I am way overdue an update on Miss L. I keep thinking of all of these things I need to document so I don't forget them and by the time I sit down to write, she's moved on to another stage, favorite thing, cute habit, adorable saying, etc. That's the thing about kids, they really do grow up too fast! And of course, every time I whip out my phone or video camera to catch her doing something, she freezes like a deer caught in headlights and won't perform. Frustrating. I should install hidden cameras around the house, I tell ya.
In a little less than a month, Miss L will be 2 1/2 - halfway to 3! - whoa. We're just eight days away from the second anniversary of her referral, and only a little over three months away from the second anniversary of her homecoming. I know I sound like a broken record and completely cliche, but I seriously can't believe it has been two whole years. I looked back at our Korea pictures today and I barely recognize the baby in those pictures. We've come such a long way since then.
L is changing almost daily these days. She is talking in (short) sentences now and can carry on a back and forth conversation. She asks "why" and "where" ad nauseam. Seriously. I snapped in the car today after about the 100th "why" and screamed "no more whys or wheres!", to which she replied, through tears, "why, mommy?". Sigh.
She knows her colors - red, blue, green, yellow, orange, purple, pink, black, and white, and sometimes brown. She can count to 15ish (she'll say some numbers above 15, but not in the correct order), but not if you ask her to. For the longest time, I thought she could only count to 4 because that's as high as she would go if I asked her to count. And then one day she was walking down the stairs behind me and she counted all 15 stairs perfectly as she walked down them. I was shocked. I then I asked her to count for me, and she said "1, 2, 3, 4, 2". sigh. She can tell you "how many" of something she has by counting them - 1 nose, 2 ears, 2 eyes, etc. She also knows many of her shapes - heart, square, diamond, circle, and sometimes triangle.
If you ask her where she was born, she says "I born in Kreeeah.".
She loves, loves, LOVES Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. I usually put it on for her while I'm making dinner and helping the boys with their homework. If I don't, she will ask for it, specifically at that time of day. She knows that is Mouse time. She knows all of the characters and whenever she sees a hot dog, she says "hot diggity dog."
I catch her pretend talking on the phone (which is usually some kind of card) all the time, usually to mom mom.
She loves to help around the house. She helps put laundry in the washer/dryer. And helps put laundry (dish towels, bibs) away. She helps set the table for dinner. She knows which plates, cups, utensils are for each person and gets everything in the right place - frankly, better than the boys do most of the time! When I ask her to clean up her toys, she actually does it and does a good job!
She is remarkably good at carrying the right tune when she sings. I don't remember the boys being able to do that, at least at this age.
She is very good at using her manners. She always says "please" and "thank you". Her thank you is so cute "tank you, mommy". Only trouble is, she thinks if she uses "please" she will get whatever it is that she is asking for. If you say no, she will just start screaming "peeeeeeaaaase" over and over and over again. Good manners only get you so far, chick.
She is really into Christmas this year. She gets excited whenever she sees a Christmas tree or Christmas lights. If you ask her what she wants for Christmas, she says "presents". If you ask what kind of presents, she says "baby dolls". She was intrigued by Santa for a while, until she found out we were going to visit him in person and sit on his lap. She then started saying "I no like Santa" randomly throughout the day, and those were the first words out of her mouth in the morning for a couple of days in a row. Needless to say, when we went to visit Santa, it wasn't a pretty scene - lots of tears and screaming involved and we didn't even get within 10 feet of the guy. We have a very nice picture of the boys with Santa though.
Some other memorable quotes:
"Not now. I eating."
"No, mommy. I busy."
"Song on, pease." (she always requests some tunes in the car). And she says "not that one" if I turn on a song she doesn't like.
"Where boys go?" (she asks this all day long. When I reply "school", she asks "why?". repeat, over and over and over.all.day.long. sigh.)
"Where daddy go?" (see above)
"Mommy, COME HERE!!" (said in a very demanding voice with hand motions)
Every time (seriously, EVERY time) we go by our neighborhood pool, she says "cool!" (what she calls the pool) I go swimming! Need goggles! Mommy, watch me swimming!" (and then I have to look in the rear view mirror at her doing her swimming arms ... and trust me, she knows if I'm watching or not)
"wow, mommy, you pink!" (upon seeing me in the morning with my pink cords on)
If she sees anything resembling a costume she says "Trick or treat. Get candy in my basket." (apparently Halloween made a big impression).
She loves arts and crafts, especially coloring with markers, stamping, and using scissors. She watched the boys make cards for a birthday party one day and ever since then, she is always asking to make "birthday cards". She draws or stamps on some construction paper, folds the paper in half, and then excitedly hands you the card screaming "it's your birthday!!!!!" She also loves to paint, but I'm too much of a neat freak to let her do it much at home. When I pick her up from school on a day she got to paint, she runs excitedly up to me and screams "I painted!"....kind of makes me feel guilty for not letting her paint more. Kind of.
But probably her favorite thing to do is help me in the kitchen. She is so focused and can stay on task for really long periods of time. She loves to mix, stir, "dup" (dump), scoop, and transfer ingredients from one bowl to another. And she is about the cutest little helper one could have. I have a feeling this play mixer that Santa is bringing her for Christmas will be a big hit. I can't wait until she is old enough to actually help me. ;-)
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