a few things i want you to know about yourself when you were two..you can recite the pledge of allegiance and sing all the words to "grand old flag." in fact, whenever you hear anyone say "heart", you tell us all to put our hands over our hearts. you've undoubtedly learned this at school. you can also sing all the words to both verses of "you are my sunshine." i can't begin to count how many times we've sung that song together.....................so, about june...so much happens in a month!
early in june, we had our first annual neighborhood block party. you had a blast running with all your new friends and eating popsicles. you met your new best friends on the block, brooke and abby. they're 9 and you think they're the cat's meow. (so does your mom, cause they come over and play with you sometimes and i get a little house cleaning done!) we've discovered IHOP, you and I, and i don't mean the pancake place. It's called the International House of Prayer and it's a place where people sing and pray together all day and all night long. tonight we went for awhile and you joined the other kids in a little section they've created for dancing to worship music. you danced your heart out and i have a feeling you'll want to go back...we also went to homer's coffee shop "pickin' on the patio" where they play bluegrass and gospel music and have an open mic outdoors on monday nights. you enjoyed it and even requested a few songs. they had you come to the mic to sing "twinkle twinkle" and afterward you wanted "itsy bitsy spider!!!" so we sang them together. ..this month we visited des moines, iowa to see your great grandparents, great aunt and uncle sue and doug. i think ggma marge and ggpa oliver really enjoyed having us. you always make them smile. ggpa oliver even went to the zoo. according to the rest of the family, this was a miracle as he doesn't like to get out much. we all loved watching you run around and get so excited about the animals. speaking of zoos, we took you and your cousin charlize ( you call her char char) to the omaha zoo last week. it was a great family vacation. you girls got to swim in the hotel pool and we all shared a room. we spent the next day at the zoo and then drove to marysville that night for a fly-in and memorial dedication at the airport for one of my old classmates who died when we were younger. there were lots of people there and you sat in cousin chris grauer's helicopter. we saw skydivers too and ate free hotdogs. then that night, we went to hanover, ks for one of the greatest fireworks displays any of us had ever seen (even your daddy!) you weren't sure what to think about the bright lights and loud booms so you snuggled up to daddy and just peeked out every once in awhile. afterward, though, you decided you'd liked them. you and charli loved swimming in the pool that grammi had waiting at their house for you. (at one point you went all the way under water accidentally. but you were a brave girl the next day and got back in!) grammi and papa weren't home, but jenn, alan and charli, your daddy, you and i took over the house and had a lot of fun together. you continue to love hanging out with our little neighbor, david, and you two are always looking for each other when we're outside. he got a swing set which you LOVE to play on. you can see it from our porch and you remind me often. you know that you're going to be 2 on julyyyyy fourth (that's how you say it). you also know that's the day we say "bye bye to sassy." your mom had the brilliant idea to have you let you of your pacifiers that day. not really looking forward to it. we've told you they're going to live at another house like the kitties did. in a nutshell, josephine, you are an absolute joy.
You have your own voice now...
