little swimmer

On Monday Camille started swimming lessons. She was afraid of putting her face in the water. She's had four lessons now. Twice we've "practiced" in our neighborhood pool in the afternoon.

And this is how much she's progressed...



I must say that I am shocked at how far she's come! She obviously still has a long way to go before she's an official swimmer, but she's doing great. I can't wait to see even how much more she learns by the end of summer.

two loves

Two things Camille loves: 

1. Her Auntie Megan.
2. Making birthday cards for people she loves, even if it's not their birthday.

You'll notice that she's concentrating so hard that her tongue is sticking out.

And these days she's giddy with excitement that she can "write" birthday cards all by herself! Another person who is excited to have a new pen pal? Why, Auntie Megan of course!

None of us are looking forward to Megan going back to Mexico in just over a week, but it will certainly be fun writing her lots of "birthday" cards and drawing lots of pictures for her. 

And, as Camille says, "Auntie's other children need her too!" 

These four months have been filled with adventure and blessings, and now it's time for us to share our Auntie with her other children.

two years later, same spot, smaller cracker, bigger camille

 

at three years old...

Camille...

• Knows all her upper-case letters and most of her lower-case (and the sounds they make)
• Can count to 13
• Adores her doll Susanna more than anything else
• Is an excellent assistant in the kitchen
• Has been known to wear her brother's pants as capris
• Often blurts out a priate-y phrase such as ahoy thar and Captain Hook is closing in!
• Has no problem eating stray Cheerios she finds on the floor
• Asks for cereal for breakfast every morning (usually at least two kinds mixed together)
• Can get herself completely dressed (and will often change her clothes when she should be napping)
• Calls Levi big brother despite the fact that he is younger and smaller than her
• Has almost completely given up her afternoon nap
• Requests peanut butter and jelly for nearly every meal
• Would listen to her Little House picture books all day long
• Washes Levi's hair all by herself when they take baths together
• Loves playing doctor and makes sure to give (or get) a thorough check-up
• Is one of the most creative, talkative, caring, and beautiful children I know

much ado about nothing

One step forward, two steps back. Three steps forward, one step back. Two steps forward, seven steps back. Five steps forward, three steps back. So goes Camille’s bedtime/naptime-without-a-paci saga. We haven’t given it back to her and likely won’t. It’s going on two weeks now, and while I’m tired of all this sleeptime drama I think we might be headed in the right direction. I do know that once she’s asleep she sleeps much better than she did when she had her paci.


I’ve been seriously considering homeschooling Camille next year for preschool, and potentially beyond. Aaron and I have been talking about it and weighing the pros and cons. It’s not something that had ever crossed my mind until recently and, to be honest, the idea of it sort of freaks me out. But when God starts tugging your heart in an unexpected direction there’s not much to do about it except follow along in faith.

There’s a mosquito bite on the bottom of my foot.

We’ve finally found a renter for our townhouse. Aaron is glad to not have to meet with prospective renters each evening anymore. Now we’re just praying that our renter is as low-maintenance as our last renters.

Levi continues to go to bed ridiculously early. He also has been taking mini naps all day. 45 minutes has pretty much been his max, though occasionally he’ll nap a marathon and stay down for a couple hours. I remember Camille did this when she was a baby. I’m hoping it’s just a phase that I have to wait out. It must be, because he certainly can’t take four or five mini naps every day for his entire life. But gosh, now that I think about it four naps a day would feel delightful!

The diapers are done in the washer so I’d best get them into the dryer so I can hit the sack. I’ve got to catch zzzz’s any chance I can find these days. Though I will admit that Levi is a great sleeper and I only have to feed him once in the wee hours of the mornings. But still, I’ve always been a girl who likes sleep.

operation: no more diapers UPDATE

There are some of you out there (you know who you are) who have been on edge wondering why I haven't written a potty training update every day and when the next one will be.

You can sleep easy tonight.

Camille has been doing great!

The first two days were definitely the most intensive, and after that we've backed off a bit. But still nary a daytime diaper has touched her sweet little bottom.

She's had anywhere from one to four total accidents each day, and is still having a hard time telling us when she has to go (particularly when she has to poop), but she's still having fun wearing big girl panties and I don't have any problem changing her pants occasionally.

