Eighteen months! Â The past few weeks have brought new words (tutt-le for turtle, elmo for TV, and an enthusiastic A-MEH! after we say our pre-dinner prayer), new favorite foods (hummus, frozen raspberries, and hamburgers), and…duh-duh-duh-duhhhh…the beginning of disciplinary time outs, usually for fits that involve hitting or hair-pulling. Â That girl is a mixed bag, as always.
Add paint to that list of favorite foods! Â Hmmmmmmph. Â I often feel like a broken record: “Not for eating. Â Not for eating, please. Â NOT FOR EATING!”
Dress-up is still a favorite pastime – she loves to accessorize. Â Pants are optional.
And, I can’t resist…the track suit that Aunt Tiff gave her for Christmas in 2013 finally fits!
She’s taken a real interest in “helping” me out around the house, unloading the dishwasher or dusting the furniture or throwing things away in the trash can (hopefully garbage, though I’ve found a couple of rogue toys or kitchen utensils in there). Â The other night I tasked her with cleaning up the food she’d thrown on the floor – she picked up all the bits of sweet potatoes and threw them away, then took the dish towel I’d handed her to wipe up the milk spatters. Â This felt like real progress! Â Minus the throwing-food part.
She’s been spending lots of time with her little buddy N, particularly since she joined his class at daycare. Â They’re so silly together, cracking each other up over jokes that no one else gets. Â Well, usually they’re both smiling. Â Have a little sympathy, Jules!
Much better…
N and S came over for donuts on Saturday morning, and after all the books had been read and the puzzles had been played with and the legos had been stacked, the rainy day antsies set in and our house erupted with the sound of stomping feet and squeals of laughter.
Friday mornings are still spent with my mama friends and Juliette’s best boy pals. Â We hit Mount Baker Beach this past Friday – a far cry from Santa Monica, but there was still sand to sit in and digging to be done!
G has a couple of years on these other guys but is just as great a playmate, singing “Baby Jules, Baby Jules, Baby Jules” as he shows her the big-kid ropes on the playground.
And then, there’s Dad. Â Nobody draws forth a smile like Dad.
Speaking of whom, Dad has introduced her to the fine art of rock-throwing. Â She’s a fan.
Oh, and this past month also brought her first big boo-boo – she took a tumble at the daycare playground last week and scraped up her face. Â I suppose this is the price you pay for playing so hard. Â I also suppose Juliette would tell you it’s worth it. Â Girl looooves to run.
Happy 1.5 years, baby! Â (For the love of God, not for eating, Juliette…)
