"O" and "F"

Santa brought Boo a set of alphabet refrigerator magnets for Christmas (well, actually two, you can't spell "Boo" without two "O"s, or Boo's real name without two other letters). She likes moving them around. We sometimes spell out "B-I-N-G-O" and sing the song. Daddy spelled out the whole alphabet last night (after Boo had some of the aforementioned ice cream and was completely hopped up). They went through it several times. Last night, she could identify "O". This morning, she pulled both the the "F"s off the refrigerator and properly identified them as "F. One, Two, F". Letters and counting. Pretty good morning.

15 Months

I've had cravings with both Boo and R2. Things that taste good and that I like to eat. I'm enjoying some canned pineapple right now. But, I haven't had the kind of get-me-creamed-corn-right-now-or-somebody-dies kind of craving that other moms talk about. I haven't even had the honey-will-you-please-stop-what-you're-doing-and-go-get-me kind of craving. During Boo's construction, I think Daddy was a little disappointed about that. He knew that was his job, it was what-Daddys-do. I would sometimes say "hmmm, I'm kind of feeling like..." and he would say "I'll go get that!", but I would respond, "no, it's not that important."

Last night I wanted ice cream. Boo watched a Dora all about chasing an ice cream truck. Daddy said "ice cream sounds good." Then Boo went to bed and Daddy and I watched a movie. In the first few minutes, they had popsicles, although at first I thought they were having Drumsticks. I started thinking about vanilla drumsticks with caramel centers dipped in chocolate and peanuts. I was distracted. About 45 minutes into the movie, there was a 5 minute discussion about ice cream. I had to push pause and ask Daddy to go to the store. He did very well. Reese's Peanut Butter Cup ice cream, chocolate and caramel syrup, and whipped cream.

So, after fifteen months of pregnancy, Daddy was finally called upon to fulfill his duty and gets an A+ for the results.

Starry Skies

R2's room, currently the Book Room to Boo, has glow-in-the-dark stars on the ceiling leftover from the last owners. Boo discovered them not long ago and was really fascinated. So, Daddy bought a package for her room. Today while Mama was out having girltime, they hung up the stars together. Daddy got on the stepstool and Boo handed him stars one at a time from her bed. Tonight we all went and looked at her stars before she went to sleep.

Hot Mama

New haircut. I am much, much happier with this than the long hair!

R2 update from BabyCenter.com

This week your baby weighs almost 2 pounds and is about 14.4 inches long with his legs extended. He can now open and close his eyes, and he sleeps and wakes at regular intervals. He may suck his fingers. Chalk up any rhythmic movement you may be feeling to a case of baby hiccups, which may be common from now on. With more brain tissue developing, your baby's brain is very active now. Wonder what he's thinking?

The nerve pathways in his ears are developing, which means his response to sounds is growing more consistent. His lungs are developing now, too, as he continues to take small breaths of amniotic fluid — good practice for when he's born and takes that first breath of air. His testicles are beginning to descend into his scrotum — a trip that will take about two to three days.

Recovery

Boo went back to her daytime family yesterday. She walked right up to her daytime Mama and gave her cuddles and kisses. I was very happy that she feels so comfortable and loved at her daytime home. I was also a teeny bit jealous.

Mama went back to work and has been busy trying to catch up.

Daytime Mama has decided that Boo needs to be potty trained before R2 is born. Last week we tried Pull-Ups. Boo loved them. She was very goal oriented about the "Potty Candy", but she hasn't earned much of it yet. Then when she was sick, she didn't want to sit on the potty and I didn't make her. Yesterday Daytime Mama decided she needed panties to give her more immediate cause-and-effect. So, we're working on that. It's exciting, and a little challenging for all. I'll take advice from any parent who is willing to offer it on how to succeed at this new job! Right now, Boo wants to sit on the potty for 20 + minutes and do everything except go potty (sing songs, count her toes, play with the lid, etc.).

Boo's appetite has not quite recovered from her illness, and she's still on antibiotics until tomorrow. Last night I bribed her to eat two bites of dinner by promising her medicine if she did. That tactic probably won't work for very long, unless she takes after her Mama, who also likes medicine.

