"Little Girl."

Sadie is growing up so much so quickly! I realize this is the ultimate cliche about children, but I can't help myself from joining the ranks of parents who start to wonder where the time is going. Her cognition and language development are on fire. She says things constantly that we didn't realize she knew/remembered/absorbed. She mimics my facial expressions and inflections and intonations when speaking.
She is definitely exerting her will more, and we are experiencing the telltale toddler impatience, especially if she's hungry or tired. She continues her love affair with the word "no" but I have successfully taught her "no, thank you" as well. She actually corrects herself if I give her "the look". (you know - the one your mom used to give you that says 'you'd-better-shape-up-right-now-or-else'?)
All of this is just to say that she's certainly growing up. I see moms everywhere with babies; Sadie looks like a giant in comparison. She is definitely not a baby anymore. At all. I still call her "baby" and "baby girl" sometimes, and we still do "baby things" like nursing in the morning and rocking her to Brahm's Lullaby before bed. She is a serious snuggle-bug and I love holding her in my arms. I hope we have a few more years of her wanting to be held.

Her hair is getting in her eyes again, which is what prompted me to cut it 2 months ago, but instead of reaching for the scissors just yet, I thought I'd take another pass at the whole pig-tail thing. I figured she'd just yank them out and end up hurting her head & pulling out her hair, but she surprised me. She held still while I explained what I was doing and when I was done she said "thank you, mama!" I asked her if she wanted to go look in the mirror, which she did. She walked down the hall, stopped at the mirror and said rather decidedly, "little girl."

I guess she sees it, too.

-

break it down

There are a ton of reasons why I know Sadie is tremendously lucky to have 2 loving, attentive parents, but sometimes, little things that may seem inconsequential will catch me off guard. I really love and appreciate the fact that she can get 2 different perspectives on things - two unique approaches to life and how to live it.
Now, she and I have a lot of fun together day in and day out, but I have never thought to do something like this:

Daddy and Sadie Breakin' it Down.

That's what we like to call "good, clean fun."

Thanks, honey. I needed that.

A short story to illustrate why I sometimes think my child is some sort of angel sent just for me (and Andrew)...

Last night, as we scrambled to get out the door to go have our weekly Sunday Night Dinner with my family, I grabbed my set of car keys and told Andrew that I'd drive. I have found that it is best to take the wheel when I'm feeling even slightly irritated so that I can maintain a sense of control over the situation.
Andrew was all too happy to let me drive; he was head-down and totally immersed in his phone-gadget thing almost immediately and I chose to accept that and make the trip in silence. Sadie was contentedly snuggled into her car seat behind us, looking out the window.
For this particular Sunday night dinner, my parents had invited us to their country club as a treat. As I made our way there, I pictured the club's beautiful dining room and recalled that my brother's wedding reception was held there almost 10 years ago. This then turned my mind to our wedding reception site, and subsequently I was filled with sweet memories of that wonderful day less than 2 and a half years ago. I marveled at how in many ways it feels like a lifetime ago. I know I'm not unique in my wedding day nostalgia, but sometimes I can't believe that the powerful emotions of that day can possibly seem like a distant memory.
Moments later, as I started to pull off the freeway, I heard Sadie sweetly say, "music."
"You want the music on, honey?" I asked.
"Yeah," came the reply.
I looked down at the radio and saw that it was in fact on, but the volume was almost all the way down. I reached down and turned the nob, but heard nothing. I turned it up further, and realized that the radio station must have been exactly in-between songs. I waited for a song to start. I turned it up more, and kept my hand on the knob to turn it down quickly in case it came blaring on. I almost switched the station, thinking that perhaps KFOG was having a momentary glitch in their broadcast, when finally, quietly, slowly, a song started. And not just any song, but our first dance song, True Companion, by Marc Cohn.

My heart skipped and I gave Andrew a squeeze on the leg. Thanks for the reminder, Sadie-girl.

at 18 months...

Happy Year-and-a-Half, Sadie!

