baby in my tummy

Vivian is holding the Willy Wonka DVD case, and putting it under her shirt. She then announces, "I have a baby in my tummy" and instructs her sister to "get the knife". Sophie then announces, "I'm putting the needle in your back, and shhhhhhk, OK! I've got your baby out, ma'am." Now they are spinning on an office chair, and Sophie is asking if the baby is crying from spinning too fast (Vivian is now holding the DVD case in her hand).

Potty!!!

Well, on Monday May 26, Vivian sat down on her little potty and did pee-pee! It was very exciting and we all went into the bathroom and clapped and shouted hooray!

A month ago, she kept pulling the potty books off the shelf. Then she began taking off her diaper at random times. Perhaps she will just ease into it naturally and I won't have to push it. Sophie didn't decide to use the potty exclusively until 2.5YO and Vivian is still not 2 til Friday.

Also, she is counting very well, and adding new songs to her repertoire daily. She now likes to sing a song from Miss Spider - "Buh-buh-buh-buh-buh, Butterflies, . . ."
Her little pot belly has seemed to disappear just this week and she is talking so well now. Her babyhood is quickly fading.

Yuh-yah mama

Vivian is quite the talker these days. She weighs 32.8 lbs to Sophie's 37.8. She has begun telling me she loves me, and tonite, she told me exactly which book she wanted to read. The Snail and the Whale (and the Tail) she said.
Read book, Mama, Snail, ayuh Whale.

She has been telling me every day she wants Daddy (he's been gone during the past 3 work weeks)

Today, I was so mad I could have spit nails. Vivian got a diaper out of the trash, luckily it was only a pee diaper, and she must have whirled it like a lasso over her head, b/c the little swollen up granules that absorb the liquid were everywhere in the living room - on the hearth, the wood stove, and all over the carpet. The diaper that was left was just like an empty shell. It took me 10-15 min to clean it all up and I had Vivian sit on time out for the entire time it took me to clean up.
She said, "Thank you, mama" repeatedly, and when I told her she is never to take anything out the trash, especially diapers, she said, "I understand, Mama" (though not that clearly)
She knew she was in big, big trouble and did not give me any problems while she sat on the step for time out while I cleaned up.

We did our 2nd week of music class today, and she is doing very very well. She already knows the songs and actively participates. I can't help but notice that she seems like the only child in there who is actually mimicking the teacher. The other kids may be a bit young yet, but Vivian is very interested in what the teacher is doing and goes right up to her and interacts with her. It helps that we listen to the cd at home. On one song, there are different motions to do, like crawl, jump, tiptoe, skip and vivian favors the tiptoe (teep-toh)
She directs me, when I sing it:
She puts her hand up and says "Stop! Mama!" No, no, no, no
"Teep-toh, mama, teep-toh"
"Keep, keep" (skip) is another one she tells me to do for that song.

appow, wayo and more

The talking thing is just taking off - every day new phrases pop up here and there, much to my surprise.
Yesterday, we were at the playground and she said, My Turn!
When we were playing "monster" (I chase them up the stairs to their bath, then they run to Sophie's room and hide under the bed and I reach under the bed and grab them), when we were done, and I turned on the light, Vivian said "Again!"

She loves tea and wants me to make her a cup of tea each day. She is a real spitfire though. I have to watch her very carefully. I gave the girls a bowl of grapes in the family room, and after 20 minutes, the grapes were smashed on the floor. Sophie never did that kind of stuff. I can not leave Vivian alone with any type of food or drink or it becomes a toy.

When she has done something bad, she runs up to me and says, "Hi Mom!" with a big bright smile. She loves pens and we did not really have any writing on the wall incidents, but Vivian will be another story all together. She comes to my office and takes pens and scribbles in my notebooks. She has just figured out how to click a pen.

She is very very territorial with other kids, either at our house or out. She doesn't like anyone coming up to me. She runs up to other kids and postures, for no reason, taking anything she may be holding and holding it away, with a mean scowl, and proclaiming, "Mine!"

When she doesn't want to do something, she says, "I don't wannee ______"
I told her to say Hello to someone.
Her response: I don't WANNEE HI!

Appow is apple
Wayo is water

Crawled out of crib

This is a picture of when Vivian crawled out of her
crib and got in her rocking chair. She LOVES reading
stories in the chair. She was crying and crying, then suddenly she was quiet. When I went to check on her, I found this.

Yay-eee

In the last week, Vivian has begun using "Yay-eee" for Yes. When you ask her a question, like if she wants something, she answers "Yaya". She LOVES to talk and many times babbles sentences with intonations, etc. but we still can't understand these monologues. However, we can understand much of what she says - one word and 2 words strung together.

Baby - Mama - Daddy - Sister - Bubbles - YumYum - Star (staw) - Moo - Woof-woof -

She also goes to the fridge, and when it is opened, pulls the bottle of juice off the shelf and hands it to me to let me know she wants a drink. She is fiercely protective and jealous of Mommy, and when Sophie and I cuddle or hug, or when Sophie wants to sit on my lap, Vivian becomes very disturbed.

She is doing rather well in her big-girl bed. She's been in it for 2 weeks now. She can now climb up into the kitchen chair by herself. She reaches up onto counters and pulls anything off. She is so tall she can reach almost anything.

She also likes to get a laugh, so when she sees a picture of Santa, she says HO HO HO, then looks at you to see if she made you laugh!

Bye Bye Cribby

Vivian did not want to go to sleep last night. For the past week, she has been having a complete hysterical fit when we put her in her crib. She starts hopping and jumping up and down in her crib while screaming.
Last night, Daddy heard a loud thump then went up to her room to find her sitting in her rocking chair with a book in the dark.

This shall be the end of the crib. Thank goodness we already have the bunkbeds!

She also asked very clearly yesterday "What's that?" and loves to say "I dunwannit".

Maa-aaah

It has finally started. Talking back to the TV. When they say on Dora, "Say Map!" Vivian says, "Maa-aah!"
She can totally hop getting both feet off the ground, very well. She officially loves the Disney Princesses and now chases me around the house with the Cinderella book. She actually sits while I read it as well, and I don't remember Sophie sitting thru long passages of reading very well. Sophie just liked short dialogue and wanted pictures and turning the pages.