Zoo & Few

First time at the zoo last week! Went with mommy, daddy, Aunt Alethea, and cousins Jeff, Jasmine, Caeden, & Colton! Got to see so many animals! Got to ride the carousel, pet a goat, & ride a duck (a pretend duck)! We took lots of pictures & had so much fun!

I put Diella in her bed the other night, and I knew she was very tired, but noticed that she didnt close her eyes right away. A moment later, I hear her quietly singing! She was singing herself to sleep! It was the cutest thing I've ever heard! I went to grab my phone to videotape it (of course you wouldnt have been able to see anything, but at least hear her beautiful little lullaby)... and right as I grabbed it & walked in there, she must have fallen asleep, so I didnt get to record it, boo.... but I will always have that memory! And maybe she'll do it again someday! :)

It's cool enough when you teach your child something & they learn it, but when they pick up on things that you've never shown them how to do, I think that's even more amazing! (at least for as young as she is now)... When I call one of our kitties over to come play with us, I usually rub my thumb with my first to fingers, not really thinking about it, I've just always done that... well the other day, I sat Diella down in the yard & the kitties were nearby... she loves the kitties, smiles real big & just stares at them, hoping they'll come to her... but then I look over and she's rubbing her finger & thumb together!!! How does she notice that I did something That small, then connect it in her head that I'm trying to get the kitties to come, Then do it herself!!?? Genius baby! It was so cool to see! (and she's done it more than once) So cool!

There are a few other little things that she's done lately, that I make mental notes to put them up on here, but of course I never wrote them down (like I usually do) and I just cant recall them right now... so I apologize & will get them up as soon as they resurface!! :)

~Kat

Can't Keep Up

I'm not going to go into alot of detail with much, because there is so much, I can hardly keep up! She's learned the sign for 'help'! And she also finally does the sign for 'milk'! That's 5 signs she knows now! Yay!

We all know she says mama, dada, quack (all the time, hehe), hi, and up... well now she's starting to say new words, but can only get the first syllable (like ap for apple), like ba- is ball, ha- is hat, and da- is down... its not perfect, but I'll take it! She's learning!

She's learned the elephant sound and the cow sound, but finally starting to do them more consistently, (but still everything yellow is quack quack, hehe)...

There are lots of things she does on command (if any of this stuff I've blogged before, I apologize, like I said, I cant keep up, hehe!) High five, sit, shake head no for no & nod yes for yes, dance, gimmie kiss, sing... and there are some new things we've learned... she sticks her tongue out at you if you do it first! hehe .... I finally taught her how to hold the spoon while I'm feeding her (learned this from Aria & Aunt Mia's video, thanks! :) ... I say 'holf the spoon' and she grabs onto it, with my hand still on it, then takes a bite & lets go... but I'm glad that we've got the first step! ... I've been trying to teach her 'where's your tummy' and she finally did it this morning! Only once though, havent been able to get her to do it a second time... and then a few times I've noticed she rolls her toes, kinda like how you would tap all 5 of your fingers on the table, only with her toes... its hilarious! I went to show Ahna that she does this, and I took off her sock & said 'roll your toes' and she did it! I Cant Even Roll My Toes if I Tried! (and i have tried) lol.. funny girl!

Most of the time when I say 'where's mommy's nose?' she can find it.. and a few times she's found my mouth as well.. and then once the other night, she found her own mouth! Another night, I was holding her and asked her where my nose was, so she put her finger on it abnd kept it there, while she got disctracted by the TV & looked over at it, then I said 'where's mommy's mouth?' and while she was still looking at the TV, she put her finger on my mouth! It was an accident, but really funny!

