Yesterday around lunch time Scotland called to say he was feeling ill and asked if I could come home early.  He was asking for 4-ish.  But Michelle overheard me and urged me to go home right away.  We settled on 2pm, so he could sleep while she napped and I worked. 

She talked and sang to herself, and then she fell asleep.  She woke up about 5:30pm.  We then had a wonderful time playing.  She was still a little sleepy when she first woke up.  then I got hungry, so we went to the kitchen.  At one point, she ran off, and I thought she was going to the potty.  So I slowly followed so that I could hand her toilet paper.  Instead, she'd decided to go to to Daddy and give him a hug and kiss while he was in bed.  So, I got to see that.  It was sweet. 

Then Scotland woke up.  Tatiana and I played with her Babies.  Then she wanted to bounce on her Yoga ball.  Scotland does that much better than I do, so he did that.  She lies on top and he bounces her up and down.  I don't think I bounce her enough.

We also played with the piggies in the doll house.  The piggies want to ring the door and come in. 

We ate the Apple cheesecake she'd made with Grandpa.  It was really good.  I could tell she'd fun because of the smile she got when I brought it out.  I asked if she helped her Grandpa taste the apples.  She smiled and said, "No, I just ate some"

She asked for a bath, and she was really cute.  I was nearby talking to her, and then I played.  It my job to make the turtle bucket swim.  She loved playing with an empty dish soap bottle, and the lid.

Then we had belly time.  We both love belly time.  She is so subtle at one point she was saying "Don't kiss my cheeks"  which of course means, Try to kiss me on the cheek. 

Bedtime went really well.  She only picked out three books and she didn't ask for Daddy to cradle her. 

One thing with Tatiana, when you start to stroke her head.  You must continue for a long time.  Not last night, but a few weeks ago I was stroking her hair and then I stopped.  She got upset and shook her pigtail at me.  I thought she was getting upset at me from stroking her hair.  But, it was that I stopped.  It really does relax her though.

11-8-2013

Tatiana  got a Thanksgiving  card early this week from Gram & Grandpa.  It had Disney stickers on it
 Last night she went to get the mail with Scotland and as she was leaving she said "Will there be a card for me?"

Yesterday, Scotland and Tatiana went to the pet store to buy dog food.  They really enjoy going there because she can pet lots of animals.  She got to pet a rabbit and several puppies.  She had a bruise on her leg from "a horrible puppy that bit her".  I asked Scotland.  He said it was a golden retriever puppy in the mouthy stage of puppy. 

At Central market, they gave her a rose because she was so cute.  Her outfit was extra cute.  She wore this fluffy red shirt that is a bit big, but she likes to push her sleeves up anyway, so it was OK.  She also likes to let the sleeves hang below her hands and twirl them around.  She also wore the red tutu that I bought for her Halloween costume, her red sparkly shoes and white lace socks.  She has a red velvet hat that Scotland wanted her to wear, but she insisted on one of her pink doggy hats.  Of course, she also wore a big smile.  So, because she was so cute, she got a rose.  She was quite proud of it. 

Then they went to the Pediatrician's for a checkup.  She was a monster.  She screamed and cried.  She refused to count to 3.  She refused to walk.  Scotland put her in a corner and walked away so that the doc could see she could run.  The doc is very pleased with her growth. 