Through the illness and recovery, Boo and I have spent a lot of time singing songs. I've tried to come up with new songs to sing. She likes ones with series of sounds, like "Ooh eee, ooh ahh ahh, ting tang, walla walla bing bang" from the Witch Doctor. Yesterday I sang her "Ay ay carumba", which she loved and sings "yai yai yai yai yai Bampa"! I also sang her "Zippity Doo Da" and after me singing one or two times, she sang "Zippity do da, zippity ay. Sunshine. Birdy. Doggy." I thought that was pretty good memory!

Speaking of memory, a couple of days ago Boo broke a piece off the dishwasher. I didn't have time to put it back, so I told her we would have Daddy fix it when he got home. Two hours later, when Daddy did get home, Boo walked right up to him and said "Daddy fix dishwasher." We can't get much past her.

Boo and Daddy are home now, so I'm going to collect my hugs and kisses from both.

And, of course:

Thanks Gigi for the new monkey shirt. It's already a favorite!

Boo visits the library

We are tired of being in the house. Boo takes her new purse everywhere. It is just the right size for her noisemakers.

Ear Infection

Boo is home for a few days with an ear infection and temperature. She's enjoying napping on Mama's pillow, but not without her entourage: Mousy Mousy, GigiBear, Baby and New Baby.

There are three main "Babies", which are alternately Baby, New Baby and Mama Baby. Which one is which depends on which one she finds first at any particular time.

We are catching up on some important block building, watching Dora, and napping a lot.

The Name Game II

We are back at square one.

Nothing on the old list seems quite right. So, we're taking submissions again. And, we're abandoning the rules. If you've got names you like, post them here. If you've already suggested them, that's OK, you can suggest again. If it was on the old list, that's OK too. We might still choose one of those. We're just not sure.

The only "rule" left is that your submissions should still be anonymous. We don't want to add in the math of weighing whether 1 grandparent + 2 friends should get more weight than 2 aunts + a business colleage.

Here we go again...

Lunchtime math failure

Mama is not very good at math. Most of you know that already.

Maybe if Sensei Rhonda had taught Mama math, she would be better. Unfortunately, Sensei Rhonda was still pushing kids off of the playground merry-go-round when Mama was learning math. Mama, on the other hand, was standing pathetically next to the merry-go-round waiting for some kid to notice her and slow it down so she could get on. If that happened, then Mama made up rules for all the children on the merry-go-round that would somehow magically add up to her always being in the middle (the oldest, alphabetically, most letters in your name, least letters in your name, most French sounding middle name, whatever it took). Then the other kids would either go play tag on the slide without Mama, or, if Sensei Rhonda was around, she would just push Mama off the merry-go-round and get on with it. For anyone who thinks that maybe a "but, I digress" is appropriate here, remember that Mama learned how to tell a story from Drama, and you're pretty lucky to get only one digression!

Anyway, in math, the rule of transitive relations says that if a = b and b = c, then a = c (no, I didn't remember the name of the rule of transitive relations, I looked it up using Google and Wikipedia. Mama is good at research).

Transitive relations apparently doesn't apply to lunch.

• Root beer and steak sandwich = Yummy.
• Steak sandwich and grapefruit = Yummy.
• Root beer and grapefruit = NOT YUMMY.

Fortunately, Root beer and cookies = Yummy, so I had my sandwich and fruit and now am enjoying a fine root beer. Henry's. And cookies. R2 is happy.

Thanks to Daddy for grilling steak for Valentines Day!

And, yes, there will be more pictures this weekend.

The Next American Idol?

Boo is singing more and more every day. There's "Bus", of course, and "B-I-N-G-O". Now she's added the alphabet and "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star." The confusing thing is that the alphabet and Twinkle both have the same tune. I only discovered that a couple of years ago. Boo seems to have discovered it right away. So, she tends to blend them together, plus a few other fun tidbits, into something that sounds like:

Winkle, winkle Simon Says
How I wonda R S T
Now I know my
H I J K LaninOP

Winkle, winkle i-ll star
A B C
Next time won't you sing a' me

The song can wrap around on itself several times depending on where she ends up in the alphabet at any given time. So, it can make for several minutes of self-amusement in the car.