Well, Josephine, we've reached the point that I can't keep making up a blog voice for you. You've definitely found your OWN voice, so from now on, these entries will be from your mom to you to help you remember the first years of your sweet life. It probably won't be as much fun for everyone else to read, but i hope it will be a keepsake for you one day. So much has happened since our last entry. We took you to your first carnival (in downtown Mission) and you rode what you referred to as the "steering wheel" (ferris wheel). After riding the carousel and a little car kiddie ride twice, you went home and threw up in your crib. What were we thinking?!? Anyway, it's a memory we'll always chuckle at...You've fallen in love with the stadium, Slugger, the carousel, and your favorite player -- Billy Butler. You talk about all of them quite a bit...You also love Dora the Explorer, which you watch faithfully every morning...You love to play pretend games -- pretend to drive to sonic and order a drink for everyone, pretend to drive to Hyvee, pretend to serve us all kinds of interesting concoctions from your kitchen - most frequently coffees of all sorts (which is what you always hear mom order-- my favorite is your term for decaf -- "de-coffee") You also serve chocolate, peaches, medium diet cherry coke, pancakes (of course), birthday cake, salad, and countless other favorites. You continue to develop an extensive vocabulary that now includes things like "are you SERIOUS?" -- "i'll come back to see you!" -- "pat me, mommy" (when you want your back patted) -- "i go to hyvee and ride in the SPECIAL cart!" (the one with steering wheels) -- "my birthday is july fourth" -- "there's a tiny little bit in there" (referring to the milk in your sippy cup) -- the list goes on...We've been spending a lot of time with Jenn and Charli. You girls get so excited to see each other and then you bicker just like aunt jenn and i did when we were little. But at the end of the day, you love each other. What a blessing to grow up together! You're now going to Little Sprouts only 3 days a week and staying home with me for 2 days, which we both love...You're really into "pretend" calling people and you love to sing all the time. You've become quite independent and you say "do it myself"a lot...You had your first "official" skinned knees today. You cried for about 20 seconds and then decided you'd much rather stay outside and play than go and get a bandaid. We went to the Morrises house for a little Memorial Weekend get-together this evening. You, Izabella and Isaiah have a lot fun together. Oh, and we've been visiting your old babysitters Miss Peggy and her daughter Missy once a week. You've gotten to reconnect with your old "buds" which has been great. You've grown up so much since you used to go there. Daddy took us to St. Louis this weekend to see "different stadium" where the Royals played the Cardinals. Even though the Royals lost, we had a blast together. Well, that's all for now. Going to post some pix!
My New Fish & Other Happenings by Josi D.
Lots of exciting things happening around here -- most notably, I adopted a fish! Mom and I went to Petsmart yesterday and she let me pick out a fish and I named her Dorothy (just like Elmo!) This morning, Dorothy was floating at the bottom of her bowl. Mom says she was sleeping in so we were really quiet and didn't disturb her. When I got home from school today, I noticed that Dorothy looked really different. I pointed and said, "DIFFERENT Dorothy." Did mom think I wouldn't notice that it was another fish? I guess the other one went on vacation... Daddy's been working so hard preparing for opening day, but he calls and comes home whenever he can. We know his hard work will pay off when opening day comes in 3 more days! I'm pumped about checking out the new stadium! A few other thing i'm excited about...I love to make "towers." This usually involves pulling all the clothes out of my dresser drawers and piling them up really high. I'm also really into pancakes--eating them and pretending to make them. Been saying some silly things. For some reason, I keep telling mom: "No clothes for YOU." I went to my very first official "playdate" with 4 boys! Their moms marveled at how much I talk. Like a typical girl, I was the chatty cathy of the group while the boys just wanted to throw balls and run around. I've been enjoying some great visits from the grandparents. For awhile there, they were staying a lot and mom was acting really lazy. Now she feels better and she's chasing me around again. We had a slumber party at the Jessups last Friday and went to visit Miss Peggy too. Gotta sign off for now. More soon...Night Night!
springing forward
i've decided to take time out of my busy day to write this for uncle carl. dad says he actually reads our blog, so he deserves a shout out! THANKS, UNCLE CARL! we've been having some awesome spring weather so me and the Little Sprouts are playing outside a lot at school. daddy and i play in the yard with the ball. i'm getting pretty good at throwing. On chilly evenings, mom and i invent things to do until daddy gets home. Most recently, mom turned a cardboard box into a playhouse for me. i think she's WAY more into i than i am. she has fond memories of the one she had when she was little. i have to admit, it's pretty fun to have my own place. had my 15 month check-up the other day (even tho i'm 20 months...we've been slackin'). got 3 shots but i was brave. papa came in with us, so he helped me feel better fast. i'm officially 25 pounds, and in the 75th percentile for height, so still considering athletics or maybe i'll just be a tall ballerina. the doctor asked if i have at least 20 words in my vocabulary. mom laughed cause i'm so chatty, they've lost count. did i mention that mommy has a baby in her tummy? sometimes i ask daddy if he has one too. i'm going to have a new brother or sister in september. not sure what that means, but i'll understand soon enough, i guess! i'm really starting to talk on the phone to people. before, i would just stare at the phone when they talked. but now, i chat them up. also, if you come over, it's likely i will want to read to you. yeah, people used to read to me, but that was soooo last year. now, i pick up my favorite books and just string together snippets of words i remember. guess it's pretty entertaining. we went to Taste of Leavenworth last weekend. It's a benefit auction that grandma and grandpa d. help with every year. they had great food to sample and so many people to watch. my favorite was a little coin funnel. it kept me mesmerized all evening as i mooched pennies and nickels off of people so i could drop them in. plus, my buddies aunt sue and uncle doug were there! yesterday, we had breakfast with the shums -- karmen,justin and kathy. they're so much fun. they always pay attention to me and there's always a lot of laughter and story-telling when they're around. here are a few photos. oh, speaking of photos, check out what mom caught me doing the other day. she said i could take ONE kleenex, but i just enjoyed pulling it out so much, i couldn't stop. going to close for now. we're getting ready to head out for a mexican dinner. until next time...