When I got home, she wasn't napping, although she had been asleep for a bit earlier in the day.  Scotland needed some alone time so Tatiana and I played in the "Mommy Daddy Room".  She twirled the desk chair around.  Then I sat in the chair and she "hid" behind me as a looked to the left, then the right then the left.  We both laughed and giggled.  Whenever she was especially quick I would yell to Scotland "Honey, I lost our daughter".  Then she would laugh harder.  Then when I would catch sight of her, I would yell, "Honey, she is here.  I just saw her.  Wait, where did she go?"  Eventually, she ran to the bed and hid under a sheet.  Then we play "Cute Blanket".  She hides under a blanket and I say, "I can't find Tatiana!  All I see is this cute blanket that moves.  I think I will get next to it."  Then I give her a hug though the blanket.  Then a stuffed animal 'decides' to fall asleep on the "cute blanket" which is always right over Tatiana's belly.  She moves her hands and feet and bounces the stuffed animal off.  Sometimes I hold onto a part of the stuffed animal and sometimes I let it fall off.  Then the stuffed animal wakes up in a strange place and decides to go back to the cute blanket.  This last time, it was the Pink Jesus Loves Me Bunny.  So he decided to hop on the cute blanket since it moved so much.  Then occasionally the bunny would plant his butt on Tatiana's face and then the bunny would say "Butt Plant"  That got lots of giggles. 

Then we had family time in the living room.  She was interested in drawing with me.  Then she played with PlayDoh with Scotland.  She made purple donuts and looked through them. 

Tatiana spent the weekend being either a wonderful angel or absolutely horrible.  She didn't anything to do with naps and made a fuss both days.  Saturday night I had to lock her in her room because she kept coming out.  She told me I was "So rude".  I hate to do that at night, particularly since I then have to turn on the baby monitor. 
Sunday morning we went to Sunday School and I wasn't teaching.  I had been looking forward to church, but I ended up reading a book in the car.  I just needed a little time to myself.  She had lots of fun.  They said that she had spent a lot of time playing nicely with Audrey.  So, I noticed Audrey when we were leaving.  She was making a fuss because "She didn't a donut.  She wanted a cookie."  Her Daddy said "Ok, you can stay here."  Of course, Audrey followed.  It was nice seeing that other kids make a fuss.  The Sunday School craft had them gluing cereals onto a drawing of a hand.  She ate the cheerios instead.  I don't think she was hungry, she just confused it with snack time.  It did leave a wet glue blob on her paper. 

Thursday afternoon with Marcia

I forgot to mention her daytime yesterday. Scotland did some work for Chuck and Marcia and part of the deal was that they (Marcia) had to watch Tatiana.  Marcia and Tatiana had a ball.  They laughed and drew pictures.  Marcia wanted to paint her toenails, but Tatiana said no.  Tatiana told me all about playing with my friend while we were on the way to Kellan's house. I was talking to Scotland later and we decided that if we had wanted to put Tatiana in beauty pageants that Marcia would be a great coach. 

Halloween Trick and Treating

Yesterday, Tatiana was asleep when I got home.  Scotland and I loaded the car, because we were going to Kellan's house so the kids could Trick or Treat together.  We loaded the costume in the car and changed her at their house.  I went in to wake her and she still didn't want to wake up.  It is so cute to see her sleeping.  I don't get to see that often since normally wakes up as soon as I enter.  I picked her up and put her in her car seat a little asleep. 
When we got there Kellan was already in his fireman's costume except for his boots.  He looked adorable.  I got Tatiana dressed and then we waited until other Trick or Treaters were out.  Scotland, Amber and I took the kids out and Erik handed out candy.  It was really wonderful.  They both talked very quietly, Tatiana in particular.  I got video.   There were several gatherings  of neighbors in one driveway.  It seemed like a neat idea.  They set the chairs up in a horseshoe shape and they had a table for potluck food and every family brought a candy bowl.  The kids could go around the horseshoe saying "Trick or Treat" whenever they saw a bowl.  The adults could socialize when there weren't kids and exclaim to each other over the cute costumes.  There were several of these grouping. 
There was one person that scared Tatiana.  He wore a scary mask and he made a growly sound when Tatiana was reaching for candy as he had invited her to do. 

After we got back to the house, they took off their costumes and played.  The kids went in his play room.  They played very nicely together.  One thing funny, Tatiana came running out yelling for "Kellan's Daddy   Kellan's Daddy  Kellan's Daddy"  Us adults thought that was pretty funny. 