A few times I have quizzed Diella, I've held up two different things, ones that I know she knows what they are, like a duck, a car, a ball, and a book, and asked her "which one is the ___?" and she gets is ALMOST every time! :)

When she hands me a toy (mostly stuffed animals), I hug them and say 'aw' and then give them back, well now whenever we say "aw" to anything or hand her a stuffed animal, she hugs it & tilts her head to the side... and the other day i said Aw and she just pulled her empty hands up to her cheek & tilted her head... SO CUTE! And she also sometimes does it to my lap, or to the floor, or to her new chair, hehe

Yesterday I think she wanted up, and she did the sign for please, then all done, then please, then all done... poor girl, she was confused

Diella says hi to strangers, I love that! She very friendly! But its weird, sometimes she acts shy, other times not... yesterday we were garage sale-ing and when I hold her and people would say hi & I ask her to say Hi back, she smiles & burries her head in my shoulder... other times, last night at Jasmine's softball game, she would point to people behind us, or on the side of us, on the bleechers, and say hi :)

She puts necklaces on herself, she sits in my parents' bean bag chair & lounges like all comfortable... and two more quick stories... she was going backwards down the 4 stairs going into the garage, and got to the bottom one and kept going backwards like there were more stairs! My dad and I were laughing so hard! And last one... I went to wake her up from her nap the other day, and I gently said her name, and she opened her eyes, and then grabbed her blanket, pulled it over her face, and her body went back to limp & motionless... it was hilarious! Just like a teenager who didnt wanna wake up for school! Haha

Hope you enjoyed, sorry so long

~Kat

Just Today!!

Just this morning Diella learned how to high five AND also the sign for help!! I think I tried a high five along time ago, but this morning she was eating, so I gave her a high five, then when we hit hands I'd cheer.... so then she'd put her little hand up again until I said high five & gave her another one... and she'd say Hi (cuz of high five)... she loved it! PLUS I've been working on the sign for help for quite a while now.. then this morning, she did it!!! Yay big girl!!!

She's been nodding Yes more often, to answer Questions with yes, and I've said before about the 2 notes that she would hum after me... well now she does it when we ask her to sing! "Diella, can you sing?" and Hmm mm, those two notes, every time! Singer Girl, YAY!

She's almost got the sign for 'food' down, but not quite yet... and we found out today that she likes apples! I tried them a long time ago, and she was not a fan, but today she was all about em!

Things are catching on quickly now!

~Kat

One Year!

We had her party in Erie.. it was good too! Mostly family, and a few friends, we ate, opened gifts, and not much else, but it was nice! She got lotsa books, and lotsa beach stuff! When we gave her her piece of cake this time, she stared for a sec, then was trying to eat it with just her mouth, bending her head down to take a bite, it was hilarious! Then she used her little fingers to get some icing to lick, then Finally picked the whole piece up and ate, it was great! Of course, there are pictures on my myspace page, in the Birthday Party album :) myspace.com/katherine_inaweofyou

A few new foods she likes... macaroni salad, goulash, hotdogs, and juice! She's getting to be a little more like she'd rather just eat whatever everyone else is eating... but we're hoping she still does well with more 'kid' stuff like cheerios n stuff...

She says "up" when she wants to be held, yay! Ahna helped her learn this one! And she's finally got the sign for 'more' !!! So she can use her manners when she eats, More & Please!! She also sits down on command... like if she wants a snack, I ask her to sit down, or she doesn't get any until she does... and she's been doing very well sitting when I ask her to!

I was sitting in the living room today, she was in the dining room, and could see her in the mirror... keeping an eye on her... I look in, and she's STANDing on the chair at the dining room table! So I go in to stay close, then eventually take her down & bring her in with me... few mins later, she's Right back in there... on the chair within seconds... so I go in, and only a few more seconds and she's up on the dining room table! So no more letting Diella play on her own! I gotta watch this little climber constantly now!

Diella and I have been in Erie for 5 nights now, and she has been sleeping SO much! The last two days, TWO 2 hour naps! And luckily she's still doing 10 hours at night, woke up once each night, but fell back asleep... I think it's a combination of not being at home, and probably growing... I just hope she continues to sleep well at night, thats what matters to me... and even the past 2 days she's been eating alot! Probly for the same reasons... like this booster chair thing that attatches to a big chair & has a tray, she sits in that to eat, and today she kept going up to it and whining until I put her in it to eat... she wouldnt eat alot, but just alittle, then sign all done, then get down & restart the cycle... so hope this doesnt keep up either, lil piggy! hehe

We also took a walk down at the lake with Ahna, Papa, and her cousins Jeff, Jazz, & Caeden... looking for beach glass & treasures... and earlier that day we had blown up the pool that she got, all 5 of us went in it... the big kids enjoyed it more than Diella... plus afterwards, Ahna helped Diella get on and ride this little bike and Did she Ever love that!.. but there are pix of all these exciting events on my myspace page, in Family album, and Diella Album the Third

