The Terrible/Wonderful Two's... it's all about perspective really...

She's been two for a month and a half now. But for the sake of my record-keeping, I feel like I need to document some of those priceless two-isms. It's amazing how many different phases they go through and how quickly I forget some of the past habits when she's busy with the new ones. This is my attempt to remember 2.

Current Favorite Foods: Grilled cheese with aged white sharp cheddar (she's got good tastes), still loves straw/blue/black/ras- berries, grapes, bananas, peaches, apples, and pretty much any fruit. Yogurt, smoothies, cereal, eggs, toast, tuna (with a fork but not on sandwich), cottage cheese (plain but not mixed with yogurt or fruit like her mom likes- I know weird), frozen peas (still frozen), avocado, spinach ravioli (one of our new ways to feel like she's at least getting some dark greens-- don't really think peas and avocado work in that category), pancakes and waffles (I've always done homemade, but recently used TJ's multigrain pancake mix and it was a hit, and much easier... and probably a bit healthier, having just said "healthier" what better to follow with than), chicken nuggets, TJ's peanut butter crackers (she eats them like Oreos, licking out all the peanut butter first), cliff bars, and those sesame/honey almonds from TJ's (thanks Sarah for getting me hooked in DC.) As you can tell from any pictures... she's still a good eater. "Good" in the sense that she's well fed, but "good" being a little debatable as she's not my little broccoli, raw cucumber and pepper eater like she used to be... veggies are rough- but she's definitely keeping herself "healthy." :) She loves her "bimins" (vitamins), so I've relinquished some control and just wait for the day that she'll eat the salad/broccoli, tomatoes, carrots etc... off her plate once again....

Vices: Hmmm... I just looked back at my 18 month update. How embarrassed should I be that the vices haven't changed, or at least, we haven't conquered any yet? 1. Binky: not terribly concerned any more though, as she uses it only in bed, and pretty sporadically at that. That probably means it would be a good time to eliminate it completely, but with the big girl bed issues and baby coming, I've had it off my radar. Hmmm... but the baby is coming, maybe that will be a new goal. 2. Fan: We pack it in our suitcase for trips, does that sound obsessive? -- I just can't bear to worry about other people waking her up or having to be quiet in our little house. We've accepted the white noise vice. 3. TV: How do you think I'm on the computer at 8:30 in the morning? That one is a constant challenge-- setting new limits. Once we leave for the gym at 9:30 or 10, the rest of the day isn't much of an issue... maybe a show or two in the afternoon. But mornings are hard for me to keep it off. I guess it's sort of my vice, not hers' eh?

Words (Language): So this one is pretty funny-- I don't know where on earth she got it, but literally, most of her words end in "didee" and "dada." She definitely has a ton more words than 18 months, she has a word for most things, it just doesn't always sound like the word you and I might use for it. :) She seems to hang on to the first consonant or some other primary sound in the word, and then add her own little ending to it. Needless to say, I'm pretty much the only one who understands her Sophia-pig-latin. Ross is catching on :). He had a few questions for me when I returned from DC. Sophia: "Doe Doe?" with hands out to the sides, shoulders shrugged, Ross: "THAT! She's been saying that a lot, what does it mean again?!" Me: "Duh Ross, 'Where did it go? go?' Can't you understand your own daughter?" Perhaps it's unfair for me to expect him to learn a new language when he's at work all day and all. Some examples: Wadidee (water), bididee (binky), peedidee (penguin and penny), dadidee (daddy), nananee (Nana and banana), oo-dada (balloon... apparently the "oo" jumped out to her in this one ???), ce-didee (cereal), toodada (cookie... yeah so she also uses a "t" in place of "c", I told you I'm the only one who can understand), moo-nana (monkey), edidee (elephant- this is a favorite too... pretending there's an elephant in the house somewhere, she runs around "oh no, whe's da edidee??!!" and then Ross makes the noise in the closet/pantry/ drawer etc. We use the word all the time, but she refuses to evolve from edidee. ???) There's lots more, but I'll stop there. Oh and she does have words she uses without the ending, but I've rambled long enough and those are far less exciting. kidding. should I be worried about the Sophia-latin???

Funny things: 1. She demands to be chased "row round!!" the house by Ross (she yells it first thing in the morning in his face and when he gets home from work-- poor guy doesn't get a break, he's forced to run around the house in his "pajamas" or his suit singing his made-up "round and round" song 'till they're both beat. Luckily she doesn't associate the game with mommy). 2. She wakes up most mornings and goes right to her little people zoo animals, especially the "edidee", "tow" (cow), "wion" (lion.. sort of mixed with a roar when she says it all husky in the back of her throat), "burrr" (bird-- but you've got to see her say it with her lips all puckered out trying so deliberately to form that "rr"), and the "moonana" (monkey- but it might be because she wants the "nananees" (bananas) he's carrying. Dunno. 3. She loves to count things. Unfortunately, for some strange reason, the numbers she's stuck on right now are 2 and 9 so she'll point things out in a book counting all the while "tyooo (that's how her's sounds) nine, tyooo, nine, tyooo, nine" Don't know why that stuck when everything we count is 1,2,3. But it did. And she's stubborn. 4. Still runs naked from her bath to the couch and rolls around in the cushions all happy and diaper less. 5. She points at the mole above my lip and says "mooole, mooooooo, tow (cow)" in that order, like she associates my mole with a cow since it sounds like moo. 6. If someone burps (or heaven forbid, anything of that sort) she says to them "you poood" and laughs. *Sigh* that's my little girl.

Loves: Running, climbing, jumping, balancing (in rolling shopping carts and rolling toys and other dangerous moving objects), singing, pretending, dancing (I have to be prepared if I go to turn the music on, she WILL grab my hands and yell "deedada!" (dance) and make me dance in circles 'till I'm nauseous), giving kisses, doing somersaults with daddy, jumping on the bed, Miss Spider Patch, drawing (with pen), going to the gym child care, cleaning tables with baby wipes, playing patty cake while sitting on the potty, DADDY (she never looks so excited as when he comes home, runs to him literally with wide open arms)... and lots lots more. She's a lover.

She's two and has moments of "terrible", but has got to be the coolest girl I've ever known. Nothing in my life has every been so insanely rewarding and... (dare I say?) frustrating at the same time. She's my baby 'till November and my buddy forever. She makes me laugh harder than most grown ups. No doubt she'll be the best big sister ever.