Then it was bath time and they invited Tatiana to stay for a bath.  Oh, my, they were so cute!  I knew they would be cute, but they were even cuter.  I didn't get any photos for obvious reasons.  Sometimes he would cry because she was playing with a car he wanted to play with.  Tatiana handed it to him, and got another toy.  At point she was splashing him and he said "Stop".  I had to coach Tatiana but she stopped.  Then later he said Stop to something else, she stopped on her own.  After bath time the men had belly time with the kids.  What I saw was the kids running up to the Daddy while on the bed.  And the Daddies would pick them up and toss them onto their backs on the bed.  The kids thought it was great.  I think that is a standard thing for Erik and Kellan.  Tatiana would sometimes not even wait for Scotland to toss her she would sort of bounce off of him and land on her back. 

They were both crying when it came time to leave,  I think mostly because they knew it was bedtime.  It was past time for both of them.  On the way home she said, "I miss Kellan"

When I got home Tatiana was sleeping, although she hadn't been asleep for long.  Yogi gets so excited to see me that she runs up and down the hallway.  That wakes Tatiana up.  So, even though I would rather rush in and kiss and hug Scotland and Tatiana (when she awake) I can't because I have to give Yogi attention first.  Tatiana's ears are tuned to hear Yogi breathing heavily so sometimes Tatiana still wakes up.  Last night, she woke up just as I was walking down the hallway. 
We played with her Light Brite.  She is getting to where she is willing to follow the pattern, but we only get about 30 lights in and then she wants to do something else.  One of her little games is "Which one do you want?"  You take turns holding out stuff in your hand and saying to the other "Which one do you want?"  And then the other person points to one, and you hand it to them.  Then you switch.  So, we did that with the lights. 
Then we ate.  I wanted the mashed potato leftovers from last nights dinner.  They had been left out all day, but I ate them anyway as a side dish. 
After dinner we watched TV and played as a family, and Scotland played with her some while I relaxed. 
When it came time for the shot, she was hugging Daddy and it was left butt day.  I pretended like I missed and got Daddies belly instead. 
When I was reading my last book I started to feel ill.  I thought I was imagining it.  I wasn't, but I made it to the bathroom.  I am pretty sure it was the mashed potatoes. I felt really horrible and got in bed.  Tatiana did not get her cuddle time.  So, Scotland brought her in, and she got in med with me.  After just a little bit, she went to her room and brought two trips worth of animals to keep us company.  Some were designated for me.  She knew to stay away from my belly, and she did.  Although she did want to talk and my throat hurt.  Then she settled down and was soon asleep. 

When I got home yesterday, Scotland and Tatiana were both sleeping in the big bed.  They were both so adorable.  I would have watched them for longer, but I was afraid of waking them up.  When they woke up, Tatiana sat in my lap while Scotland made dinner.  I really enjoyed that. 
After dinner Tatiana and I played.  We played with her Dinosaurs and then she had me read her from her Highlights magazine.  She has figured out that there is a game in there.  So Tatiana and I cut that out, and then all three of us played it.  It was a pretty simple game. 
Then it was bedtime, and Scotland wasn't feeling so good, so I did toothbrush time and I read all four books. 
We didn't do it last night, but one of the things we often do at bedtime is what she calls "Triple tack"  really Triple Stack.  Scotland normally reads the first book and then they call for me.  I love to hear "Mommy. Mommy".  Then I come in Tatiana leaps on top of her daddy to give him a big hug, and then I come in and lean over and hug both of them. 

This morning, when I came into the house from walking Yogi, I heard Tatiana singing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star to herself.  It was adorable!  Then walking down the hallway, I noticed her door was open.  I was going to quietly shut it, and then I noticed that the song was coming from the Mommy/Daddy bed.  She was there is my spot on the bed.  Her empty milk was on the table next to Scotland.  She was not happy when I carried her back to bed.  She insisted she wasn't going to sleep in her bed, so I put her in her chair.  Plus Purple was already in the chair.  She must have moved it. 