It's way better than doing diapers all the time!

She really can hold it for quite a while, so as long as I remember every couple of hours to bring her to the bathroom she does really well.

No, we're certainly not going back to diapers.

I'm so proud of this kid!

operation: no more diapers DAY THREE

UPDATE:

Our great day in panties continued through the entire evening. In fact, it got even better, if you can believe that. Just after she was fininshed eating supper I noticed she was going to poop and asked her if she needed to go to the bathroom. She started running toward the bathroom, and after a couple minutes of sitting there she actually pooped in the potty!

***

We've slightly adjusted our potty training approach today. Since Camille had been doing well we decided to take a risk and bring her to church this morning wearing her panties. We, of course, put pants on her as well. Instead of waiting for her to tell us she needed to go potty, we've been prompting her occasionally. She went potty before church and three times during church, and stayed dry through a luncheon after church and all the way home. When we got home she went potty, and she went again just before her nap at 1:30. She woke up from her nap at 3 completely dry again!

We've been out and about most of the day. We went to look at a minivan (which we are going to buy!) and she stayed dry. We're home now, and when I asked her if she needed to go potty she ansered "no."

She's wearing the same panties she put on this morning!!

We may ease up a bit on the prompting now that we're going to be home the rest of the afternoon/evening. I still want her to be able to recognize for herself when she needs to go, but it is very nice to know that we can be out and about without major accidents, so long as we take enough bathroom breaks.

We also talked to her preschool teacher this morning at church. It sounds like they are more than willing to work with potty training two-year-olds, so unless we have some major setbacks between now and Thursday I think we'll just plan on dropping her off in the morning with plenty of extra sets of clothes and hope for the best!

Did I mention she's stayed dry all day today? I'm simply beaming with pride!

I'll update later tonight to say how the rest of the day went. Right now I'm going to head outdoors into the 60 degree sunshine for some quality time with my two favorite people.


Day Three Concluding Thoughts:

We can do this. We can definitely do this!

Those diapers are not coming out of the closet until our new baby is ready for them! Now we just have to keep this up and eventually work on nighttime training. We ordered some semi-waterproof trainers that we will probably use for long car rides, and hopefully we can eventually use those for nigths.

But I'm so glad to know that this is do-able. Very do-able.

operation: no more diapers DAY ONE

**I've heard from several of you that I shouldn't be discouraged if this doesn't work, that she might just be too young. While I don't believe that 2 is too young to learn to use the potty, I am fully aware that timing is everything. I promise I won't be upset if this doesn't go as planned. But I am still confident that Camille can be successful. And if she's not successful, well I'm sure I'll love her just the same!


9:00 Woke Camille up, reminded her about today

9:05 We put her diapers in grocery bags and carried them downstairs to the closet

9:20 Breakfast - cereal with a sippy cup of orange juice (diluted with water)

9:24 Accident #1

10:20 Accident #2

10:56 Accident #3

11:13 Acted like she was going to poop, so we went to the potty. She peed.

11:25 Sippy cup of cranberry juice/water

11:40 Accident #4

11:55 Accident #5

12:25 Lunch - leftovers with a cup of milk

12:54 SUCCESS #1 - She walked right up to me and anxiously said, "Potty!" We hurried off to the bathroom and made it in time!

1:05-2:40 Nap time - Wet spot on her sheets (to be expected), and went potty when she got up.

2:45 False Alarm #1 - Camille told me she needed to go potty (even though she just went) but didn't.

2:50 Sippy cup of milk

3:43 Accident #6

5:00 Accident #7

5:40 Did the "potty dance" and my Dad asked if she needed to go potty. She did!

6:15 Dinner

6:50 Went potty before her bath, as usual.


Day One Concluding Thoughts:

Even though we only had one true "success," with Camille telling me she needed to go potty, I am still very encouraged by how our days went. Each time she had an accident I told her that it was OK, but that we put pee in the potty. Then we quickly walked to the bathroom and she peed on the potty again. So she's clearly stopping herself when she notices she's peeing on the floor and holds the rest until we get to the bathroom. And when she had the "success"? I sure praised the heck out of her!

operation: no more diapers

In just a few short minutes Camille will be waking up and putting on her big girl panties. I just can't believe this day has arrived. I know she's ready for this. Every time we sit her on the potty she pees. And for the past few days she's asked to wear her panties after her nap. I've been reminding her to tell us when she has to go potty. Sometimes she does, sometimes she doesn't.

