Violet at 32 Months

Violet loves playing dress up and twirling in "spinning" dresses.  Usually she is playing dress up by herself, but every so often, Lucy and or Emma will join in and help dress her up.  It is a little sad to me that Violet doesn't have the built-in side-kick that Lucy and Emma have in each other, but I am hoping as she gets older they will share more fun together.

In the meantime, while Lucy and Emma are off playing together, Will and I fill in as Violet's playmates.  She really leaves us no choice, as she drags us by the hand and tells us how to play.  Below in clockwise order from the top left: Violet playing baby with Will - Violet is the mom and Will is the baby, Will bringing Violet inside from playing in the snow because she peed in her snow pants, Will playing baby again and wearing baby doll shoes on his big toes (put there by Violet) and finally, Will holding all of the babies.

Lately, Violet's favorite pastime is making Will or I her baby, and it can be frustrating for us as she won't break out of her "mom" character - even when it's mealtime or bath time or bedtime - she insists on feeding us, bathing us or tucking us into bed.  Here she is below after the "peed in the snowsuit" incident.  Violet will play in the tub until she is shaking with cold, which is a good long stretch of time for me to write a blog post.

I don't need to convince Violet to be the baby when she wants milk, and trust me when I say that I cherish every moment of it!  I've mentioned before how difficult feeding was for Violet when she was a baby, and so despite her being closer to three than to two, I have no problem when she demands to be held like a baby and curls up on me.  I can't help but wonder if she is overriding traumatic feeding memories from when she was younger.  I think it is also helping me to override the traumatic memories I have as well from when she was a baby and feeding time was so difficult.  One of the best parts of being a parent is the bond that comes with feeding snuggles and I did feel like Violet and I were robbed of that the first year of her life.

I called Violet's occupational therapist from when she was a baby and let her know that Violet ended up being diagnosed with Ectodermal Dysplasia.  The front desk staff never let me through to talk with our old therapist, but I am hoping she got the message.  Interestingly enough, through much trial, error and tears we did finally find the right muscle stretches that helped Violet to eat and now that we know exactly what we are dealing with, it makes so much more sense why those particular exercises helped!  Our therapist was so patient and kind as we tried to unlock the pieces of the puzzle for our Violet!

Earlier this past month Violet started complaining of tooth pain.  She has one bottom tooth that is growing on a 45 degree angle and looked to be pushing into the tooth next to it.  Will and I were worried that she could lose both teeth, and since she is already missing so many teeth we were concerned about what would need to be done to save one or both of her teeth at such a young age.  New friends of ours that we met at our first Ectodermal Dysplasia conference this past summer put us in touch with their trusted dentist who is very experienced in Ectodermal Dysplasia.  This dentist's level of personal care was probably the best I have ever experienced in the medical field.  He got us in touch with a colleague of his at Children's Hospital and we got in within the next business day.  This is a feat in itself, as typical waiting lists at Children's Hospital can be months.  Violet was seen by the head of Pediatric Dentistry and had her first set of x-rays done.  This was a big moment for us, as we had no idea what the extent of Violet's missing teeth will be as she is still so young and we've been trying to hold off on x-rays as long as possible since there is nothing we can do right now with the results anyways.  It was a scary moment when we saw her x-rays and solid proof that she is missing most of her adult teeth.  Sometimes it's better to not know the future as hope was traded for resignation at that moment.  The dentist was encouraged to see that she does have solid anchor teeth which will provide the support she will need when she has dental work as an adult and so we have found our hope again, and this time that hope is that dental technology will advance a great deal by the time Violet is ready for her dental work and that it will be as smooth a process as possible.

Come to find out, the tooth pain Violet was experiencing was a popcorn kernel, stuck in the back of her tooth, down in the gums.  What a relief to know that it was something that was easily fixed!  Picture the nervous, relieved laughter when the dentist showed us the kernel, removed by a simple piece of floss!  We were given lots of great tips on how to care for the triangular space created by the angled tooth next to the straight tooth and all in all, were happy with the knowledge we gained and the quick fix to Violet's tooth pain.

Here is our girl below, playing.  As you can see, she is starting to sport the cutest little pony tail.  She also is officially over taking naps.  She not only can take the baby gate down from her bedroom door, she also knows how to unplug her baby monitor.  I guess you could just say I am done fighting her for naps.  If we are driving anytime after 4pm, you can be sure she will fall asleep and then go to bed around midnight but otherwise, naps are over for Violet.

Violet's favorite thing to say is "I oh no" which means "I don't know" when we ask her why the house is a mess, or where her socks are, or why she pinched her sister.  Violet is very good at imitating us and will mimic our voices, our tone and even our mannerisms.  My favorite this past month was when she told me, "Mom, why you say, huhhhh (think long, exasperated sigh), Violet."  Well, Violet, when you ask to use a public bathroom for the fifth time in one shopping trip, I get a little exhausted!  Thank goodness you are always making me laugh with your humor and your perspective!