We had a nice evening last night.  Lately she wants me to feed her pasta.  She never really got that as a baby because she went straight from breast milk to feeding herself.  With the pasta, she feeds herself too.  I have banned long pasta from the house until she is older.  It is so hard to get just one noodle twirled on the fork.  And it is too much for her mouth if there are two. 

She had a bath yesterday evening.  She likes the water to be cold.  I don't know why.  I played with her while she was in the bathtub.  She likes the bubbles that Scotland puts in.  She was playing with a washcloth and swirling it.  Then she noticed that it looked like a seal when it was swirled.  So, Towel Seal and Mr. Turtle swam with the letters.  Each letter came and asked to join in.  Then we had Belly Time.  Lately it is less belly kissing and more playing with the towel.  First Towelie tries to get her, and that dries her off.  Then she tried to get Towelie while Towelie runs away.  Mommy got in some belly kisses too.  I tell her, "Mommy sees belly.  Mommy kisses belly.  That is just the way it is".

Speaking of kisses, we have really been enjoying that "How many kisses do you want?" book.  Last night, I selected the White Book which has a collection of stories in it.  She picks out a story in it.  I was on the bed, and she had to sit up to turn the pages to pick out a book.  She was so serious.  It was adorable. 

On the way to church I bought us some Breakfast Jacks because I didn't have time to make breakfast.  I love those, and they are $1.  Tatiana says in a happy voice, "It has ham and cheese and eggs!"  She is my daughter. 
About halfway done she says, "I am eating it like a giraffe"  I had to change my mirror to look.  She took a little bite and then pulled in a couple of inches away and then took another quick bite

Lately Tatiana has been climbing into bed with us.  She says she gets lonely.  Because of Scotland's sleep machine, to cuddle I have to move to the middle of the bed.  Friday morning about 6am, she climbed into bed and snuggled down into the space I had left.  I was too tired to take her back to bed or even do more than notice and then fall back asleep.  I have been worn down from being sad for Bernie's family.  I had work clothes in the laundry room, so I left her in bed.  If she knew I was leaving for work, she would think it was wake up time.  She tried Sunday morning, but I took her back to bed.  She tried this morning too.  It was so adorable.  She brought her milk and her stuffed Minny.  I don't think I would have known but I heard her talk softly to herself as she settled in.  She cried when I told her she had to go back to bed.  This happened when I was getting up for work.  She had to go potty. 

This weekend I tried putting the potty lid on the toilet seat.  Because of her size it did not go well.  Between the toilet seat and the potty lid in order for her knees to bend, she had to sit so far forward that she peed on the seat.  Which upset her for obvious reasons. 

At Sunday school, we said the Lord's Prayer.  Tatiana told the other kids that her Cuddly Bear says the Lord's Prayer.  They were looking at her like she was making it up, and I said "It is true".  The teacher looked at me and I explained that if you press its tummy, it says it.  She thought that was the neatest thing. 

She wore her Ladybug Fairy costume to her Friday gym/crafts/swimming class.  Scotland got photos.  She looked adorable.  She told me about the other kids in the class.  She also said she got in trouble because she was playing with the "boy in the blue shirt instead of sitting on the line" 

One of her favorite playground games is "Shop".  The playsets seem to have little window areas.  You sit on one side, and she is on the other.  You request stuff and she brings it to you.   Then you pay her with wood chips or whatever is on the ground. She likes telling you she that she doesn't have what you ask for, but she does have this other thing. 

Tatiana wore the cutest outfit yesterday.  She had on a red long-sleeved shirt, a red/white/blue patriotic skirt and a soft red velvet hat.  She still had on all but her shoes and hat when I got home. 
We had a wonderful evening.  Although we didn't get to finish the ladybug game that Tatiana and I were playing.  The cards we had used were scattered around where we were playing.  We were near the end of the game.  I was gathering up the cards, and Scotland thought we were done so he asked if Tatiana wanted to get the mail with him.  She did, but that was it for the game.  I was upset with Scotland for stopping the game, but he'd thought because I was cleaning up it meant that we were done. 
She did not get any books read to her last night.  She was causing a fuss and not cooperating with getting the PJ's on.  Scotland said that if she didn't settle down he wouldn't read her a book.  She said "That's OK, mommy will read me books".  He told her that if he didn't read her a book, that I wouldn't either.  I agreed from the next room.  She still fussed.  We left her in the room until she settled down and then I cuddled her.  

