Kidlets

Probably the biggest oversight in not blogging this long is that kids grow so fast and now none of that is written down.  Boo!  So here's where they are now.

Rosalind

Ros turned 3 about 4 months ago. I think she's very smart and verbal for her age. She comes up with ways to describe things when she doesn't know exactly how to say it and I love hearing what she comes up with. She is usually very thoughtful and polite. She is very good at following directions except when she's overwhelmed or excited. She has a freaky good memory and I know it sounds weird but she also has awesome vision-- she can spot teeny things far away that we don't even notice until she points them out. She's recently become pretty shy of strangers, which leads to people asking or telling her she's shy, which perpetuates the problem. Blah.  Stop doing that, people.

Ros started a gymnastics class last week and had so much fun she can't wait to go back. This was one of those times she was too excited to be good at following directions though. I talked to her coach/teacher after and she said she did really well in spite of it all and that the toddler class is always like that. I wanted to give her an award for her patience.

Ros is way into Moana right now and has most of that song (what's it called? "How Far I'll Go"?) down, although not really in the right order. But she frequently will want to "play Moana" and it's fun to watch. She's also starting to get into that princess-y stage, partly because of her cousins I think, and partly because that's what toddlers do I guess. I don't mind though, since it wasn't thrust upon her. She loves "fancy" clothes, skirts, etc. I give them to her in moderation because my eyes can only suffer so much.

She is usually pretty obedient and tame, except when she is hungry/tired/underloved. I have to remember she needs a snuggle every few hours still. She's only 3, after all.

Ros can count to 6 (she could count higher but she keeps getting 7 and 11 mixed up). She only knows a couple of her letters and seems to do better with numbers than letters. She does know shapes and colors though too so I guess we're doing fine. She loves to paint and draw and has recently started drawing people with skeletons, which I think is brilliant.

Anyway, Ros is hilarious and smart and so kind-hearted and I am just so proud of who she's becoming.


Remy

We had a rough patch with Remy (now about 16 months old). He is very clingy and scared when it comes to strangers still, but his other issues we were worried about I think we will be ok on. He's still walking on his toes but I feel assured that will turn out ok. But he's now interested in playing with toys the proper way, looking at baby faces, loves his baby doll, likes interacting with other babies (and still animals, his one great love), and is finally starting to babble.

In fact, he now has almost a dozen words, almost all of which he started using in the past couple of weeks. He calls me "Ma" and Sam "Dadada" or "Dahdeedahdee" and I think Ros is also "Ma." He says "hi" occasionally but mostly says "bye bye" for a lot of things-- when we leave obviously, when he turns a page, when he puts his stuffed puppy in his bed, etc. It's very cute.  He says uh-oh for appropriate situations, calls birds "cooooo" and calls the cat "kee" (and he's pretty good at playing with her...except for the occasional tail pull). He also folds his arms for prayers and yells "ahma!" when he's done, usually close to the end (ha!). He's says "bee" (for please) when he wants food and is very insistent. In fact usually the only time he voluntarily interacts with strangers is when they have food. Then he just sort of lurks a few feet away and says please over and over. When I ask him to say "X please" he always says "dee bee" and it's funny. He's starting to make a sound for diaper (something like "dai-pw-pw" while he signs it) too. He still uses 2 or 3 signs, as well. Oh! And he will finally sit still for a book if it's one he likes, otherwise it's still about 1-3 pages only before he slides off and runs away. He's always very busy doing something and is content to play by himself for a good chunk of time. He loves to explore and move things around (he's way stronger than he should be at this age).

We started him in a big kid (floor) bed recently since he is getting too strong for the pack n play and I'm worried he's going to get hurt or break it soon. He has done ok so far, mostly staying in his bed even when he's not asleep. I think we're still a ways away from having him share a room with Ros though, which is the ultimate goal.

So, yeah. Remy is at a stage where he's just so cute and silly you can't help but love him.


Ok!  Pictures!

Remy with bananas

From our Christmas card

Remy's 1st birthday!  Lemon cake with fudge frosting.

Clearly he enjoyed it

Post-birthday cake bath

Ros and her umbrella

At the Houston Arboretum (or "argoretum" as Ros says)

From a day it was below freezing and raining and like a genius I forgot Remy's jacket

Rosalind's 3rd birthday!  Chocolate raspberry fudge cake

Looking Grunge somehow

In cookie rapture while we waited for something

Exploring on Galveston Island

Much enthused

Remy, cat, pie safe

Remy eating a kolach (apparently "kolache" is plural...who knew)

Flying a kite at Sunny Beach

Sand Castles

Sand face

Ros loves leaves

Before he could walk

On a walk by the bay

Picking flowers in the back yard

She might be Shirley Temple