Last thing... my dad made goulash tonight, he makes it the best! So I dished myself a Big bowl, cuz I knew Diella would want some... so we're in the living room on the floor, sharing it, and the bowl is empty, so I set my glass of milk on the side of the couch, hoping that when I walked in the kitchen to get more & she didnt follow me, it would be hidden from her... but she DID follow me, so then we're back in the living room, sharing... in between bites, she sometimes walks away to play and the returns for another bite... so after I take a few more bites, I go to reach for my milk and remember that I put it by the couch... so i gasp! Thinking, 'oh no, has she been playing in the milk!?' And I look over, and she has poured it INTO her Bumbo chair! It was funny! And I was surprised she didnt make MORE of a mess out of it! Funny Girl

~Kat

Birthday Party!

Before I get to the party, few quick things... She cut her 5th tooth on June 8th, and it looks like her 6th one is about to come in, starting to break the surface! She now does the cow sound, as of June 6th, and it's not really "moo" but just "Mmmm" but she does it at her little cow, so she knows that she's mooin :) and two days later she did the elephant sound! Not really authentic, but like her lips together and she blows so they vibrate, kinda... like that... :) And the day she did the cow sound, she also finally said Apple, 2 times :) was just doing first syllable, Aaaaap... but said it 2 times, but not since then, she's back to aaap... and ALSO on this same day, she got the sign for please!!! we had 2 friends over, so it was probly the combination of Everyone else was doing it, so she wanted to copy, plus showing off... but 3 things in one night, it was great! and now she does the sign for please all the time! like when she wants something... i'm so proud! Oh, and she also touches my nose, when i say "where's mommy's noe?" ... well more Honks my nose, but still, she knows where it is :)

ok, so it was supposed to be like 98 degrees on Saturday, but luckily we got a nice breeze that kept us cool :) thank you Jesus! We opened a gift early, cuz it was a kiddy pool, so we blew it up so the kids could play in it! And it had a slide! And you hooked up the hose so water came out of the elephants trunk like a fountain, it was great! But the water was cold, so the kids werent real into it until we turned off the hose & the sun warmed the water up, hehe...

well, we borrowed some tents, and Jake got some sprinklers, so we had fun doin that and eatin and chattin.... then we sang & gave Diella her cake! Stephanie made a big cake for everyone, but I made a few little cakes for Diella to dive into... they were fudge marble & i frosted them with a duck on each one :) (she loves ducks, quacks at everything, hehe) So we put it in front of her, letting her dive right in if she wanted, but she didnt really know what to do, hehe... she would touch it with one finger & lick it off, a few times over, but never really dove in, so jake helped with that... helped her make a mess & get it all over her face n stuff, hehe... then Diella wanted to share some cake with mommy so I bent down to let her feed me & she smeared it all over my face instead! heheh, was funny!

then we opened gifts... she got 5 toys, all noisy, music-making ones! the pool of course, a stuffed animal, a gift card, 2 hats, 2 pair of shoes, sunglasses, a kids Bible, a birthstone pin, a balloon, 2 videos, and TWENTY-THREE peices of clothing! It was great!

Then a bunch of us went over to swim at Ben's house... she had only been swimming 2 other times, one when she was only like 3 months old, and then the other time that I blogged about (where she liked it, but wasnt too sure when her face went in)... well this time, the longer we stayed in the pool, the more brave she got! She was playing on the stairs, that go into the pool, and was jumping from one stair down to the next one! It was at the level where right before her chin touched the water.... but even then, if her head went under (and of course i'm right there & brought her Right back up every time).. she came up smiling! It was a lil scary, but fun! I was glad she wasnt too afraid, but a bit nervous of how brave she was getting! Then the next day, we went swimming again, and same thing... if it were up to Diella, she'd be swimming on her own already! Then she'd get so excited, she would like shrill, so hyper & so happy in the pool!

The day of her party, she didnt get a second nap, there was too much going on to sleep! She was tired by like 5 o'clock, but didnt sleep til a lil after 9! She kept partying til she dropped, jus like her mama! hehe

It was a near perfect day, all the way through! Hope our party in Erie is just as good!