But today (and for the next few days) we're biting the bullet and getting this over with.

My Plan of Attack:

• Together we will pack up her cloth diapers and "throw away" the few disposable diapers we have. We'll put the cloth diapers in the closet downstairs that currently has all of Tiny's things so that when Tiny is big enough he/she can use them.
• Camille will wear a shirt/sweatshirt, panties and socks. I've heard about people just letting their kids go naked from the waist down, but I don't want her needing to be naked in order to use the potty. If this isn't going to work with panties, then it isn't going to work for us right now.
• I won't automatically bring her to the potty at certain intervals, nor will I ask her if she has to go potty. She will have accidents (many, I'm prepared for), and I'll remind her that our pee and poop go in the potty. Eventually (or so I've read) she will learn to tell me when she needs to go.
• She will wear panties for nap time, but bedtime...Well, I still need to figure that one out. For now she'll probably wear a diaper at bedtime, but I'd like to get some cloth trainers that she can use at night.
• I'm going to offer Camille lots of water, milk and juice for the next few days (she normally only gets juice once per day) so that we have many learning opportunities.
• We will stay home. This is really going to be the hardest part for me. For my sanity, I really need to get out of the house at least once a day. Which is why I chose the weekend for potty training. Aaron and I can tag team tomorrow. I have my schedule freed up until next Wednesday, though I've heard that this can be done in three days.

The Short-Term Goal:
I told Camille yesterday that if she does a good job uisng the potty, and if she tells mommy she needs to use the potty, then she can wear panties to church on Sunday. She was pretty excited about that. I may regret that promise, but I really truly think she's ready for this!

The Long-Term Goal:
No more diapers!

If the daytime potty training goes as well as I expect it to, then I'm fully prepared to work on nighttime training soon.

Well, I've got a stack of big girl panties waiting for us, now I just need to wait for Camille to wake up. It's going to be a long day, but I'm confident that my little (nay, big) girl can do this!

I just heard her talking in the monitor. I guess it's time...

gone in a flash

Last year I could usually get Camille to sit still long enough for me to take a photo of her. Ok, maybe half the time. But she was a trooper and was able to entertain herself in a sitting position for at least a minute or two. You know, long enough for me to at least get a few shots that weren't blurry.

But these days it's a whole different ballgame. After several minutes of coaxing, including bribing her with mini M&M's leftover from this, I was finally able to get this one single, non-blurry, looking-at-the-camera shot.

And then...

...she was gone. Such is life these days!

Camille's birthday brunch this morning was a huge success! She loved all the dress-up items she was given, and especially loved the Little Tikes cozy coupe car Aaron's parents gave her. None of my photos of her with her gifts turned out (see above), so hopefully I can get some from her party guests and post them later.

When she gets up from her nap we're going to spend some time outside in the beautiful sunshiny weather. I seriously can't wait for spring, but I'll take the sunshine over clouds any day! It sure will be nice, though, when we can finally take some outdoor photos (you know, so I can use a much faster shutter-speed) sans winter apparel. I mean, I can only look at so many pictures of Camille outside in the snow with her pink coat.

P.S. Coming soon: More photos of Camille outside in the snow wearing her pink winter coat.

yes, that was my child

In case you happened to be at our church tonight for the Ash Wednesday dinner and service, yes, that was my child who...

• ate an entire piece of cake.
• picked up salt and pepper shakers off the tables and shook them the entire way to the kitchen counter as she "helped" put them away.
• was so enthusiastic about holding her friend Lyla's (a new walker) hand that she accidentally dragged her to the ground several times.
• went back and forth from baby Freddie to baby Kyle, rocking them in their carseats and kissing their feet and hands.
• was brought into the church service by her parents at the time she's usually being tucked into bed.
• announced during the service several times that her diaper was poopy, even though it wasn't.
• looked on with horror as her mommy recieved ashes on her forehead.
• completely freaked out when the pastor attempted to impose ashes on her own forehead.
• cried, "Noooooo! Nooooo! Nooooo" in reaction to the ashes as her mother recieved holy communion and walked calmly up the aisle and out of the sanctuary.
• buried her face in her mommy's shoulder, sobbing.
• looked up occasionally, only to again see the ashes on mommy's forehead and start crying again.
• wouldn't even watch as mommy went to the bathroom and washed the ashes off.
• begged to go home.
• commanded her daddy to wash the ashes "off" the moment she saw him.
• looked in horror after the servce at everyone who had ashes on their foreheads.
• breathed a sigh of relief when we got in the car.
• went to bed without so much as a peep.