Stage 3 Waddle

Pregnancy seems to have 4 stages of waddle:

1. No waddle, unless you're one of the moms who starts acting pregnant approximately 18 seconds after conception.
2. Periodic waddle, especially near potty time.
3. If you really think about it, you can walk without a waddle.
4. Forget it.

I have reached stage 3.

Alphabet video finally up!

Go here

100 Days!

Aunt BSU just emailed me that R2 is due to arrive in 100 days!

Oosje & Bampa's House

Before Lil's party, Boo & Co. went to Oosje & Bampa's house. There were two main priorities on this trip. First, Boo needed to experience real snow, not the wimpy Rainy State version. Second, Oosje needed a new computer. BADLY. Unfortunately, priority #2 kept Mama from real-time blogging. So, here's the itinerary:

Friday:

Daddy went golfing and photojournaling with Bampa and Beppy.

Boo played in the snow and helped Oosje in the kitchen. Mama needs to invest in a stepstool, which is now one of Boo's favorite things.

Boo also played with Oosje's light table and read lots of books.

Saturday:

Boo's first sledding experience. As usual, the only word to describe her was fearless. At first she went with a grown-up, but soon she was carrying her sled up the hill and coming down all by herself, then saying "Do it again!"

Sunday:

Lil's Birthday party! Boo liked the singing, the presents, and the ice cream!

Lil' liked the cake, too.

Mobile Blogging Failure

This was my first attempt at a mobile blog. We arrived in BroncoLand for Lil's birthday party and one of the first things we saw was a license plate that said "Hi Boo". We were behind it for several blocks but hit every green light (how often do you wish for just one red light?). Then, much to everyone's dismay, it turned into Del Taco.

Mama was dismayed because the chance for a better photo was lost. Daddy was dismayed because he didn't know there were Del Tacos in BroncoLand and he had already been instructed to go three blocks further to Mama's favorite Bronco sandwich shop, Cobby's.

Daddy did end up with a Combo Burrito and two Chicken Soft Tacos on Sunday afternoon before leaving BroncoLand, so not all was lost. And, Daddy got a Cobby's punch card, so next time we visit Family BSU, Mama gets to go back.

Happy Birthday Lil' Eleven

Lil' Eleven is One Year Old!!!

Boo has been practicing singing "Happy Birthday" for weeks. She can't wait to come to the party!!!

Boo's weekend

Boo was sick from Friday through Monday, although still mostly at full-tilt toddler. This has meant a lot of Mama & Boo time. Some highlights included

Boo's first real "sit and watch TV" time. She really likes Dora the Explorer. It holds her attention more than Sesame Street. She also likes Elmo, and Big Bird, but she gets distracted during the other segments.

Simon Says. That's all I'm saying.

Practicing singing "Happy Birthday" to Lil' Eleven.

"pooter, Pooter, POOTER!!!!!". Mama bought a little toy laptop (computer) in the hopes that Boo would play on it and I could get some work done. Her favorite button is the volume button that makes an endless monkey noise until you push another button (which is no fun in Boo's world). What malpracticing toy manufacturer made the volume button BRIGHT RED and right in the middle of the screen? Shouldn't that be a parents-only button? Unfortunately, all of the computers I saw had the same thing and the consequences didn't occur to me until too late!

Two more, of which I have some video -- "Shake your booty" and singing the alphabet. For those of you who have seen Daddy's videos, a disclaimer. Mama did these all by herself and nowhere near as good as Daddy would have. But, I did get them done and even managed to use a transition. Gotta start somewhere.

Today's lesson

I have heard since I was a teenager that it is a parent's job to embarrass her child. What I didn't realize until today is that the embarassment parents pass out during the teens is really payback for the embarassment toddlers pass out to their parents.

Boo and I went to Baby Boot Camp today, which is in a local mall. After class we did some shopping. We walked past a nutrition store and there was a full-size cardboard cutout of a body builder posing shirtless with his favorite protein powder. Boo screeched in her loudest, most excited voice.

"Look, Mama, NIPPLES!!!!"

She was so excited about the nipple sighting, that we had to discuss it for the next several minutes, and through at least a couple of stores.

"Nipples, Mama, Nipples."

"Yes, Boo, you saw nipples."

"Boo nipples here."

"Yes, Boo, you have nipples."

"Mama nipples?"

"Yes, Boo."

And so on.