A quiet morning

I thought it would be fun to stop and write a little bit about Ashley--her latest happenings, her favorite things, her current stages, etc.

Let's start with her favorites:

Her favorite shows: Curious George cartoon and Barney. For a little while she loved Barney, but since we have discovered the Curious George cartoon, she requests it every morning by going to the TV and making her monkey sound. Haha.

Favorite animals: You guessed it from her show...probably a monkey, rooster, and tiger/lion. She can make all the animal noises but these seem to be her favorite.

Favorite breakfast meal: For a long time she seemed to favor eggs and banana for breakfast, but lately she tends to be more of a cereal girl. She likes cheerios, rice crispies a lot, Kix, and Lucky Charms--she likes to pick out the marshmallows and eat them first.

Favorite toys: Pushing her baby in her stroller, her bubbles still, kitchen set, and balls. She has also enjoyed coloring, stickers, crafty stuff. She also enjoys the outdoors--exploring, digging in dirt, picking cherry tomatoes from our neighbors garden, etc.

On to less cute stuff....We've all heard the term "terrible two's", and how during this developmental stage children have frequent temper tantrums because they are learning and doing so much, and can't always communicate what they want/need as fast as their processing it, and also haven't learned about self regulation. Well...we have officially entered that stage I think. I also suspect part of it has to do with all the changes coming on, and her feeling some insecurities with baby coming. Ashley is still a sweetheart, but she has her moments now on a daily basis. She will demand things and have tantrums at times, she has started physically fighting us when it's time to be restrained--whether it's putting her in her carseat and she doesn't want to go in it, to sitting in a shopping cart when she'd rather walk, to getting changed when she doesn't want to lay still. We try distractions and redirecting, but it doesn't always work. Thankfully it's not every time though! She also gets frustrated when she wants/demands something and doesn't immediately get her way. Needless to say that at (almost) 35 weeks pregnant, this is pretty mentally and physically exhausting to handle at times. Normally I am a pretty patient person, and I think most of the time I still maintain that on the outside (although on the inside I'll feel pretty stressed out in the moment), but I think with pregnancy and hormones, and our own emotional changes going on with the anticipation of another family member, I have struggled to stay calm and collected at times. Praying this phase gets easier, and I also found a poem/prayer that I really liked that I will start to pray at the beginning of my day. It goes like this:

"Oh give me patience when wee hands
Tug at me with their small demands.
And give me gentle smiling eyes.
Keep my lips from hasty replies.
And let not weariness, confusion or noise
Obscure my vision of life's fleeting joys.
So when, in years to come
my house is still--
no bitter memories its room may fill".

I just love that. Good inspiration.

On another note, Ashley has made some more discoveries. First, she has learned to climb out of her pack and play. Uh oh! The only time she is really in it is when I would shower. I'd put her in our bonus room and play her show while I'd shower and get ready. Just makes it easier when she's contained and safe. Well, the other day I had already gotten out of the shower and was getting dressed when I heard a thump followed by crying. I went right in and there she was crying on the floor. She is still at the age where she gets into things and makes messes, so it looks like I will be showering at night after she's in bed for the time being. I did that yesterday for the first time, and I think after I adjust to not having the shower to wake me up/refresh me, I may actually enjoy it more. During the day, even though she was in a contained space, I'd still be half listening for her the whole time, versus at night she'll be sleeping and Matt will be home, so I can shower without having to do that which is nice. It's funny the little things you take for granted before little ones come along, like having a peaceful shower to yourself. Haha.
I am waiting for her to figure out that she can also get out of her crib soon. We def need to start latching the gate upstairs at night now at bedtime (although I'm sure when it happens we'll have time to respond first since she'd probably fall and thump/cry again).

For at least a month now, Ashley has sometimes let us know when she's gone potty. She will hold the front of her diaper and tell us that she went "pee pee". It's a good step toward readiness for potty training. She's also figured out how to pull off her diaper. About a month or two ago she took it off while she was in the crib. Now when she has access to it, she will "help" to take it off or loosen it. Lol.

Between her vocabulary, movements and growth, she also has just seemed to transition more from a little baby to little girl--crazy! It's amazing how quickly they grow and change right before your eyes. I think it will really hit me how much she has grown when I see her next to her newborn sister in a few weeks!

Well, Ashley is waking up so I'm going to have to end for now (I woke up at 5:30 this morning to pee and couldn't get back to sleep, so decided to use my time to enjoy the morning with Matt before he went to work, and now to have some quiet time to write and reflect on things).