Dinosaurs in the Trees

The other night, C and I were pulling into the lake house for the weekend when she said, "Mommy, shhhhhh."

Me: (whispering) What is it?

C: It's a dinosaur.

Me: Wow! Where is it?

C: It's in the trees. Don't worry. It's hiding.

Her imagination is in full swing these days and I am loving it. She lives in a magical world where everything talks and everything is real. 

While I cooked dinner the other night, I overheard her playing in the living room and walked in to find her enacting a scene with finger puppets. She had a princess puppet upside down in a rhythm instrument saying "help me, help me!" Then, the knight (which she calls a "prince") said, "to the rescue!" and got her out. Then, they kissed. 

Sometimes, her imagination is too close to reality. Today, while playing in her baby pool on the deck, she said, "look, Mommy, a mouse!" I freaked out and ran over to see what she was talking about. I asked her where it was and she pointed in the pool and said, "right there. See? It's swimming."

She often reads books to her stuffed animals; her babies cry and need bottles; her trains get encouragement as they crest the mountain ("Great job! You did it!"). Everyone dances. Everything has feelings. Everyone has a name (thought most of them are Catherine). 

I get to live in a special world these days.

95th Percentile

C finally had her two year old check up last week and it could not have gone better. She is 36.5" long (95th percentile) and weighs 29 lbs, 8oz (75th percentile). So, she's tall. Her parents are 5'8" and 6'4". What are the odds?

She wears a size 7.5 or 8 shoe and size 2T in most clothes (3T in pants for length). She's in a size 5 diaper.

If she could only save one thing from a house fire, it would be her blanky (which she lovingly calls her "gwanky"). We don't dare go anywhere without it. 

I feel like she is changing and learning at warp speed these days. She really is turning into a little girl. We kicked the beloved sippy cup to the curb a few weeks ago. I'm not gonna lie, it was brutal. She basically used it like a paci full of milk. But, now, she's a big girl who prefers water (milk just isn't the same from a straw) from her cool new cup.

She has a new found love of dinosaurs. She got a pair of dinosaurs a few weeks ago and hasn't put them down since. They go on adventures. They sleep with her. Their names are Mommy and Daddy and they mostly kiss a lot. When they aren't kissing, they are "stomping." 

She is also obsessed with a book series about dinosaurs. We read them every night. She also likes to play with them and read them to her babies. We left them at my parents' house (because she hid them in a cookie tin) and they had to overnight them to us because she spent the past two nights crying at bedtime and saying, "oh no, dinosaurs!"

Other than dinosaurs, she loves her babies. She has a few, but plays with three all the time. Two are Disney Princess babies (Snow White and Cinderella) and the third is a Madame Alexander baby she got for her birthday and has lovingly named "Pink." She loves to push them in their stroller and feed them and tell them to sleep. She also likes to throw them on the floor and sit in their stroller.

She has become quite the movie buff lately. She is obsessed with Finding Nemo and Tangled. She asks to "watch Memo?" or "watch Punzel?" every day. Movies are pretty much my answer to cooking dinner without her attached to my leg or on my hip (which sometimes happens anyway). 

She has become a much better eater lately, almost eating anything I give her. She will at least try most things. Now, she gives me things and says, "try this, Mommy." Her favorite foods are still cheese, grapes, bananas ("manas"), pickles, and french fries. She actually cheers and says "yay, french fries" whenever she gets them. She's also been on an applesauce kick lately, but mostly because those squeeze packs are so so convenient!

She is busy. She is two. She loves to run and hop and bounce and spin all day long. She jumps from blocks to puzzles to dress up to balls to her play kitchen and back again. She loves to play outside, mostly on her slide. She has the sweetest heart and gives the best hugs ever. 

She's honestly so much fun. I love watching her imagination at work and having conversations with her in the car. I love listening to her sing her favorite songs or walk through room identifying everything she sees. This age is magical. And just when I think I couldn't possibly love her any more, I do.