Aggravation.

Our new camera's photos do not always show up on her website to a degree worthy of satisfying me.  I'll share them here instead, if that's the case ever again.  Make sure you click on them to enlarge them though.  Otherwise, it's just disappointing.

Pizza delivery, so very P.C.

After prolonging the inevitable tonight, we ended up ordering pizza.  The doorbell rang and Bailey knew that meant someone was there and perhaps a chance to sneak a peek outside.  Mommy beat her to it though, and she was okay with that until the door closed on its own and she couldn't see Mommy anymore.  Everything was much better though when Mommy reappeared....along with PIZZA.  That warranted a huge clap and "YAY" from the BaileyBug.  She was the happiest child in the world.  And at that moment, I swore I heard her say, "pizza," only it sounded like, "pees-see," or even, "P.C."

My ears were not mistaken.  I was not experiencing delusions again.  She really did say it, because she said it a couple more times after that.  We knew she was working on the word, but oh yes, she most definitely knows that word, even if it is pronounced a bit differently than we're all used to.

What's really humorous?  When she sees a photo of a pizza on a flash card, she ALWAYS calls it "cake," because the triangle pieces look like cake pieces.  But she sees a pizza box?  Suddenly it's actually pizza.  It's astonishing how that works.

Our daughter is going to be the most P.C. child out there.

 

Something New

Our new baby arrived yesterday.  We're proud parents of a Nikon D50.  It will take some adjusting to get used to this new challenge.

 

But we're up for it.

Out and About

Almost every Tuesday, Bailey and I venture out and take Daddy for lunch and then ditch him for an afternoon swim.  Today, was just like the typical Tuesday in that aspect.  Bailey kept me entertained during the drive by playing with this fleece hat of hers.  It's the funniest hat.  I bought it at Old Navy and it has all of these flowers growing out of the top.  I need to get pictures of her wearing it.  It's TOO funny.

Anyway, we're driving and Bailey takes this hat and puts it on her head a million different ways, including covering her whole face.  I couldn't help but watch her from the mirror and laugh.  Unfortunately, I had no way to get a photo of it, but some moments are just worth experiencing.

We made it safely to Daddy's office and Bailey decided she didn't want lunch.  As usual though, she was quite sad when we left him at the office.  She hates that part, she really does.  Then suddenly, she started acting sleepy, which I wasn't understanding, but I thought I should find a way to distract this, so I pulled off to go to a Target.  In the time it took to get on that exit and to the parking lot, she was out cold and snoring, and loudly too.  (This happened yesterday too, in a Kohl's, and people couldn't help but stare at this tiny body snoring ever so loudly.)

After enough attempts, I woke her up, which probably wasn't the wisest decision, because then she didn't want to let me do any shopping (which Daddy would probably appreciate).  He's taught her well!  At least she was awake though...

On our way to the Y, we stopped in at Toys 'R Us because they're having some awesome sale this week.  Lisa, the Leapfrog books are Buy 1, Get 1 Free, in case you didn't know.  I found two that Bailey will hopefully like, the Busy Baby one and World Animals.  They're both full of photos of real life objects and animals, so she'll love them; hopefully.  The Crayola Mess-Free stuff was a buy 1, get 1 free deal too!  YAY!

After buying too much stuff, some of which she won't see again for several months, we finally made it to the Y, which is quite possibly her most favorite place in theworld.  She was mesmerized by this three-year-old swimming and splashing.  Bailey was in a fit of giggles because of this kid.

On our way out, she spotted the fresh fruit for sale and demanded a banana.  Okay, so she didn't "demand it," but it sounded better.  Heh.  Let's put it this way, she wanted a banana.  We put in our 50 cents and Bailey was a bundle of excitement.  I guess she was regretting her decision to not eat lunch.  In the car, she instantly was through with that HUGE banana.  The child must have been starving.

 

Something that's always beautiful to my ears, is just how adorable and perfect she is.  Everywhere we go, I get the pleasure of listening to people comment on MY child.  Of course, luckily, I miss the comments when they're saying, "Wow, I'm glad that's not my child yelling," or "People should control their children."  Heh, all of us say it too.

 

Something you're born with...

We were at the table eating, and it seemed that Bailey was wanting Daddy's Mountain Dew.  I said, "How does she even know what that junk is?"  Daddy replied, "All children are born with the knowledge of what Mountain Dew is."

In reality, Bailey actually was pointing to the stickers.  Daddy was in the chair Bailey sits in to use her stickers and she decided she'd rather play with those, than eat, or even let us eat.

