22 months

"hi shadow!"

Millie babe is a total sponge these days.
She mimics like crazy, especially when we're not noticing it.
The other day, she called her daddy, "Jeremy."
She can say her colors (red, yellow, blue, green, purple, white, black, brown. she doesn't like to say 'orange' and she says 'yuck' for pink),
numbers 1-15, letters a-e, animal names and the sounds they make.
She knows the names of all her aunts, uncles, cousins, little friends, and a few others, but don't expect her to say them in front of strangers
She says "pease" and "tanks" out loud now.
She also says phrases like, "love you" and "c'mon mommy" and "morning daddy" and "night night fishees" and "sthat?" (what's that?) and "pull... pants... up" (always the pause in between words).

The other day, she helped me bless breakfast:
"...Father... Thanks daddy... Thanks babies... Thanks food... Thanks everything... Pease bless food... Pease bless daddy... Pease bless goodday... Jesus... Christ, AMEN!"

When we cross the street, I ask, "Millie, are there any cars coming?"
She looks to one side, says "nope!"
I say, "what about the other side?"
She looks, and says, "nope... c'mon!"

While I was rocking her right before naptime today, she said, "sing the temple?" (we always sing 'I love to see the temple' at bedtime)-- I accepted.

She loves picking her leaves and giving the special ones away,
but she knows we leave them outside.
She's so outgoing, yet still so shy. She loves swings and slides.
She follows simple instructions and understands really well, like "please throw this away for me" and "do you need a diaper change?" and "time to brush your teeth"
She loves to call family members and leave messages for them.
She also knows when she is in trouble, like when she has a handful of wipes in her hands and gives me the guilty look and hands them all back to me.
She loves to read, and point things out, and find objects that match up in the book (like her hat, or whale)
She's getting so much better with sharing/trading.
She loves to give kisses.
Still teeny tiny and fits in her carrier carseat.
Let's you know when she is bored.
Can walk up and down stairs by herself (hand on the wall or railing, of course)
Always wants to sit on her potty, makes me leave, slams the door in my face (gotta have her privacy)
Loves pulling her rocking chair in to keep me company whilst I'm on the potty.
Has been playing on her own more often.
In 12 months clothing, size 3 diapers, size 5 shoes.

She sleeps from 8 pm to 9 am, regularly
and naps between 1-3, but these are dwindling too.
For breakfast, she either has an 'oatmeal day' (oatmeal + quinoa) or an 'egg day' (cherry tomatos, kale, egg, spinkle of cheese) with yogurt and a smoothie.
For lunch, she has a plate of broccoli and carrots, half an advocado, 3 large strawberries/5 cherry tomatoes, and a smoothie.
For dinner, she has lunch + bites of whatever we are eating.
My current smoothie recipe: 2 bananas, 1 orange, handful of strawberries, 2 large handfuls of kale, broccoli, carrots, chia seeds, 1 can of greek yougurt, 1 glassful of ice. (I can make this in my sleep).



She's just a mini adult, and I love her little spirit.
22 months. Can't believe there's only 2 months until she's 2.

march for the bodtchers

laughing so hard with papa, buzzing her new color book// I hit a wooden crate in the middle of the freeway on my way to work. the car is in the shop for 3 weeks and we're out a thousand dollars. thank goodness for Randy and Julie, for letting us borrow their car// feeding the ducks at Wheeler Farm// pretending to be a pro photographer!// we learned how to say "night night" and "moooorning!" to the fishies// so desperate to be in school and play with the big kids// Amelia and Bosten on a rainy day// walking through the Home Depot with Daddy, yet again.

a selfie we took to send to Daddy// another selfie, in bed// love her little face when she falls asleep with her mouth open// walking home from church// sometimes Daddy and Amelia send Mom pictures at work, too// practicing her somersaults// matching outfits, of course!// rare morning when I remind myself, "let them be little."

kissess for days// crossed legged in sacrament, "chey-ro, pease!"// what I walk into after every nap// matching jammies with Molly babe// trying to sneak some chips in after a Costco run// first grill of the season-- we're so excited for Spring!// my baby girl looks so tall, reaching for the door handle. she blew through size 12 months and is jumping right into 18 months!// Amelia is excited for our granite countertops (in the basement, of course).

a causal Sunday evening stretch with mom// still throwing full on tantrums over here. terrific twos coming up, ya know?// sometimes it's hard to explain "wrong mailbox" to the girl// Bosten & Amelia playing on the " 'iano"// love this sweet little babe of mine// March temple visit, luckily we have a cute Beehive who lives just right across the street// rushing home for all the little things-- brushing teeth, potty, jammies, "temple song," and of course the kiss & "love you"// Millie babe checking on our pizza.