I have to brag about Tatiana, MY daughter.  Scotland and Tatiana were at McDonald's yesterday after swim class.  There was a little boy that scared crying.  She walked up to him and gave him a hug and said "Don't cry.  This is McDonald's.  It is fun."  Then she took his hand and led him to a play house, and they played. 

It has been awhile since I posted, but I thought I would dive right in.  I have been meaning to give a general update, and that was intimidating. 

Tatiana had a wonderful time at swimming class yesterday.  Class was fun but then both the other kids in her class stayed to play.  Scotland had brought those balls that you could change to make them float or sink.  Tatiana was playing with the little boy with them, and the little girl was playing on her own.  Then the little girl decided she wanted to join in the play, and Tatiana didn't like that.  Scotland said she seems to really prefer just playing with one child. 

She didn't want to eat her dinner last night.  Then shortly before bedtime she said her tummy hurt.  We thought it was because she hadn't eaten much all day.  As I was reading her books, she threw up.  Sometime in the wee hours of the morning, Scotland brought her to our bed.  We could get her to a bucket quicker. 

Gram writes:

When Tatiana was here & we were shining some silver pieces = I told her that in some areas we need to use elbow grease.
She wanted to know what elbow grease was & I explained that is when you need to give extra effort to doing a project.

3rd Birthday Menu

Menu:

 

Sandwich fixings

- deli meats

- good bread

- sliced cheese

- tomoatoes

- lettuce mayo and mustard

 

Cocktail weiners on sticks

deviled eggs

Judith ‘s Red, White and Blue Jello Salad 

 Cashews

Lemonade

water

juice boxes

Champagne, wine and beer

 

 

Butterfly Cake

3rd Birthday

My 3rd Birthday was held at Gram & Grandpa's house.
We had a butterfly cake.

Plus we swam & blew bubbles & played ring toss game outside.

When we were inside = we played with a roomful of balloons in front computer room.

Last night, Tatiana and I were "drawing".  Really squiggles with markers in her notebook.  Then I printed her name and she recognized it.  She thought that was pretty wonderful and she was proud of herself.  I wrote it a couple more times, then I showed her the word "Mommy".  She didn't recognize it but she studied it really closely.  Then she wanted to do something else.

Later in the evening, Scotland was taking a nap.  Tatiana and I were on the computer.  Scotland started to snore.  So, she would go over to hug him.  She'd climb up on the bed all by herself and give him a big hug.  We both knew the real reason was that she wanted him to stop snoring. 

During the day yesterday, Scotland and Tatiana went to the zoo and saw the monkeys.  The train took 1.5 hours coming back because it kept having to stop on the tracks.  So, they got back late and Tatiana never took a nap.  She wasn't cranky though during the evening like she usually is when she doesn't nap.  That night on one of the books I read to her, there was monkeys on a jungle gym.  She did a really good imitation of the noise monkeys make.

Gram posted  about Tatiana's stay at our house :

Did I tell you that I referred to lighted beauty item as a "beauty station". Tatiana  told me : "Gram that is a beauty table ! "

Tatiana likes to put on bracelets on Kathy doll. I looked at doll today & she is wearing 4 bracelets. LOL!


I know that she loves her "magazine" (Zootles ). She told me here that there were a couple pages she needed to read yet in her  magazine.
 When we blew bubbles = we got some very big bubbles. We called it a HUMONGOUS bubble. So she started using that word too.

