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| Evelina is D.O.N.E. smiling for pictures. Maybe some day she will be inspired again. |
It is amazing to think that Evelina won't be an only child for much longer. It makes us sad to think that she will have to share us with her little sister, that we won't get to spend as much one-on-one time with her and that her life will change just as dramatically as Chris and mine will in the coming weeks. Even though it may be a challenge for all of us, I know our hearts will be filled with more love then we can bare, and we can only hope that Evelina will love her sister just as much. I'm looking forward to witnessing a beautiful sibling bond form, to watch them grow up together, and to see their love evolve into a friendship that will last them a lifetime. That is the joy of having a sibling.
With that, here are some recent Evelina tidbits:
- Evelina is officially in her big girl room sleeping in a twin-sized bed!! The transition hasn't been too difficult and she doesn't seem to miss her nursery. The first couple of nights she would tell us "I scared", but overall, she is sleeping better in her big girl bed then she did in the last few months in her crib. What's even better is that she hasn't slept in our bed in over two weeks...yippee!! Hopefully the stretch continues. All we can hope for is that she doesn't go through a sleep regression after Siby arrives.
- She is very intrigued by the camera to the video monitor. In the nursery it was hung up high, but now it is on the top of her bookcase where she can see it. Since she has heard my voice from it, she has begun to ask what it is. "What's that, Mama?" I told her that it's a monitor that we use to make sure she is safe in her big girl bed. Now she will point to it and say "Keep me safe". Too cute.
- She associates us telling her that we need to go potty with us leaving her awake in her room at bedtime. It was taking her a long time to settle one of the first nights in her new room and I really needed to "potty" so I told her I needed to go and I would be right back. She was so content in the room that I didn't go back and she eventually drifted off to sleep. Now we use the same line frequently and it works every time. She even told me last night that she wanted to go in the bed and said "Mama, peepee in the potty", to get me to leave!!
- For some unknown reason Evelina all of a sudden does not like Mr. Noodle on Sesame Street. Whenever he comes up on the screen, she will go over to Chris and ask for "cuddles" and curl up in our lap. Once the shade closes and his segment is over, she will inch her way back onto the couch out of our arms. Strange toddler behavior I tell ya.
- Evelina has no problem using the Baby Bjorn potty or the toddler potty at school, but ever since switching to a preschool sized classroom earlier this month with a larger and higher potty she is "scared" to go there. She protests and tries desperately to run as far away from the potty as she can. Her teachers and I have tried to reassure her that we will keep her safe and help her on the potty but she still wants nothing to do with the bigger potty. Poor thing, maybe she doesn't like change just as much as her Mama? I plan to get a toilet trainer for our toilet at home in hopes that we can help ease her fears for when we officially start potty training.
- Evelina always wants to know where her loved one, teachers or friends are and she will ask you about 400 times a day. "Where's Papa?", "Where's Mimi?", "Where's Auntie KK?", "Where's Grandpa?", "Where's Auntie Ro?", etc. She will ask even though she knows where they are because we told her minutes before. Many times, I will ask her where they are and she will say "Pittsburgh" for Auntie KK or "New Hampshire" for Mimi. She likes to associate the dogs with the appropriate family member as well. "Mitzy" for Auntie KK and "Tulip, Lily, Oggie" for Mimi.
- Everyday after school she asks for a "lollipop", which is really a frozen Stonyfield YoKids Squeezer. They are quite yummy.
- She likes it when we open the sunroof in the car.
- She is determined to put on and take off her own clothes. She does a pretty great job with skirts, pants, socks and shoes but shirts are quite a challenge. The more independent she is, the better off we will be when we eventually have to get two out the door. Many times, we can avoid tantrums if we just let her dress/undress herself, even though it may take longer.
- At nap time and bedtime, she prefers if we read stories in her bed, instead of rocking in the chair.
- She LOVES stickers!!!
- She broke her first plate at a restaurant by swiping it onto the floor. Oops, sorry about that Cheesecake Factory.
- I took her into the American Girl store for the first time and she was in "baby doll" heaven. Although, she was petrified of going up and down the escalator. Our child definitely has some fears.
- Her appetite seems to have increased over the last couple of weeks. Perhaps she is going through a growth spurt of some kind? She had 1 1/2 peanut butter and jelly sandwiches at lunch the other day in addition to fruit/veggie...I don't even eat that much!! I'm sure this will be short-lived, but for the time being, we will go with it.
- Her favorite foods are buttered pasta with lots of cheese, tomato and cucumber salad with ranch dressing, corn on the cob, and Dunkin' Donut's munchkins, preferably chocolate, jelly and pumpkin.
- I fear that she will only call her sister "Siby" once she is born and not use her real name. I think she is going to be confused when we change her name.
- She talks about Siby frequently and if I'm not home, will ask where Siby is. Papa of course, always says that she is with Mama. She wants to bring Siby places, "My bring Siby to playground."; and she frequently likes to hug and kiss Siby, "My hug Siby", "My kiss Siby?". It is incredibly sweet. Last week while we were rocking at bedtime, Siby had the hiccups so I put Evelina's hand on my belly. She just kept looking up at me and smiling. When the hiccups were gone, she kept rubbing her hand over my belly searching for movement. I just wonder what she really is thinking about all this??
