Pretending begins…

This week marked the arrival of a new doll named “Buttons”, or as Ashlyn calls it, “Baby”.  The doll was purchased as an aide to help show Ashlyn how to put on her own clothes, but it quickly turned in to pretend play instead.  This included eating time, where Baby was put into Ashlyn’s chair and then fed.. well, something.  We don’t know because it was an empty bowl and spoon.

It must have been messy, because Baby got a good cleaning after the meal, and after the cleaning Baby went back into the chair for some refreshments.

This is a good thing I think, it’s a break from the iPod and its encouraging her to get more creative in her play.

By the way, it’s hard to do laundry when your daughter wants to wear the boxers you’re trying to fold.  *sigh*

Mom and toddler gymnastics started up again this weekend, and Ashlyn is really getting into it.  Mom was watching a gymnastics meet on TV, and Ashlyn was trying to mimic the floor routine, complete with lying on her side and putting one leg up in the air.  It was really funny, but you probably had to be there to see the humor in it.  She doesn’t quite have the tumbling down yet but she’s trying and having a lot of fun at it.  With mom’s help of course.

So from our little gymnast, have a nice week everyone.

Our little girl continues to grow up…

The topic for today is, as the title suggests, growing up.  To start, I’d like to set a frame of reference.  This is Ashlyn a year ago:

She was sitting up, crawling, and her hair was just starting to show some curls.  And today?  Today she’s a running, jumping, laughing, screaming, curly haired little girl.  She did a few things this week that highlight how far she’s come along, and I’d like to share them.

This is a her poor pillow pet being ridden around the house like a horse.  The pillow pet never complained, and appears to be uninjured.  It’s interesting to watch her use toys as she runs around the house, since she’s no longer content to simply sit and play anymore.

She also wants to be more like mommy.  Here we can see Ashlyn picking up a bag, hanging it over her arm, and heading for the door.  I’d be more impressed if she picked up a weed eater and went out into the yard, but you have to start somewhere.  She watches older kids, adults, and parents and is picking things up incredibly quickly.  It’s fun to see.

We now have to be even more careful around the house, because she can climb up onto chairs on her own now.  She seems to be very proud of herself.  What you don’t see, off in the top right corner, is a nervous mom waiting to catch her.  If anyone knows how to toddler proof a kitchen table, let me know.

She’s not fully grown up though, and still seems to get a few things wrong.  Here are two examples.  The first is her putting on dad’s socks, and the second is her trying to put a swimming diaper onto her head.  She’s trying to dress herself, but she has a ways to go I think.

I have to admit that I’m proud of her; she’s learning so fast and is such a wonderful child.  But I keep seeing this Subaru commercial on TV (Link to Subaru Commercial), and I can’t help but think that at this rate our little girl is going to be driving away from us before we know it.  And that makes me a little sad, but I know we have many years left to go.

Still, if anyone knows someone at a Subaru dealership, send me their contact info, ok?

Gymnastics and dog water…

On Saturday Ashlyn attended her first gymnastics class with mommy.  It would be nice to say that Ashlyn was flipping through the air when the class was over, but she spent most of her time running everywhere with a tired mommy chasing behind.  In between running all over the gym, they were able to coax Ashlyn into a few actual gymnastics exercises, such as the balance beam and trampoline. 

We think the class is going to be a good opportunity to learn how to take turns, since only one kid could be on the trampoline at a time.  Ashlyn kept running out on the trampoline and had to be pulled back by mom.  But it was fun and Ashlyn seemed to enjoy it, so I have a feeling there will be more classes in the future.

Aside from gymnastics, Ashlyn learned how to drink like Rusty.  And not just like Rusty, but with him.  At the same time.  From the same water.  Awesome.  At least she’s drinking from a section that’s separated from the other.  We love Rusty and all, but he’s not exactly a preferred source of education.

And on a side note, Ashlyn would like to say Happy Birthday to Papa (Grandpa Wolf).  We know he’d rather be out fishing instead of working on his birthday, so Ashlyn had to do it instead.  And yes, Ashlyn likes fishing in her pajamas.

Happy Birthday Papa!

A Happy Birthday weekend..

There are a lot of birthdays that happen around this time of year, and we spent the weekend celebrating.  On Saturday, we went over to Cousin Amy’s house for her 15th birthday party.

We had a lot of fun, and Ashlyn enjoyed learning the joys of meat on a stick.  And corn on a stick.  And pineapple on a stick.  Basically, lots of things on sticks.

Saturday was also Nana’s birthday (happy birthday Nana!).  Unfortunately, Nana wasn’t feeling good so we had to wait until Sunday to go visit.  Since Ashlyn absolutely loves the water, we said a quick “hello” and jumped in the pool at her insistence.  And I mean jumped in, she’s now jumping in from the side of the pool and isn’t afraid of going under for a few seconds.  She started kicking today, and was showing more independence in the pool while in her little life vest.  Only 11.2 years until she can get Scuba certified!

We played inside for a while after Ashlyn had her fill of the water, and Ashlyn dazzled us with her rendition of Happy Birthday, which sounds suspiciously like “hello” and “hi Rusty” spoken shyly into a microphone.  But you have to give her credit for trying.

I’m going to jump back to Saturday here, since it works better for the next round of pictures.  While at Cousin Amy’s house, Grandpa (another Happy Birthday!) tried on some new headwear.

Not to miss out on the fun, Ashlyn tried on a few hats of her own.

But with all the birthday’s going on, only one hat really matters.

So to Cousin Amy, Grandpa , and Nana, a big Happy Birthday from all of us!

Happy Birthday America, and Nana too!

We had a great 4th of July weekend, and Ashlyn is out cold after all the excitement.  The festivities began with a surprise night out for Nana (pronounced “Me-na” by Ashlyn).  We all dressed up in 50’s fashion for the occasion, except for the little one because they don’t make a toddler sock hop costume.  Ashlyn went with a 60’s/70’s flower child dress instead.

The night was fun, complete with hoola hoops, cupcakes with Uncle Scott, and dancing with mom.

And to top it off, Elvis made an appearance.  Ashlyn wasn’t too sure what to think of Elvis.  She sat with Auntie Sisa for a few minutes to listen to the King, but she hopped down and ran to mom.  She wasn’t scared or crying, but I think Elvis creeped her out a bit since he’s supposed to be dead.

Happy early birthday Nana!

Saturday was pool day.  Ashlyn threw on her life vest, which didn’t quite fit her, and jumped off into the water.

It’s amazing how much braver she is compared to the last time she went swimming. She would barely want to get off the first step before, and now she’s jumping off the side of the pool and constantly wanting to be thrown into the air so she can splash back down.  She has little fear of the water.

She’s a little too young for fireworks, especially considering her bed time is 8:00pm, so we called it an early night and let her get some much needed rest.

Happy Birthday America!

Oh yeah, a word of warning:  If you’re going to throw a toddler up into the air, be prepared for flailing limbs when gravity brings her back down.