Potty Training - The Beginning

We have just recently started with potty training. Kara is getting to the point where she doesn't really want to wear diapers and seems to be interested in using the potty. She also starting pointing at the toilet and saying "pee pee, potty." So, Mommy went out and bought Elmo's Potty Time (which Kara watches almost every day) and a training potty. So far, Kara has not gone pee pee in the potty, but she has whizzed all over the bathroom floor on several occasions. Yeah, isn't potty training fun?

We've been keeping ourselves pretty busy for the last month. On the weekend of the 4th of July, our friends Drew and Stacy and their son Dax came over to check out our new house. Kara and Dax had a lot of fun playing in the sprinklers. Later that weekend, Mommy's Uncle Randy, Aunt Tracey, Cousin Brad, and Brad's girlfriend came to visit. Kara had a lot of fun entertaining the crowd.

Temper tantrums are pretty much a daily occurrence these days, with her first "major meltdown" happening today and involving animal crackers and the library...

Kara (who refers to herself as "Tata") has a vocabulary that is expanding quite a bit and she can usually get her point across. "Tata shoes out park!" "Music dance!" "Watch Mickey" "Mama lap sit read" "Tata poot" :) Kara will specify the books she wants to read - as in "Nigh Nigh George" (Curious George), "Chi Chi Boom!" (Chicka Chicka Boom Boom), "Eggs, Ham" (Green Eggs and Ham), "Waan tooo fish" (One Fish Two Fish...). It's pretty cute... when she's not yelling at you. "Bubbles! Bubbles bubbles bubblessssss!!" Ah, toddlerdom.

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Breckenridge 2011

The second half of last week, we went on our first real vacation (where we weren't sleeping at the Grandparents' house) with Kara. Grandma and Grandpa S. go up to Breckenridge for a week every year, so we decided to spend some time with them (we needed the time away from the house after the move).  The weather was beautiful (highs in the mid to high 70's), which meant we could enjoy spending time outside.  Kara had a lot of fun hiking and playing at the pool.  Every morning, Kara climbed into the hiking backpack, and Mommy and Daddy hiked up the mountainside with her.  In the afternoons, she mostly played at the pool.  She particularly enjoyed running through the water fountains.  All in all, it was a great vacation!

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Let the Summer Activities Begin!

Kara has been having a lot of fun so far this summer. We started off the summer by heading to the "Taste of Louisville" in downtown Louisville. Kara had a great time walking though the crowds and getting to see all the people. On the same day, they had "Touch a Truck", which is rumored to include a helicopter that flies in.  We decided that Kara was still a little young for that, but that should be a lot of fun next year!

The weather this June has been quite warm. It's been in the high 80's to mid-90's almost everyday. Kara's room faces south, so Mommy and Daddy have been trying to keep her cool. One day, Mommy got out the sprinklers and let Kara play in the water for the afternoon. Kara had a great time!


We are finally moved into the house, or, at least, the boxes with our stuff are at the house. Last Saturday Kara spent her first night away (at Grandma and Grandpa S.'s) so we could move without a munchkin underfoot.  There were no tears, just a wave and a few "bye bye's."  She came back home Sunday morning happy and ready to help unpack.  Kara has been really excited playing with her "new" toys that have been in storage for the last 9 months.

As far as Kara is concerned, Mickey Mouse is where it's at. At least 5 times a day, she'll point at the TV and say, "Mickey, please." When Mommy and Daddy say that Kara can't watch TV right now and has to wait, she says, "Mickey, wait!"

Kara is becoming quite proficient at speaking these days. She'll pretty much mimic any word. Mommy said "bathing suit" and Kara immediately repeated it. She's also getting pretty good at combining words to create basic sentences. This afternoon, she said, "Momma sit, book read." She also likes to dance. She'll point at the radio and say, "music, dance." Mommy will put on some classic rock, and Kara will bop to the music. Rock on, little girl!

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Kara reading through her magazine while Daddy gets breakfast ready.


Practicing turning the lights on and off.

Moving...

So we made the first part of our final move to our new home on Memorial Day weekend. Now we're busy unpacking the house and getting ready for our stuff that's been in storage for eight months. We foresee a summer filled with boxes!

Kara seems to be doing pretty well with the transition, though she seems to be having a bit of trouble getting to sleep at night. We hope this will pass soon. She loves her new big backyard and the new found freedom of the larger house.

This week, Kara is really into playing with balls ("kick!", "catch!", "throw!"), pointing out certain letters and numbers, and opposites. Some of her favorites to say and demonstrate are: open and close, up and down, off and on, happy and sad, and dark and light. She also just started showing interest in puzzles and is figuring out simple ones. Yay Kara! Her favorite books are Go Dog, Go! and Anno's Counting Book, though they change frequently.

Kara is now crazy about Mickey Mouse. She was on a Grinch kick for awhile, but now Mickey is where it's at. She asks to watch Mickey on the TV (much too) often, but settles for Mickey books when it's not TV time. She can't seem to get enough of the mouse. It's pretty cute that she can clearly pronounce "Mickey!" now, as well as Pete, Goofy, and Duck (no Donald yet).

Kara has come a long way with communication in a short time. I guess that's part of what being a toddler is all about!

Oh, and after two gym classes, Kara learned how to "stick" her landings. So now when she feels like it, she'll step down/jump wherever, throw her hands up and exclaim "stick!". It's the cutest thing (says her Mama). :)

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May Activities

We've had an eventful few weeks but not many pictures to show for it. The major family news is we bought a house April 29th in Louisville! Grandpa S. and Tyler have been doing lots of work on the house, and we'll be moving in Memorial Day weekend.

Kara is a real chatterbox these days (at least with Mommy and Daddy)! She is constantly talking, gibberish and real words. Some "words of the day" include: cheese, apple, happy, up, go, eat, please, dance, shark, turtle, cracker, cupcake and yes, even lots of "mama's"- yeah! Kara refers to herself as "tata" these days, which is pretty funny.

Kara went to her first gym class this past week and had a ball. She started running around the gym floor, climbing and crawling all over the place, before class even started! She really enjoyed the balance beam (with Mommy's help) and the obstacle course. Kara even clapped for the other kids - what a sport!

This morning was filled with family visits. Kara got to meet her great-uncle Randy from Kansas for the first time today! She also got to see Mommy's cousin Cassie. Kara warmed up to her immediately and was even saying "Cassie" by the end of the visit! In addition to Randy and Cassie, GG K. came up for a visit. We showed them around our new house (which is kind of a mess at the moment since we're putting in new hardwood floors). It's a work in progress...

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