Gram posted :

Tatiana loved watching fireworks in our back yard.
She told us that last year = Kellan ran in the house & then she went in.
She did not even want to go inside during this years fireworks. She would comment about colors = like red or green etc.
She did imitate boom sounds.
Tatiana would sit in Grandpa's lap. Then in Gram's lap. Then go sit in her chair. Also she walked around the pool.

We so enjoyed her excitement !

Potiana

Scotland just told me that Tatiana calls her potty, "Potiana"

This weekend Tatiana said when she is "a big girl" she will drive me while I sit in the car seat.
 She was really really pleased when I told her she can drive me when she is 15 years old.

She thought it was a great idea and she even re-itereated, "and you sit in the car seat?"
Main thing is that she really wants to sit up front.
I told her it won't be allowed until she is much bigger.

Bedtime Routine

Bedtime Routine:

1.      Starts with toothbrush time.

a.      She has the option of either having her hair brushed, or brushing her teeth.

b.      Toothpaste is optional, and she will put it on.

2.      Purple goes in the crib, as well as cold water (no ice or one cube) and cold milk in baby bottles.

3.      She goes potty. 

a.      She can be read a book while on the potty, or be song her potty songs.

b.      If she doesn’t go potty she gets a diaper (orange one is good)

c.      If she goes potty she has the choice of training pants or underpants.

d.      We call the valentine diapers “training pants”, so we use those when she wants training pants but we’d rather she have diapers.

4.      She picks out four books.

5.      She is read the four books.  I usually like the lights just bright enough for me to read.

6.      Lights go out.

7.      I sing the nighttime song

a.      (first verse) “Mom-my, she loves you.  Really really loves you.”  (can substitute for Mommy.

b.      (second verse) “Ta Tee Ta Tee Tatiana girl.”

8.      While singing I usually hold her.  Sometimes she starts with a hug and then moves to a cradle.  Sometimes she goes straight for the cradle.  She is really clear with what she wants. 

9.      When she is relaxed I put her in the bed on her purple. 

10.   She’ll wiggle and settle in, usually grabbing her milk. 

11.   Then she will say “Settled” or “blanket”.  That is my signal to put the blanket over her and under her arms.  Then the blanket has to be tucked under her all the way around. 

 

 Had GREAT fun today going to Tatiana's ballet recital. It was so fun & exciting! There were 8 girls in class recital . This was 2-3 year old group.

They did cute curtseys too!

They also did a little tumbling.

She really followed the teacher the best tho.

Tatiana was the best of course! LOL!

Bob gave her a single big Pink thornless rose. I have a charm bracelet on order with some charms on it now. Other assorted charms can be added later.

What a super day!

 Gram sings a made-up song to Tatiana :

Order in the court

Tatiana is the Queen

Slept in the bed for the first time

Tatiana had a huge milestone Saturday night.  She slept in her bed for the first time!   I wasn't prepared for it.  I'd thought we'd wait until after we moved to Farmersville.  I've read that big transitions can cause kids to regress.  So, I didn't want to make the switch, and then be putting together the crib at 2am our first night in the new house.  But, when she was putting her PJ's on all by herself.  She asked me "Can I please sleep in the big bed, not in the crib?"   How could I say No to that?  We owned the bed barricades to keep her from falling out of the bed, but I didn't remember where they were.  I worried she would use the freedom to wander around her room.  So, I told her she could if she promised to stay in her bed.  She agreed.  It went pretty well.  I read the first two books in the bed with her.  The I sat on the floor so she could get settled into her sleeping position.  At one point, she wanted another four books while she was in the crib.  When I asked if she wanted to sleep in the crib, she said No quickly.  All was quiet until around 6am when she cried for me.  She had rolled out of bed.  I asked her if she wanted to go to the crib or back to the bed.  She said she wanted to sleep in her bed, and she wanted me to sleep in there with her.  It seemed reasonable for me to be a barricade to keep her from rolling off.  I did not get much sleep, but she slept fine. 
I felt bad that Scotland wasn't there for the big milestone.  He said he would have been upset with me if I'd said No just because he wasn't there.