Here are some fun facts about our 18 month old:

• She will often play in her crib for up to 30 minutes after waking up in the morning and after naps. This is when I hear her say things like "come here!" "whatchoo doing?" "oh, no baby" and "let's see..." Sometimes I just hang out by the monitor and listen.
• She loves to wear hats
• Her favorite thing to drink is water
• Her two most uttered words are "where" and "no"
• She needs 24/7 access to her belly button
• She will ask for the "other side" when she's nursing and whisper "nigh-night" when she's done and ready to go to sleep
  
• She has liked Reggae music since she was an infant
• She loves candles and says "flicker, flicker" when she sees them
• She likes to climb stairs but hasn't gone down a slide (by her own volition) yet
• Her favorite song to sing is "My Lady Wind" from her Music Together class CD
  
• She has never thrown a tantrum
• She has a birthmark on her left ankle
• She gives hugs, kisses, high-fives and blows kisses
• She can blow her nose
• She likes to do "cheers" with whatever she's drinking
• She has an awesome appetite and so far we've had almost no issue with
  picky eating
• She likes to say "funny sound" and make them
• She naps once a day from about 2 until 5
• She usually goes to bed by 9 PM and sleeps anywhere from 11-13 hours each night
• She likes bagels
• She loves loves loves dogs
• She got her first black eye yesterday when she fell and hit her face on her little wooden chair
• She loves baths and likes having her finger & toenails clipped

She is easily the most special person in our lives and we still can't believe she's really ours.

update 2/2/09 3:15 PM
Sadie is in the 90th percentile for weight at 28 pounds and off the charts for height, at 34.5 inches (2' 10.5")
And she started going down the slide today at the park. Funny that I had just mentioned that.

One Hundred and Two

That's how many times I counted Sadie saying "no" today.
Rascal.

I dig this pic.

addition 2/10/09:
I overheard someone describing this photo and had to find it.
Love it.

Sugar and Spice

"Well, it happened."

That's the text I got from Andrew about 2 months ago when Sadie repeated something he'd said that was, let's just say...not nice.
He followed up with "consider me warned/on probation", which I appreciated but knew in my heart of hearts was not entirely fair. Yes, Sadie dropped her first curse word on Andrew's watch, but there's no way I'm going to claim innocence on this one.
While we've been reveling in her mad verbal skills and willingness to repeat almost anything we ask of her, we both have been fully aware that the day would come when she'd say something entirely inappropriate.
Though we are thoroughly enjoying listening to her rattle off most of the words and phrases she's picked up ("woah, dude" and "easy tiger" are my current favorites) her latest installment is not great.
Yes, folks, Sadie has been saying "Dammit". She repeated it after I let it fly on the way to the airport on Christmas Eve when I realized I had forgotten something, and we all ignored it. I hoped it was a one-off and that she wouldn't associate emotion or circumstance with it.
Well, about a week later, my mother-in-law told me that she'd said it while getting her diaper changed. Uh-oh. Then a couple of days ago, while I was at the computer and she was playing with stickers at the table behind me, I heard her say it when she accidentally ripped one. *cringe* Still, I was cautiously optimistic that she didn't really "get it" and that if I continued to ignore it, this little linguistic phase would pass quickly.
Tonight in the grocery store, she said it when she dropped a sticker that the produce guy had given to her (maybe she just has issues with stickers?) and she proceeded to repeat it as I rolled her up and down aisles in the shopping cart, actively ignoring her. I finally stopped the cart and gave her a stern look and shook my head. She stopped. I was hesitant to do or say too much because I was worried that any reaction on my part would turn into something like this.

On the flip side, she has started saying "love you" to us and to family on the phone. She blows kisses, gives strong hugs, and kisses both of us goodnight now. She's been saying "excuse me" (skew-mee) and "sorry" (sah-wee) for a few weeks now and today, she said "thank you, mommy" (kankoo mommy) about 2 dozen times. She said it when I put food on her plate, put her shoes on, helped her with her puzzle, put on music for her, and a few times for no reason at all, aside from the smiles, hugs, kisses and lavish praise these words elicit from yours truly. Ahem. Is she a pleaser already? And she's not even a second child!

Her sweet little voice, deep blue eyes and chubby cheeks are irresistibly adorable. She might just have us wrapped around her little finger already.
Dammit.