January Happenings

A very mild January in Midland allowed us to continue to frequent playgrounds!

Of course, we did have a few snowy days where we built a snowman, played dress-up, and pretended it was warm by enjoying popsicles.

During January, Talia continued to enjoy her weekly Gymnastics class, attended her very first birthday party (of her friend, not Mommy and Daddy's friends' kid), and fell in love with the Saginaw Spirit mascot.  All in all - a great January!

Gymnastics Class

She LOVES it!

Anyone for a Swim?

Talia is taking swim lessons again and loves them so much. She asks at least once a day whether today is Wednesday because she knows that's the day she goes to the pool. When the answer is "no", that doesn't stop her. She just takes her stuffed animals "swimming" in the house, which typically means they go for a stroller ride over to the foyer and she sets them up in a circle and they "swim".

The other day, she took it one step further....... by joining them! (the first picture was snapped after she found her bathing suit in her closet and attempted to put it on herself; the second picture was taken after I lost the argument that it was too cold to wear a bathing suit in the house and agreed to help her put it on over her pajamas).

Alysia

Like Father, Like Daughter

You E Yoon

Since about 7 months old, we knew exactly what Talia wanted. She is expressive (to put it lightly) and has an unbelievable vocabulary. There's really just one sound she has trouble with......... those darn L's at the beginning of words. Some of our favorite mispronunciations are:
1) I yuv you
2) It's yight out
3) I'm going to Yundon Bridge soon
4) Maybe yater

And perhaps the best of all........
5) You E Yoon!

Alysia

Baby Bumblebee

Talia LOVES to sing and she is a very good singer (yay!). She knows at least 20 different songs and will sing to herself while she plays, gets dressed, rides a bike, sits in the car/wagon, etc. It's adorable. It's especially fun to hear her break into a song we know WE HAVE NOT taught her. They must sing a lot at daycare, because there are many we recognized only because she sings so well in tune.

A few weeks ago, she started singing the cutest song with hand motions. I honestly couldn't tell what the words were, so I started singing it for my parents one evening on Skype to see if they recognized the tune. Sure enough, the song is called "Baby Bumblebee" and the words go something like this..... "I'm bringing home a baby bumblebee. Won't my mommy be so proud of me. I'm bringing home a baby bumblebee. Ouch! He stung me!" Listen for yourself (I finally caught it on video).

Alysia

Midland = Playgrounds

They don't say it's a good place to raise kids for no reason........ there are probably 50 different playgrounds within a 10-mile radius, and at least 15 within a short bike-ride from our house. We've been taking advantage of this by taking Talia to a playground about 3 times a week. She LOVES her bike rides, and especially LOVES when they include a stop at a "payground"! She now spots "paygrounds" from the car too:) Here are some shots from an excursion after work last week.

Alysia

Fun Shots from the Week

Talia decided she was tired the other evening and curled herself right up with her babies in their crib.

Enjoying the flowering cherry tree with her E-ter bunny

Playing Playstation with Daddy. She wasn't satisfied until she was laying exactly like him on her own pillow.

Helping Mommy & Daddy put together HER HOUSE!

The finished product is oh so fun!

Cheese!

Talia has officially become a ham this weekend, now posing for the camera on command with a "Cheese".....

February = RSV

Talia suffered through another case of RSV this past week. It struck on Monday night (Valentine's Day) when she awoke upset and feverish. A trip to the doctor's office on Tuesday confirmed what we felt was the beginnings of RSV and she was sent home with two steroid breathing treatments and a dose of Singulair before bed. By Thursday, she was becoming more and more lethargic and less like the Talia we all love. Friday morning, we made a follow-up doctor's visit and were sent straight to the hospital after her oxygen levels were found very low.

There may be nothing worse than watching your toddler receive an IV and continuous oxygen delivery. Poor girl was very sick all weekend and we are very thankful that she was at the hospital under good care. Mommy and Daddy stayed all day and night aside from a daily trip back to the house to grab a sanity shower. By Sunday afternoon, her fevers had finally subsided and she was released back home.

Today was her first good day - our little girl is back! Now we are contemplating whether to escape to Australia next February. We hate February (!)..... remember last year this time (2/12/10)?

Alysia

Laundry Lady

Talia loves doing the laundry!

She will race for the basement door if the word is mentioned.....

Holy Hair!

Swim Lessons: The Sequel

Tonight was Talia's third week of swim lessons (yes, we're a bit behind on blogging). Recall that she was a "Swim class dropout" when she enrolled at 8 months old and whined / cried for the first two classes....... She LOVES it now! She smiles the whole time. We're working on getting her to use her arms and legs (they remain quite useless), but she's happier than can be just floating around in the water.

The first time around........

And now!

Alysia

Our Bookworm

Talia requests reading books all day long......... no wonder her vocabulary is growing so fast!

Some of her favorite books? My Favorite Things; Lullaby Little One; My Pink Counting Purse; The Gingerbread Man........

Alysia

Maestro T

The Chase

Talia's favorite game is chasing. Chasing Daddy, chasing Mommy, being chased by Daddy, being chased by Mommy - insert any person and the result is the same. Walking is soooo yesterday - She loves running!

Alysia

MILK!

Talia is incredibly independent now when it comes to eating. 1) She tells you exactly when she's hungry by walking up to her highchair and pointing at it until you ask her if she wants to eat. 2) She feeds herself almost entirely - we're starting to use a spoon and bowl - she can do it, but it makes for a very long process. 3) She has absolutely mastered drinking. She LOVES water, lemonade and juice and will drink from any sippy cup or from a cup with a straw.

BUT, Talia still will not accept milk from a sippy. Instead, she grabs her bottle, arches her back, tilts her head back and literally downs her milk. Quite a sight to see. And just when you think she's becoming a big girl, she'll throw a tantrum every once in awhile to remind you she's only 'one' if she doesn't get her bottle fast enough - haha, caught her on film this time:)

Alysia