Todays Nap

Norah's naps have never been consistent. When she was around four months old she went through a period when she took three 30 minute naps a day. She was obviously tired when she went down, and seemed well rested when she woke up. Our pediatrician felt that as long as that was the case, she was probably getting what she needed. At that time she was already getting a significant amount of sleep at night, and in total more per day than most sources cited was optimal for infants her age. 

Obviously our nights have been less consistent as of late, and the naps have definitely continued in this pattern as well. Today, an hour after putting her down, I walked by her room and smelled what I was quite sure was a number two. I peeked under the door and saw she was awake so I went in to change her diaper. This is what I found.

While I was changing her diaper Norah said that she needed to change her the diapers of all of her "friends." Hence the lineup on the floor with a diaper beside each one. (And she had only made it through about half of her bin of friends.) Together, we chose two who had poopies, put pull ups on them, and put the rest back to be changed when she woke up. I left her laying in her bed with a clean room.

An hour later we heard her yelling something from her door. This is what I found:

This picture really doesn't do it justice. Her closet, to the left of her bookcase, was a total disaster. The hanging shelves were completely empty with clothes and books all over the place. She had removed her diaper, and put on a swim diaper. She had been trying on all of the clothes, and was yelling for us to come fix the one she had on since one arm is coming out of the neck.

We now have a child-proof cover on both closet door handles, in an effort to remove one more distraction (though obviously there are plenty).

Mini Updates: Bed, Daddy, Words, and "Underwears"

Bed
There is plenty of time for a set back, so I won't say the transition is complete, but Norah's move to her "big girl" bed is going as smoothly as we could have hoped. Since choosing her crib Saturday night when we were out to dinner, she has had two great nights, and went down very well again tonight. She is also sleeping in more in the morning, so we seem to be out of the early waking phase--a huge relief!

Daddy
Norah seems to be heading out of her extreme Mommy phase. Several mornings last week and this week she has had a difficult time saying bye to Seth in the morning. She just keeps hugging him saying, "No, don't leave Daddy, don't leave yet." She has also insisted a few times that he get her dressed and be the one to push her in the stroller ("No Mommy, let Daddy do it."). Music to my ears! And generally, she is more okay with him doing baths, brushing teeth, etc., which for months has been a battle every time we tell her he is going to do it.

Words
It seems like we laugh hard at least once every day at things Norah says. I have also mentioned we continue to be impressed (we are her parents, after all) at the sentences she is putting together. Here are a few examples.

Tonight after we all three laid on her bed to read stories she asked, "Mommy, you have to work tonight?" (I worked last night, so Seth put her to bed.) When I told her no she said, "Daddy get off my pillow and leave. Door open for you."

This morning she and Seth were standing by the window and she said, "Daddy open this blind." After he did she pointed to the window at the other end of the kitchen and said, "Daddy open that blind."

One day in the car she said, "Daddy open my window in the neighborhood please." Then she sort of added, "Open our windows."

Yesterday when we were getting in the car she decided she wanted a jacket. She waited in the garage while I went back inside to get it. Just as I was reaching the door she yelled after me, "Go look in my room, Mommy!" (As if I hadn't been the one to put it away and didn't know exactly where her jacket was.)

"Underwears"
Not really much to update on the potty training front. Her teachers suggested I bring some underwear and they would just trying putting her in them (how brave!). We made a big deal out of going to the store so Norah could pick out her underwear. She wanted to wear them at home, but I told her she had to show mommy and daddy that she can go pee pee on the potty first, which didn't happen. Today when her teachers tried to put them on her she just cried, so they obviously didn't push it. Maybe another day.

On another note, here is the outfit Norah chose today - short sweat pants, her Goshen College t-shirt, and...of course...the headband.

You know it's time to move your child from her crib when...

...you meet her twice in the hallway when you thought she was in bed.

Two nights ago Norah was crying after we put her down, struggling to fall asleep. Every once in a while she would stop crying and just yell, "Mommy! Moommmmmy!" I was frantically trying to work so Seth headed back to try to calm her down and was greeted by her in the hallway.

After a few minutes of jabbering while they sat in the chair, she inquisitively asked Seth, "You wait in hallway?" He told her, "No, I was coming to get you."

"Oh."

After a few more minutes of silence she asked, "Mommy no hear me?"

He was laughing when he told me, but it broke my heart.

Fast forward 5 hours. I awoke to Norah crying and Seth crawling out of bed to check on her. He opened our bedroom door and she was standing right in front of him.

The next morning I asked if she remembered getting out of her bed. She nodded her head. I asked how she got out and she proudly said, "All by myself!"

We'll be painting and setting up her new beds this weekend...

As a side note, I think she totally looks like me in this picture.

And now for her serious side.

Cousin Lovin'

I know I have used this entry title before, but there really isn't anything better to describe the topic. The three older cousins seem to have more and more fun every time they are together. Both of the boys are really good with Norah, and both have their own ways of making her giggle. 

TJ, in particular, is super helpful and always seems to be looking out for her..except when he gets a little anxious for her to move from the bottom of the slide and gives her a little kick in the back. Ah, but kids are kids, and 10 minutes later he is pushing her on the swing and making her laugh.