Shoe Shopping

Somehow, our adventures took us to Payless Sunday afternoon (yeah, yeah, cheap shoes).  Mommy wanted some black shoes and Bailey needed some too.  Shoes were immediately found for Bailey, but of course, it's never just that easy for a Mommy.  So, Mommy was trying different pairs on and Bailey decided to help.  She had no problems picking out a box off of the shelf and removing it.  None of the shoes she picked out  quite fit her though, and definitely weren't suitable for her mother.

While getting ready to check out, Bailey spotted some beads.  How does she always see these things?  The child absolutely adores beaded necklaces.  She just can't get enough of her accessories. 

We had dinner at Fazoli's and the chocolate torte for dessert.  Bailey took a HUGE bite and thought it was funny to keep her mouth open and show it off to everyone.  It was one of those things that was disgusting, yet you wanted to laugh too, so much so that you're fighting back spitting out your soda you're drinking.

....That's all.

The Wet Spot

This was actually meant to be mentioned yesterday, since yesterday morning I woke up in a wet spot.  Now, don't go getting your head in a gutter.  It was a really long night full of a ton of sleepless episodes and at some point, Bailey had crawled into bed with me.  I also remember the trouble we were having at 3 am with her as she was running around wide awake and picking at her diaper. 

 

So, I wake up and Bailey's beside me, along with a huge wet area.  I immediately took her sleeper off of her to examine the culprit and that diaper she'd been messing with?  Yeah, she had pulled one of the sides apart, so it wasn't holding in anything.  That was fun.

 

Don't worry, I won't yell at you for laughing.

Potty-Training Progress!!!

So, we have this potty chair...

 

Every now and then, Bailey actually looks at the potty chair.

 

Today, do you know what Bailey did with the potty chair?

 

Good guess.

 

No.

 

She spent a while pushing it around the house, just pushing it all throughout the house, and then brought it back to the bathroom door.  She then knocked on the door (it's kept closed with good reason).

 

Isn't it wonderful to know just how well the potty-training is going?

 

....We haven't even begun.

Yesterday's Love

So many things to mention...

 

If little people stand on a laundry basket, they can reach the DVDs above the television.  We tried it yesterday and it proved to be very successful.

 

Spinning dreidels is SO cool.  To go along with our future Jewish traditions (Daddy said we're going to pick a new religion each year) Bailey found this dreidel Mommy had in her holiday supplies and Daddy started spinning it for her Monday night.  Bailey would say "wow" each time in this wonderful way.  It would start out almost quiet and in a whisper as though it takes her breath away.  Understandable.  Dreidels are awesome.

 

After enough people asking my child to "high 5" and her giving them a blank stare, I finally broke down and taught it to her yesterday evening.  I've been holding out.  Well, she appreciated the lesson and instantly now loves it, just like the majority of drunk fraternity boys.  It's even better than clapping so she has to put her hand to yours a lot because the sound is cool.

 

Our romantic Valentine's plan included getting up at before 5am (which was previously mentioned), finally crashing at 8am, making cheesecake, meeting Daddy for lunch and bringing treats to his work, stealing a lollipop from Daddy's work, eating Mommy's bread from her sandwich, sleeping for a few minutes on the way to the Y, shopping in Target and finding a fabulous new hat, shaking sprinkles like a maraca, discovered the digital camera mysteriously broken (oops), going swimming for a short amount of time, driving home, making valentines with stickers and crayons and ink pens (oh my!), and loving balloons with all her heart.

 

I bought Bailey two mylar balloons that are heart shaped and she's a balloon fanatic, as most people know (as most kids are) and her new game she invented just yesterday is to have you reach the balloon string for her and she holds onto it just long enough to let go so she can say "whoops" or "uh oh" and have you retrieve it for her all over again.  By night fall, she revised the game and instead, likes to be picked up so she can reach it, be set down, and let go again.  It's great fun!

 

As for a Valentine for our funny Valentine, I opted to stray from the ever-original stuffed animal route (no offense) and Bailey received other things.  I'll share those soon.

 

 

A Valentine especially for us

Bailey was very creative in coming up with a Valentine gift especially for her parents.  This morning, she woke up bright an early far before even 5 am and crawled on them, cheered, pinched, and chanted.  And since they were up, she'd always gladly take some yogurt.

 

Since it's 7:22 a.m. now, don't expect her to go back to sleep any time soon...

