Emma's Last Month as a One Year Old!

Emma is proudly wearing big girl undies now!  Potty training was not on our agenda this past month, but the stars aligned and as fate had it my car was in the shop for several days leaving me home bound with a daughter who kept taking her diaper off.  Three days later my car was fixed and Emma was well on her way to being potty trained.  That's not to say we don't have accidents still, but she understands the concept and is more upset than anyone else if she doesn't make it to the potty in time.

The above picture was taken early on in the learning process when it was still a novelty to Lucy to have company in the bathroom.  Now the toilet is just one more thing for them to fight over.  Emma has her own schedule and will go potty when and where she wants to.  If I need her to go before naps, bedtime, or before we leave the house I have resorted to bribery.  If she puts poop in the potty she gets two M&M's.  She gets to play with my phone as long as she stays on the potty.  Here Emma is below playing on my phone.  She has discovered how to take self portraits.

Emma's laid back, easy-going nature seems to have been replaced by a girl who knows what she wants.  We have reached a new level of fit-throwing, which includes screaming, kicking, rolling around on the ground and even at times, turning blue from lack of breathing.  We now know to blow in her face to make her catch her breath and calm her down a bit, but for the most part we steer clear of her until the storm passes.  Things that usually set her off are stunting her independence by offering assistance without asking her and anything to do with Will.  Yup, poor Will has been the fuel for many a fit-fire this past month and it is getting a little old being the only parent allowed to help her without inducing a fit - especially in the middle of the night and for all the many potty-times.

Will has been making a point to spend special time with Emma, and we are hoping by her second birthday this phase will be past and she will be a Daddy's Girl like Lucy.

Maybe Emma has learned how to get what she wants by observing her big sister.  Lucy is still the queen of fits at our house.  Here is Emma below, plugging her ears as Lucy exerts herself in the background.

Emma enjoys doing everything her big sister does, including playing dress-up, dolls, Duplos, arts and crafts, watching Dora, Clifford and Elmo on TV, and playing with Lucy's friends.  Here Emma is below hanging with the big kids.

Emma likes things just so.  If you do something once, you will have to do it the exact same way each and every time after.  She would wear the same outfit everyday if she could.  Her favorite is what she calls her "butterfly dress" followed in second place by her "frosty the snowman dress."  When riding in the car she has to have her sunglasses on and her magna doodle in hand whether it is sunny or dark out.

Some of my favorite things that Emma has said this past month include:
-when asked a yes or no question, Emma will respond with, "O-tay, sure!"
-when asked if she needs help, she says, "I got it!"
-when she is playing with her dolls, she will tell me, "Mama, Polly loves you!  Mama, Twin Babies love you!"
-when Lucy does something kind to Emma, Emma will say, "Awwwww, Sissie."
-when Emma tries a new food and doesn't like it she shouts, "Too Spicy!!!"

It's hard to believe our Emma is almost two!  She is the perfect blend of sweet, cuddly, independent, adventurous, loving and silly and we love her!

Food and Funnies for February

My goal for Lent this year is to work on being present in whatever I am doing.  I find it challenging at times to focus on the routine tasks of motherhood, and the various things my kids need from me.  My struggle to put boundaries on my phone usage (my iPhone is both a blessing and a curse) are part of my desire to learn how to be present in the moment.  Tactics I have found useful as I work on my focus include involving all five of my senses in whatever it is I am doing, as well as finding the humor in everything.  Here I am below, laying on a sled while the girls played outside, gaining a new perspective.  It was amazing to hear the girls voices coming from above me instead of below me while feasting my eyes on the wonder of a winter sky.

I still have a long way to go but I will say that this new approach to living came at a great time.  After downloading the pictures from February to write this blog post, it occurred to me that although this month was extremely difficult, the pictures seem to paint a completely different picture - there were so many pictures of food and fun that I had to collage them together in an effort to save space here!  

Let's start with the food.  I wish that I was one of those people who lost their appetite when they were stressed.  Unfortunately, the more stressed I am the more I cook, bake and inevitably eat.  This month I discovered how to make Amish dinner rolls and crepes.  Translate that to carbs and more carbs.  But boy were they good!  Below is a picture of several of the many varieties of crepes that I concocted including strawberry cream cheese, Marsala mushroom cream sauce, chicken/spinach/water chestnut/cheese, applesauce, and last but not least, Nutella with bananas.

At one point, Will sat down for dinner and said, "Wow!  Crepes again?"  Interestingly enough, after my dad's surgery and Luke's birthday were past I was completely over the crepes.  Thank goodness because I'd have to buy bigger pants otherwise.

And now onto the fun.  We played outside a lot this past month.  The weather was what every kid dreams of - lots of packing snow.  I haven't had this much fun playing in the snow since I was a kid.

Lucy tasted her first bite of snow and told me it tasted like grass.  We enjoyed snow man building, sled rides, snow angels, skating (and falling) on ice in our boots and even an attempt at a snow fort.

We had fun indoors as well, making Valentine's Day decorations...

Being silly with our food at dinner...

....and playing with dolls.  Below is Lucy with all of her dolls.  She has so many that she not only fills a shopping cart but had to put one in a carrier on her as well.

Playing legos has become Lucy's second favorite past time.  She likes making "Happy Houses".  When I asked what makes them happy, she showed me how, "All the friends and family are together in one place mom."  I couldn't have described a Happy House better myself.

Lucy made a fort all by herself one afternoon during quiet time.  Up until this point she would ask for help to position the blankets just so.

The girls enjoyed their afternoon TV time watching Clifford, Dora or Sesame Street together...

And even enjoyed the thrill of as Lucy informed me with great glee in her voice, "Mom, we are doing sumthin we shouldn't be!"  Playing on the iPad without permission is definitely something she shouldn't be doing!

On a super cold day this past month we decided to stay indoors and paint the girls' toenails.  What a simple, yet great way to relish having daughters.

And finally, as many of you saw on Facebook, my biggest laugh this month was on Valentine's Day when we spent the morning downtown shopping at our favorite shops and enjoying an impromptu lunch out with just my girls and me.  We don't eat out often due to budget constraints and health reasons so when we do it is really special.  During our girls morning out, Lucy kept complaining about her tights falling down and I kept telling her in none-too-patient terms that hiking your tights up with your dress practically over your head in public was not appropriate.  Finally, on the walk back to our car from lunch Lucy was really whining in earnest about her tights.  As we crossed the main road to the parking lot she said, "MOM!  I just can't take it anymore!"  It was then that I really looked at her and this is what I saw:

I literally stopped in my tracks, set Emma down in the parking lot and crossed my legs so I wouldn't pee my pants, I was laughing so hard.  Lucy looked at me in relief and started laughing too.  I honestly don't remember if Emma found the humor in it, but Lucy and I sure did and it was a great reminder about being present in the moment.  If I had paid attention to the poor girl instead of tuning out her whining, I wouldn't have looked like a terrible mother as I dragged her across Main Street with her tights at her ankles.  Ah yes, I love my girls and with their help, I am truly learning what it means to be present in the moment and how much it means to them.