It's going to be a long night, I'm sure. It always is when she's been up way past her bedtime. But at least I can plan ahead, and know I'll likely end up sleeping with her most of the night. I don't mind.

big girl bed update

Alternately titled: Could it really be this easy?


Camille has now spent four nights in her big girl bed - a full size mattress on the floor in her room. And I just have to wonder, could it really be this easy? I mean, seriously.

She crawls into bed.

I read her a Bible story and another story.

I turn off her light and turn on her music.

I lay down with her for all of 30 seconds.

I kiss her goodnight.

I leave.

And she stays in bed. All night. She's been waking up a bit earlier in the morning than usual. But she stays in bed until I come in (which is sometimes 20 or 30 minutes after she's woken up).

One of these days she's going to figure out that she can get out of bed. But in general I think she just really likes being in bed. She always liked her crib too, and never once attempted to escape.

Camille also loves playing on her big girl bed. She gathers all her bedtime things (Bunny Bear, blankie, green blanket, a baby doll or two, her sippy cup) and puts them all in bed.

And when she has them all arranged just so, she crawls into bed with them and delares, "Ni' night!"

Sometimes her boots go in bed with her.

Sometimes she leaves them on the floor.

So needless to say, the big girl bed is going well at our house. I know (I'm no dummy) that there will be challenges associated with not having her caged in a crib anymore. But for now I'm just completely impressed that this transition phase could go so smoothly.

What a kid!

i love you

Camille spontaniously said, "I love you" to her stuffed animals this morning as she was putting them down for their naps. Melt my heart! That's the first time she's said it without direct prompting. Not only that, but I think she said it about ten times!

0 to 7 in less than 2 years

My mom returned from Costco today with an absolutely adorable pair of shoes for Camille. I just can't believe that my little girl who once wore size zero shoes now fits comfortably into a size seven. Seven!

Thanks for the sweet shoes, Mom. Camille and I love them!

through daddy goggles: second haircut edition

Camille had her second haircut today. But I really can't be the one to tell you about it. You see, I wasn't even there. I was off getting a pedicure with my mom. Aaron was the one who took Camille on a daddy-daughter outing to Kids' Hair. But this much I do know: It went far better than her first haricut!

I should also add that it was Aaron who took all the photos. Pretty impressive, huh?

So without further ado I introduce to you through daddy goggles!

***

Camille wasn't to sure about getting into the big red chair.  It took very little coaxing though.  A chance to buckle into the chair? Oh and there may have been a sucker involved too.

When she got all settled in, she boldy proclaimed " I TALL!" Which definiantly got Holly, her stylist, to laugh.

Her very first braid! She never sits that still when we try to do her hair.

She practically stole the Mirror out of Holly's hands.

Camille and I had a great time. On the way home she ate a second sucker. Smart daddy that I am, I strategically chose the white cream soda flavored suckers for her so that we wouldn't end up with a colored sticky mess. Jenna was so proud that I had thought to do that!

***

Well, I guess that's that! I so love that Camille loves spending time with Aaron. And maybe, just maybe, I'm a little bit biased, but I think they make up a pretty good-looking team!

you see, I see

You see scribbles.

I see intentional lines and circles.

You see scribbles.

I see my mother's and my daughter's hands overlapping in love.

These days Camille loves coloring. Pens, pencils, crayons, markers, if it makes a mark she'll use it! Just in the past few days her coloring has gone from fast scribbling to slow, intentional markings on the paper. If you ask her to write her name, she'll make a mark and call it an m. Wondering what she's drawing? It's usually a baby. Her latest favorite thing to do? Having her hand traced or tracing yours.