Where to hide the bodies?

So, Daddy asked Mommy tonight who taught Bailey to hide the bodies in the trunk.  It was a logical question considering lately she likes to stuff her stuffed animals in the hidden storage compartment in her wagon.

 

...She's definitely her mother's child.

Mental Pictures

Daddy was mad at Mommy Friday night because the camera batteries were dead.  While Mommy was out with Brooke eating Italian, Bailey was dressing up Aerial in clothing; all the while, wearing Mommy's swimsuit top.  Plans were foiled again when Daddy hadn't realized that not only the batteries were dead to capture this shot, but the spares were nowhere to be found.  (They were still in the BaileyBag from last Saturday's Sesame Street outing.)

 

It is a mighty funny visual though about the cat and the swimsuit.

Shut Out

If you want to have a lot of fun, watch a child try and try with all their might to open drawers and doors that can't be opened.  It's the most hilarious struggle as they pull so hard they end up having to let go and fall.

 

...Okay...it's only fun for the twisted.

Hiding Bodies

When hiding bodies, it's best to make sure they're not still moving.

 

Somehow, the cat ended up in the hutch tonight.  Fingers and paws are being pointed towards Bailey.  It was slightly humorous witnessing paws trying to open the hutch doors from the inside and hearing faint little meows.  Bailey got the most laughs out of the ordeal.  Aerial had none.

 

 

No one was laughing later when Bailey found a pen to poke her nose with. It was brief, but bloody. Mommy was a little more than freaked out especially since she's already working on a limited capacity due to just having had her wisdom teeth removed the day prior.  It only initially fazed Bailey, regardless of the continuous bleeding.  She was having a fit of giggles (okay, some laughing did occur, but only from Bailey) as Mommy was trying to clean up her face and stop the fountain of red.  Bailey didn't really notice.  However, Mommy is still recovering.

 

Who knew parenthood was so adventurous?

Sweeping the Clouds Away

We found our way to Sesame Street today.  Bailey slept until two minutes before the show actually started.  Perfect timing.  She awoke a little distraught, but interested.  Then the lights went out (and not in Georgia) and then came Bert and Ernie.  Suddenly, she was excited, sitting in her fourth row on Daddy's lap.  Her facial expressions changed and she immediately got into the production. 

 

But when Cookie Monster came out, now that was when the big smiles really took over.  She wanted him the entire show.  He was the ONLY thing she wanted.  Unfortunately, she couldn't have him as a souvenir. Anytime he'd make an appearance, she'd lunge forward in Daddy's arms, standing on his lap, trying to go after him.  A couple times, she even offered him her cookies from afar (cookies for Bailey are biter biscuits and wagon wheels).

 

She clapped and she sang.  When they did an alternative to Old MacDonald Had a Farm (Old MacDonald had a lunch) she said, "cow."  She did her "E-I-E-I-O" too.  She yelled "YAY" and she did her "oooh" comments.  She may have even said "wow" once or twice.  She behaved so marvelously.  We knew she'd enjoy herself, but we had no idea she would to this extreme.  It was such a splendid experience sitting next to this bundle of amazement.

 

We saw Cookie Monster do the river dance with sheep in kilts, and we heard a new version of "I Need a Hero," a song she loves from Shrek 2.  She loved the lights during "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" and she liked the various kinds of light sticks the children around us had.  And she really liked Lady K, at least she seemed to.  She said "K" a lot after that.

 

Never would we have expected her to sit through the fifteen minute intermission peacefully and still, but she pretty much did just that.  She stood on the floor between our feet and moved a bit, but she didn't try to stray, which is unusual indeed.  She saw the Elmo balloons (which cost $8.00).  We expected to be suckered into purchasing one, like every other parent in the audience.  But, the opposite occurred.  She never requested one.  She just observed.  Her eyes lived vicariously through the other children, and never asked for one.  She didn't even say "balloon" or "what's that?" to any of the over-priced commercialized products.  She just ate her snacks with class and took everything in.  She was quite possibly the best-behaved child there.

 

I almost feel guilty for not buying her anything there, but the only thing she truly wanted was Cookie Monster, the live version, and we couldn't get her that.  The experience was memorable.  It was serene.

The Fifth

Daddy had the Fifth Element on (it was on TNT, so he was claiming it was the annoyingly edited version) and there's this big action sequence with guns and fighting (yeah, I'm really ruining it for you).  Our daughter, who was running about the living room halts in order to clap at the television screen.  "YAY!"