~Kat

Made A House!

We bought her a new carseat yesterday, so I used the box it came in to make her a house! I sort of threw it together, and I plan on adding lots more... but its got curtains, awnings, a door & door handle... I used an old shirt (penguin print) for curtains & awnings... also another old shirt duct taped down on the floor for carpet... then i decorated the inside with pictures of mommy & daddy & Diella... as well as cut up some old birthday and christmas cards for decorations on the inside... also quickly drew a nightstand with lamp & a quick bed, with headboard & footboard... there's also flowers & little animals along with bottom on the outside for some pretty landscaping & some company! hehe... she hasnt seen it finished yet, she's napping... hope she likes it! .... since these pictures were taken, I've added alot... I found some a bag of old stickers and i used them everywhere! Animals outside, hearts & happy faces on the inside... little round ones along the top edge to look like christmas lights only not Christmas, hehe.... I drew a tree and tire swing on there & had these little tin leaf things that i hooked onto it... I drew a couch & a clock on the side, oh and made a sign that says Diella's Room, and drew a shelf with a stereo on it, so she's got some tunes :) Found some Power Puff Girls folders that I cut up and added on there. There are stars and a moon on the roof outside, but then I ran outta tape, so I had to draw instead of finishing with my attatching things... I drew a mailbox, and window sills, flowers, and even a pumpkin patch! (had pumpkin stickers)... then i drew a big darn & cow on the back of the house... I went nuts! I've learned that sometimes less is more, and this is NOT one of those times when I abided by that lesson, hehe. There are like 10 photos of it on my MySpace page (link in listed on homepage of my blog)... and they were taken since i've added all that new stuff...

~Kat

Uh Oh!

Oh no, we just had another accident! When I heard her yelling, I turned around and she had dropped a toy behind her chair (this happens alot & usually she stands behind the chair & moves it out of the way to get the toy) but this time, she attempted to crawl underneath to get it... well SOMEhow, her head got stuck and she couldnt get it out.. and even I couldnt get it out! She was REALLY stuck! Her arms we gripped, braced onto the legs of the chair, so I was trying to pull her hands off, trying to turn her head, trying everything to get her out... i couldnt see under the chair, i couldnt flip the chair over to see, cuz she was still stuck in it! When i finally got her out, there was like a pinch on her upper lip, not punctured, but like a dot that was pressing on her, you could see it, and also alittle red/purple spot on her cheek... we put some ice on it & she's ok now, but i guess we'll never know exaclty how her head got so wedged in there! Her upper lip is all swollen... she wouldnt let me put ice right on it, but now i've got her sucking on a piece of ice, so we're ok now :)

~Kat & D

Nothing Big Really...

just lots of little things... she hasn't done much of anything monumental in a while, it seems... she still says Hi & quack quack All the time, and it seems like she says quack even when there's no duck to be seen... i'll go "there's no duck, silly" ... lately she's been pointing tho... so she'll quack & i dont see a duck anywhere, then she points! Twice this has happened. Once when the menu screen of a Baby Einstein was on, I thot there were no ducks, she points & quacks and sure enough, there they are! Same with the other day, on her changing table, i'm thinking "where on earth does she see ducks? There's no ducks in her room" I turn around, and there are two on the calendar in her room & she's pointing and quacking at them! Silly girl! I think maybe when we have baby number 2, they're gonna get Diella's Veggie Tales room decor & D's gonna get a duck room! hehe.... just now, I took a break to feed her lunch, she was pointing and quacking, and i looked around and there were no ducks to been seen anywhere... then I spotted this magnet onthe fridge that's a yellow squash, maybe that's what she was going for? Well, at least she's corresponding with the color yellow?

Um, she's gotta thing with Ears... i cant figure it out... she'll use her hand to turn your head & then touch your ears... crazy! And she pulls on her own ears all the time lately (and no we dont think its ear infection, she's had them before, but this isn't like that) but lets still pray that she doesn't get anymore! :)

She kisses & hugs me All the time, I Love it!!! And not just when i ask for it, either, she'll come right at me for a kiss and I go Free kisses!! I love when i get them without asking!

