT?

A Lesson in Anna-ese

Anna has become a real chatterbox. She's constantly trying to communicate with us & is always pointing out & identifying things she knows. Her words aren't always immediately understandable. Though, Traci & I pretty much have them down. While there are a few cognates (says the foreign language nerd), anyone else who might be around Anna would likely find a lesson in Anna-ese helpful.



A first lesson in Anna-ese

ba = ball

ba = blanket

baby = baby

bee-bee = beep-beep

boot = boot

bye = bye

ca = car (as in, the "ca" says "bee-bee")

'cado = avocado (a favorite food)

cheessssssse = cheese (lots of emphasis on the esses)

da = dad

da = dog

da = diaper

da = done

da = down (The context clues when using "da" are critical.)

kee-ka = kitty kat

ma = mama

no = no

No!No!No! = No thank you . I'd rather not.

NOOOOOOOOO! = HELL NO! Are you crazy?!? Get that broccoli away from me!

pea = pea (another favorite food)

poo = poo (as in, there's a "poo" in my "da")

poo = Pooh (as in, "Winnie the")

'poon = spoon

sssslthsl = slipper (watch out for the spit when she says this one)

up = load up (only used when eating. As in, help me "up" (load up) my 'poon.)

vee = Eve (our dog)

VEE! = EVE!! (mostly reserved for when "vee" is laying on her "ba")

vee-vee = Evie (more affection than just "vee". Usually accompanied by petting.)

Something new ... EVERYDAY

Most of you know that life with a one year old is full of new experiences for her. It seems like there's something new everyday. Today alone there were at least 3 firsts.

(1) This morning Anna kissed me for the first time. It wasn't a case of me kissing her. She walked up to me, turned her chin up, pursed her lips, & kissed me.

(2) Anna & I "skated" around the kitchen in our stocking-feet for the first time. She laughed & smiled the whole time.

(3) Anna ate out of the garbage ... for the first time. Hopefully, that one was also for the last time too. She hadn't finished all of her dinner, but clearly she was done eating & wanted down from the high chair. The last few lima beans left on the plate were scraped into the garbage (with other icky things). While Traci & I cleaned up the kitchen, Anna played at our feet. Lately she's been playing with a large bag of potatoes which she mistakenly thinks are called "bigs". Though, that's another story that Traci can explain. In this particular story, Anna skipped "the bigs" all together & headed straight for the trash. Neither of us realized what had happened until we saw her standing there chewing & saying "yum yum." More like yuck, yuck.

Happy Birthday, Anna!

Happy First Birthday, Anna! It is amazing how so much can happen in one short year. At 8:42 a.m., one year ago today, I stood in awe as Anna Genevieve came into the world. I knew our lives would change, but I could never have quantified how. We both loved her instantly, but I don't think that we could have ever imagined just how much we would grow to love her in the days, weeks & months that followed.

Our little baby who could barely hold her head up, who struggled to roll over on her own, whose Papa taught her to sit up, and whose Grandma literally saw her first steps, is no more. Today Anna is practically a toddler, a little girl, if you will. She babbles constantly - sometimes making sense, asking for milk, calling for the dog, greeting other babies on the train & saying "bye-bye" when she's leaving. This moring, in fact, she said something to her mom as Anna & I were leaving that sounded a lot like "I love you" (Traci had just before said the same to Anna). She plays at the park, chasing after the "big kids," trying to do what they do. Last week, she came down the short slide by herself. Abut half way down, she pulled her arms in towards her chest, clenched her fists, shut her eyes tight & grinned the biggest grin as she glided towards the ground. She is literally transitioning from a baby to a little girl before our very eyes.

I cringe at the thought of saying, "she will always be my baby." Having been the child of a parent who said this from time to time, I was often annoyed by this expression. I'm still not sure that I can bring myself to say it but I certainly am growing in my understanding of the sentiment. I suppose for me the sentiment is more one of love & pride. We are immedasurably proud of Anna. She has changed our world in remarkable ways (and, will certainly continue to). Happy Birthday, Baby!

Kitty Kat - Kitty Kat

Over the weekend Anna met her Cousin Lindsey's fat cat, Rosie. Rosie was gentle enough to tolerate Anna's playing with her tail, petting, & constant chasing. We talked to Anna all weekend about the "kitty kat". As most babies are, Anna is like a sponge & just soaks everything up that she hears.

When we came home from the weekend Anna was excited to see our dog, Eve. She rushed to rub Eve's back with her hand. As she did, she smiled at Eve & exclaimed, "Kee-Kat!"

Stories

It seems that not a day goes by that Will and I don't look at each other and raise an eyebrow over something new Anna is doing or saying. She's growing SO fast now, not only physically, but socially and mentally, in very noticeable ways.

While the most notable recent milestone is probably the fact that she is walking (more on that soon), I thought I'd share a few stories that have made us chuckle lately.

Anna really likes the playground. Always has, since we started taking her last spring to use the baby swings. Now, we've progressed to the slides and climbing on things, although often Anna just likes to toddle around and watch the big kids run and jump. A few weeks ago, Anna and I were out running errands one day after work. We happened to park in front of a school playlot while we ran in to pick something up. When we came back out, I dumped the stuff in the back of the car, and proceeded to buckle Anna into her carseat. She let out one sharp yell, and started pointing over my shoulder to something behind me. I turned to look, and saw nothing. Trying to go about the business of getting Anna in the car, she started really crying, and kept pointing out of the car. When I finally realized the playlot was in sight, I asked her if she wanted to play. Not only did she stop crying, she started kicking her legs excitedly and smiling. So I gave in, and we played on the playground -- I think there are probably worse things that spending 20 minutes on the playground on a Tuesday afternoon. And, while part of me thought it was just a fluke that day, it's happened a few times since then, so I know it's not. So maybe now we should upgrade "likes the playground" to "loves the playground".

Anna also really loves to take Eve on walks. A more accurate description would probably be that she loves to go with us when we walk Eve. It has become part of our daily routine -- Anna and I come home from work/daycare, settle in, and take Eve out. Anna always kicks her feet excitedly and starts laughing when she sees me get Eve's leash out and we head for the door. Yesterday, we were running a little off our normal schedule, and Will got home at the same time as us. I thought, great, he can take Eve out while I stay with Anna, it'll be so much easier than juggling both of them. Anna apparently didn't think that was such a great idea...when she saw Will head for the door without her, she started crying and crawled after him. So the four of us (Will, Eve, Anna, and I) all went for a walk!

Anna's a total bookworm. She will go to her toybox, pull out one of her favorites, and bring it to us to read to her. She likes to turn the pages herself, and many of our books have flaps that she likes to lift herself to see the pictures underneath. I think she's memorized the stories/pictures by now, but she still seems to enjoy them. Each night, we read her two books, and she cries everytime we close the second one -- she'd MUCH rather read her books than go to bed!

Anna's been saying "bye bye" for a couple of weeks now. She does the cutest little wave and a quiet "buh-bye"...and she does it about 9 times to say goodbye to someone...so, maybe that's an exaggeration, but she repeats it many times!

There are so many fun and cute stories to share, I hope to share more soon. Until then...buh-bye.