Norah and I went to the lake late Saturday afternoon and stayed overnight with Lisa and the kids. It was very relaxing and I got some really good Mikayla time in as well. 

It is hard to imagine adding one more to the mix, but I'm sure will all adjust quickly.

And now for the eye candy:

Peanut Morsels

Norah has started using words like "actually," "probably," and "just."

My mom asked her whether she wanted blueberries with her cereal. Her response was, "Actually, bananas."

I recently put her PJ bottoms in the laundry basket and when she spied the matching PJ top laying on the floor she sort of mumbled to herself, "Oh, this probably go in laundry too" and proceeded to put it in the basket.

I was trying to get her to keep moving one night while brushing her teeth (sometimes every step of the process is painfully slow). I said something like, "Come on, Norah Gunden," and she replied with "Kauffman." I had no idea she knew her last name, and we are still a little perplexed as to where she would have learned it.

We have started to have some consistent success with the discipline technique of sending Norah back to her room. We send her back with the instruction that she can come out when she is ready to have a better attitude/listen, or whatever the particular issue is. She typically runs all the way back, plops herself on the floor and starts crying. A few minutes later we ask her whether she is ready to come out with a better attitude, she says, "yes" and we move on. Sometimes even just asking whether she needs to go back to her room is enough to improve minor behavior issues.

Norah still talks about TJ and Luka a lot, but Mikayla seems to have taken the spotlight. I told her we would be going to the lake over the weekend and asked who else she thought would be there. After Mimi and Papa, the next name she threw out with much excitement was, "Mikaylaaaaaaa!"

She is still infatuated with Daddy's new car. She and Seth were telling me goodbye the other day and she instructed me, "No drive Daddy's new car."

Evidently I sometimes say, "No ma'm" or "Yes ma'm" to her because we have heard her say the same thing to her snuggly ("Nani") and other stuffed animals.

Norah continues to be in a Mommy phase. Only I can do the nighttime routine, which is hard for both of us. Sometimes I just want a night off, and Seth just wants to help and spend time with her, but all we get is resistance. We continue to try to find a balance of meeting her emotional needs and not giving in. I've racked my brain for strategies of how to work us out of this stage (particularly before my last trimester of pregnancy, and before the baby is born) but I have come up dry.

And now for a few pictures...

(New post below.)

Classic Combinations

I have mentioned before that Norah is often picky about what she wears. Our ability to influence comes and goes a bit, and she went through a fairly strong independent streak around the time of Ned and Ann's visit. 

It started with this selection the week prior: 

She wore the tutu skirt for a few days in a row.

This was a classic while Ned and Ann were here (note the repeat of the Goshen College t-shirt):

You won't be able to see the details on this one (though you can click on the picture to make it bigger). She has on a navy blue t-shirt with pink sleeves that says "Smart Cookie" in multiple colors, which is covered by a black cardigan. The tutu skirt returned, this time with brown pants with white polka dots. She topped the ensemble off with her favorite purple shoes and an orange sweat band around her ankle.

It often works to give her choices, but not always. I try really hard not to care whether she matches, though admittedly it is sometimes difficult. Over the years I have always smiled when seeing a little girl in a tutu or princess outfit in public, finding it cute and thinking her parents probably chose not to fight that battle. Now I'm that parent and others are probably smiling at me, remembering that same stage with their kids.

Grandma and Grandpa's Visit

Ned and Ann / Grandpa and Grandma were actually here a few weeks ago, but I just got back Friday from 8 days in Amsterdam for work so am just now getting around to posting the pictures. We enjoyed some fantastic weather while they were here and since Norah quickly caught on to their shared love of the outdoors we actually didn't spend much time inside at all. I think there was a trip to the park at least once every day. Norah was in heaven. 

One day, Ned took her to a park in a nearby neighborhood and she walked the entire way home, pushing the stroller. We clocked it later and found out it was 1.4 miles. Later that same day she walked to our neighborhood park, and around the .25 mile path. 

Norah also quickly discovered her grandma's knack for reading. She often wanted grandma to read to her at night, though insisted on all of us being in the room. Seth, Ned and I would lay around on the floor while she sat on grandma's lap and very intently listened to the story. 

It was another great visit! 

Ode to Goshen College

Norah has been particular about her shoes for quite a while, but lately she has become more and more picky about her clothes as well. 

On a warm day last week she picked out a skirt to wear. On the way home she asked if she has more skirts. I told her she did and that I would show them to her when we got home. 

She remembered, not surprisingly, so we marched back to her room. She then chose her skirt for the next day and laid it out on the floor. 

This is what she insisted on wearing when she woke up in the morning: 

A Picture Update

I decided to bust out the camera this weekend, and felt like I captured some real personality in these shots. (Believe me, there is plenty of personality to capture!) The sun was pretty intense (it was right around noon),  which made for some difficult lighting, but I think I got a few keepers. 

I am still trying to find the right time to get a pregnancy shot. I am definitely out of my normal clothes, at least without the help of my best friend the belly band (on my list of best inventions ever). I had an appointment yesterday and all is going well. I am feeling really good and will try to enjoy ever moment until that changes. I'm sort of wondering what it will be like chasing Norah around when I am 8 months pregnant, but we'll cross that bridge when we get there. 

And now for those pictures...