keeping mom company in the potty... no privacy needed around here!// dusted off our porch swing... and it rained/snowed/hailed the very next day// all day long, Millie babe kept pointing to herself and saying "tookie!" I kept thinking she wanted a cookie, but later on I figured out she was pointing to the COOKIE on her shirt! oh my Millie, she really is a smart cookie!// watching Dad get his hair cut by Aunt Shauna; not loving all the extra noises!// Daddy and Millie out to the free, air conditioned zoo- Pet Smart, of course!// carrying her own church bag to sacrament, we're getting better and better at sitting through the whole meeting!// blessing day for Miss Hadley Mae... it seems like it was just last year we blessed her brother! oh wait... it was// huuuuuuuge bite of oatmeal.


I love my little family and my little life.
feeling so blessed for all that I have.

little things

Yesterday, while at my parents house:

Jeremy: Millie, are you ready to go home?
Millie: No!
Jeremy (trying to prove that Amelia says "no" to everything): Millie, do you want a cookie?
Millie (approaches Dad): Cookie? Cookie?!
Jeremy: Sorry, Daddy doesn't have a cookie... You usually say 'no'!
Me: Millie, can you say, "naughty daddy"?
Millie: NAUGHTY... DADDY. Cookie? Pease?


Be careful what you say around our babe, she's a sponge!
Love her little voice and love her loud personality.

s p r i n g

Let me share with you:

John 20: 11-17
But Mary stood without at the sepulchre weeping, and as she wept, she stooped down, and looked into the sepulchre,
And seeth two angels in white sitting, the one at the head and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain.
And they say unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? She saith unto them, Because they have taken away my Lord, and I know not where they have laid him.
And when she had thus said, she turned herself back, and saw Jesus standing, and knew not that it was Jesus.
Jesus saith unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? whom seekest thou? She, supposing him to be the gardener, saith unto him, Sir, if thou have borne him hence, tell me where thou hast laid him, and I will take him away.
Jesus saith unto her, Mary. She turned herself, and saith unto him, Rabboni, which is to say, Master.
Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father; but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God.

This is why I am so excited for Easter. This is why I am so excited for Springtime.
My heart is full.

wheeler farm

An afternoon at Wheeler Farm- I've been grateful for these sunny, warm days! This stage in toddlerhood has got to be my favorite: Amelia's independent in so many things, but she still wants our help when she's unsure, still wants to share with us all the joy she feels in life. We love simple little outings, and feeding ducks is probably a family favorite. The good thing about Wheeler Farm is Amelia can yell "buck buck" at the chicken, "mooooooooo!" at the cows, "horsey, NAY!" at the horses, "baaaaaaaa!!" at the goats. She didn't love that the geese were honking at us, demanding we feed them, ha! Love her, and love her daddy.

leaves

I got some good advice from a great mother recently: have fun and remember to smell the roses with your little one(s).

Life can get kind of crazy. I worked a full shift on Thursday night, and had to wake up as a mommy after 2 hours of sleep Friday morning when Jeremy went to work. e v e r y t h i n g  was getting under my skin. Amelia had a poopy diaper, the bag of diapers on our steps was full, our family room was tornadoed by toys, dishes in the sink, no smoothies in the fridge, no veggies stocked up for dinner. Finally, I yell at Amelia.

And then I broke down, got on my knees, and prayed. I prayed for the energy to be a good mother. I prayed for patience. I prayed for my working husband. I prayed for everything to be alright. and then I got up, inhaled a drop of orange oil, and everything was fine.

When the sun came out in the afternoon, Amelia and I took a walk around our neighborhood. She loves her leaves; she picks them out, one by one, and carries them in her other arm (we may need to get a little basket). Sometimes, her hands are too full to hold mine and that's okay. Because, she usually finds a way to organize her leaves, reach and ask, "hand?" We sit on the side-walk together, waiting for dad. She gives me lots of kisses, like she usually does. She lays her leaves down in a row and tries to count them before a gust of wind blew them away. She always gives me a leaf, and that melts me.

I can't explain why little moments like this mean so much to me. Sometimes, being a mom can really hard, and sometimes I'm not very patient. I try to remember that she won't always need me, she won't always fit on my hip, she won't always tug at my leg. I try my very hardest.

And I am most definitely blessed.