It's so sweet.

bigger

Remember this photo? It's currently framed on Aaron's desk at work, right next to a clay imprint of her hand. Both are from when Camille was two months old.


Well, she's grown. At 22 months old, Camille now fills the laundry basket.



It's hard to believe that in exactly two months our little Camille will be two years old!

I've been doing some growing myself these days, I'm proud to say! My belly is getting bigger, my clothes are getting tighter, and getting comfortable in bed at night has become quite the chore. Aaron is happy, I'm sure, that I have yet to need the number of pillows I was using by the end of my last pregnancy! He's also glad we have a king size bed to accomodate said pillows.

Care to guess how many pillows I was using the night before Camille was born?

I have many other photos and stories to share with you from the past week, but alas, it is nap time. And I need a nap. So you'll just have to wait paitiently for another update either tonight or tomorrow!

practice makes perfect

A few days ago we got a dusting of snow and I realized it was finally time to give in and buy Camille snow boots. Do you know how much new snow boots cost? It's really quite ridiculous. So after scouring the aisles of Walmart and Target for decent snow boots at a decent price and coming up short, we made our way to the local children's consignment store. Well, they consign children's clothes. Not children.

We ended up finding a great pair of boots for Camille (for $6.50!) and headed home to try them out. She was a bit wobbly at first, but after a a little practice she was running around our snow-dusted yard in her snow suit and boots like a seasoned pro.

She had a great time playing with daddy and rolling in the snow!

And it's a good thing she had a chance to practice with a little snow. Because now, well, see for yourself...

But we don't mind having all this snow (which is said will be followed by some severely cold temperatures). We're heading to Florida soon!

blocks

I wasn't really paying attention when Camille started saying, "Blocks! Blocks!" Finally I looked to see what she was doing...


She had stacked her apple slices on her plate just like she stacks her alphabet blocks!

What a smart kid we've got!

progress

I must admit, when it comes to parenting I've been lucky enough to be relatively worry-free. Of course, that will probably change as Camille grows up and becomes more independent. But so far I've been really good about not worrying about her too much.

But I can't lie. I was beginning to be a little concerned about her fear of all things sticky. Even just yesterday I was considering seeking out a support group, or forming my own and calling it My Child is Afraid of Stickers. That's right folks, ask Camille if she wants a sticker to put on her shirt and you can be prepared for a meltdown.

But it's not just stickers. It's bandaids too. And not just bandaids on herself (luckily she's only ever needed them after she gets her vaccinations). If she notices a bandaid on someone she loves you can expect a look of complete and utter agony on her face. She instantly melts into a silent heap of empathy, times a thousand.

To us it can be kind of funny. To her it is no laughing matter.

This phobia extends to a few non-sticky things as well. That freckle on her knee? It used to make her so upset that it wouldn't wash off. Permenant marker on her arm? It irritated her beyond words for an entire day. She still becomes quite concerned when that mishap is mentioned. Compression lines around her ankles from her socks? Disrupted her usually-loved bathtime for a few days.

But today after lunch Camille noticed the sheet of stickers in the craft box. And she smiled. And she pointed. And I said, "Should we put stickers on some paper after lunch?" And nodded said yes.

Now, I'm not one to get my hopes up about things a lot of things. I don't like to be disappointed. But I have been thinking a lot lately about how to try to break her of these phobias. Stickers on paper? I thought. I was cautiously optimistic. So I got out the colored construction paper and the fat toddler crayons and set her and Isabel up at the table. I let them color for a few minutes, and then I asked about the stickers. They both wanted stickers. Ok. I showed the sheet of stickers to Isabel first and had her pick out two. Camille watched. Then I went over to Camille and told her to pick out two. She did.

So I peeled the first sticker off the sheet and offered it to her. She took it.

Camille has never willingly taken a sticker in her hand. Ever.

And she put it on her paper. Then I peeled the other off. She took it from me, but flinched a little bit about the stickiness of it. But she didn't freak out. She put it on her paper next to the first sticker.


She then proceeded to take the stickers off her paper, stick them to the kitchen table, put them back on her paper, and so on and so forth.

Amazing.

I'd say we've made some progress.

I offered to put one on her shirt. She nervously declined. Still, though. Progress.

I'm glad to have a little less to worry about tonight.