 

It was a little disconcerting to hear from her father as this movie was going on, "Hey, this is Bailey's favorite part."  Apparently, while I'm out, they watch this movie together.

Learning parenting skills early

Bailey's learning how to handle a baby quite well.  She has her doll right now and she holds her baby by her neck or ears.

 

And when she's not doing that, she's trying to throw her at us or shove her into a couch crevice.

 

She's going to make a fine babysitter some day.

A kink in the routine

Bailey, nor her Mommy, likes change very much.  Today, while at the Y, our swimming ritual was different because the family dressing rooms were occupied, therefore, we had to use the regular changing area.  This confused Bailey tremendously, because we walk through the women's locker room to the pool area and then go to our family room to change, at least normally we do.  So, then we had to go back to the locker room.  When Bailey enters the locker room from the pool, this typically means we're exiting, so she knows exactly the path to get to the door.  Well, we turn instead and get dressed and I tell her, "let's go to swim."  Well, in the locker room, she's used to then going to the exit door, not the pool.  It was difficult to explain to her we needed to go the other way.  With hands full of our luggage, I scooped her up and dragged her kicking body to the right door.

 

We got out the pool and she was angry that we weren't going into the family changing room.  She then threw herself down on the pavement to exhibit that frustration.  Luckily, my hands were full.  So, I throw our stuff down in a fury and try to be patient with her and lead her to the pool.  For the first time ever, she was throwing a fit and yelling as we were going into the water.  Our audience probably thought she hated the water.  Oh no, that's not it at all.

 

Finally, she started to adjust and we spent some time in the water.  She observed the other children, and even tried swimming with her arms.  She was doing fabulous, and then suddenly, she was ready to go.  And so the fit-throwing begins again.

 

Well, right as we're gathering a billions of belongings, another family steals our changing room, so back to the women's locker room we go.  Bailey was NOT a happy camper about this.  In fact, she decided if we can't go into the changing room, she wants to go to the exercise floor.  She then started throwing a massive fit again, and of course, my arms were full.  This was embarrassing for me, mostly, because I had to bend over in my wet swimsuit in front of a pool side of viewers to grab my temperamental vixen.

 

Kicking and screaming AGAIN, we go into the locker room and to our stall to change, the stall with a changing table.  She didn't mind that stall the first time because it flushes (and she proved it eight times before) and flushed it this time too.  She also wanted to crawl under the door.  She found a green bead.  How does she see these things?  I ended up taking it from her and putting it in the toilet, which she was willing to go after, until I flushed it.

 

Okay, so we get dressed, which took forever, and headed out.  Normally, she's great at finding our doors either direction.  Today, our routine was different, so she wanted to go to the pool doors.  I finally redirected the correct way and we left.

 

Then she threw a fit for part of the journey home, but at least then, she wasn't kicking on the pavement, and I wasn't in a wet swimsuit.

An Efficient Method

Bailey and I headed out around 11:30 today and dropped off a cake at Daddy's office.  (Mommy had made it, Daddy forgot to take it, and Mommy didn't want to be tempted to eat it).

We then took Daddy out for lunch where Bailey showed off and made faces and ate Mommy's bread.  She has been really giggly and full of smiles today.  I love that.  Everybody loves that.

After buying a much-needed humidifier at Target and some water-friendly balls for the pool, Bailey and I went swimming at the Y.  We try to do this at least twice a week and I wish I could take photos for you, but that's just not going to happen.  She has such a fabulous time though, giggling, splashing, and attempting to swim.

On the way home, swimming must have brought out the child's appetite.  She had already eaten a biter biscuit, and thought she needed another one too.  It was still in its wrapper, but that didn't stop her.  I was watching her from the mirror as she was trying to use her teeth.  I tried reaching back to take it from her and open it myself, but avoidance was pretty easy on her part.  She got the package opened successfully, all on her own, and chowed down on that.  I am constantly impressed by her persistence.

 About four minutes from our house, she fell asleep and stayed that way for a really long time.  She missed a fantastic opportunity to go play outside, which was sort of disappointing to me, since the weather was so lovely.

But there's always another beautiful day...

HOUSTON! We have pictures!

Okay, so after waiting impatiently for 14 business days, I finally called JCPenney's to ask where my online images were.  (You can pay extra to have the pictures e-mailed to you so you can share them online legally.)

The call produced results, so check them out.

 

That was a teaser.  You'll have to see the rest of them on her site.