Did I ever mention that this girl loves to be naked? Hehe, wonder where she gets that from? Well in her diaper anyway... whenever we take her clothes off, she giggles & runs around, so then often times we just leave her in her diaper to play (at home of course).

I've got to make sure, when she's doing something & I'm asking her to not do it anymore, that I use the words "no more" or "that's enough" ... cuz sometimes i say "all done" and she does the sign for it... then it kinda means something else... hehe, oops

Two things have happened while I wasn't around... so ya just never know for sure, but once her babysitter took her for a walk & they heard a dog barking, Tracy said she swears Diella was trying to bark back, aw! Cool! Baby do it for mommy! :) And also, another woman from church was watching D in the hall while i was in youth group and she said that when she grabbed a toy for Diella and said There It Is! She swore she heard Diella say it back, There It Is! Yay! I hope she really did both of those & meant it! Now time to do that stuff at home, lady!

It's funny, sometimes if she won't eat and I need her to, she's learned to whine with her mouth closed, cuz she knows that if she cries with it open that i'll put food in it while it's open, haha!

She just brought me two of Jake's shoes, one in each hand... you know how heavy those things are! Told you this girl was strong, geez!

She's getting much more ticklish! Especially under the armpits! I have this vibrating back massager, that I basically have given to her as a toy cuz she loves it! I put it right under her armpit & she cracks up! Actually, every kid thats ever been over here to play loves that thing and every mother has said "I gotta get one'a those for the kids" ... so here is my recommendation to get a vibrating massager for kids to play with, they love it!

Ya know how i said she's pretty good at helping me get her dressed? Well she's always been good with geting the shirt or onesie on, now she's gettin better at pants, and most of all, socks or slippers... she'll put her foot out when i've got a sock in my hand... even if she's already got one on, she'll stick out the foot without a sock... smarty pants!

Ok, so she's been walking for 3 months now, and sometimes she tries to run but not too far until she falls... well, if she's got something in her hand & then she realized that I saw it & I begin to go toward her to take it away, this girl whips around and takes off faster than her feet can go! It's hilarious!

Scary the other day, we had a stool in the living room (black, wooden, about 3 feet high) and she was trying to reach something off of it, and it fell... and so did she, onto her back... and it fell, on top of her... it looked worse than it was tho, we think it hit her face, but we only ended up seeing a little bruise on her shin & and even littler one under her chin... so no biggie

I said how her new favorite toy is Leap, who sings the alphabet... well now its any toy that plays music... there's this one that plays 5 different nursery rhyme songs, she'll bring it to me & set it on my lap, and when i play one, she instantly starts smiling & dancing... hm, i wonder if we have a musician on our hands??? She also brings me these two hand puppets. She'll put em on my lap and wait there til I put it on my hand... then the other day when I did this, she grabbed him & hugged & kissed him! Aw!

So funny, when she eats, she's getting wise... she sticks out her tongue to taste it, before she opens her mouth, like she doesnt trust what i'm giving her... so if she doesnt like what she tasted, she turns her head and wont eat it... it would be annoying i think, but its smart... she wants to taste it first, make sure she likes it... I guess i cant argue with that... I do the same, hehe

Ok, and lastly... some things that we haven't quite gotten, but are working on... still trying to get eyes, ears, nose & mouth... and belly actually :) we're always pinching that belly & yell Belly! Then trying to get her to point to her tummy when we ask Where's Yout belly?" not there yet, but close... and... red, blue, green, yellow... still not really close at all to identifying them, but mayeb i'm a little ahead of myself on that one? ... still trying animal sounds, but she's still so satisfied with Quack, so... no other animals yet... the signs that we're working on (now that i know she understands them, i.e. All Done).. are 'Help' , 'thank you' , 'eat' , and most often, 'please' ... i think she understands the sign for please, but hasnt shown me yet... and also I wonder if I should see if she can match 2 things... i think that might be too advanced for her, but she brings me shoes all the time, I kinda wanna see if I set them all out, will she be able to find the other? I doubt it, but will give it a shot.

ok, wow, this is the longest blog i've ever done, i'll be surprised if anyone besides Mia ;) reads this...

I just put lots of new pictures of her up on my MySpace, in the 'Diella Album the Third'

myspace.com/katherine_inaweofyou

Birthday is 8 days away!!!!

~Kat & D