where did january go?
well, i'll tell ya. for starters, i spent the first month of 2009 getting adjusted to my new "school" (see previous blog :0) much to mom and dad's delight, i went from crying when they dropped me off to crying when they pick me up cause i don't want to leave. a good sign, indeed. i love to say the names of my new friends there: miss natalie, mr. david, miss laverne and all the kids. i'm learning to walk in my green rubber boots with the frog faces on them. when we play outside, we all wear boots. it's my first boot experience. i'll post a pic for you. i'm learning so much -- always coming home singing a new song -- jesus loves me, twinkle twinkle, i'm a little teapot, wheels on the bus, and other things mom and dad can't quite make out yet. other things i'm saying a lot: c'mere pleeeeease!...cutie patootie...amen, ALELULIA! (i shouted this at church with grammi and papa last week)...what happened?...kittie food, daddy said "NO" (indicating daddy's preference that i keep my hands out of the catfood)... MY mommy (as in, not YOUR mommy)...where'd mark and kim go?...mommy be back, daddy be back (when they drop me off at school)...right here!(showing mommy where to put something)... move please!...sit down here...go see OLD PEOPLE (mom says we need to start calling them seniors)...walk AGAIN. i like to put on mommy's stocking hat and grab my purse and other random items and pretend i'm going to mexico. i've decided i like baths cause mom and i always play with letters and numbers in the bathtub and dora and boots take a bath with us. today a package arrived in the mail. it was "helen" -- our dear friend sarah tripp's cabbage patch kid. sarah's husband jack sent helen to me to raise since sarah went home to be with jesus. we became fast friends, helen and i. i was delighted to discover she has a belly button too! oh, i also love serving people from my play kitchen--food and drinks of whatever sort. i often ask mom to get the coffee pot out (which i call a teapot) so that i can offer the good stuff. oh! i've fallen in love with the moon. tonight mom got the cutest picture of me reaching for the moon. she and dad think its cool that i think i can actually reach it. they say if more adults were like that, they would dream more and doubt less. whatever. too deep for me at this point. i'm just reachin' for the moon.
I'm a Lil' Sprout!
Announcing my first official week at Lil' Sprouts Montessori Daycare/Preschool. I'm not gonna lie, people -- it has been rough. Well, mostly in the mornings as i cling to mom and dad and cry "don't like it!" as they run out the door feeling guilty. However, the truth is, Miss Natalie says i'm happy most of the day, learning and interacting with the other kids (who are all different ethnicities --a bonus point with mom and dad). I've learned to sleep on a little mat at nap time. We all have our own spot that we sleep in every day. Miss N. turns the lights down low and plays soothing music and makes it smell really good. The only problem is,i can only have my pacifier and blanky during naptime, and it's been like quitting smoking cold turkey when she takes it away. I'm adjusting, but dang, it's hard. Mom says i'll thank them one day when other kids are still trying to quit. Whatever. So how did we find Lil' Sprouts school? Mom and Dad had been praying for a long time to find just the right little place to continue loving care i received from miss peggy during my first year of life. They were feeling like i was ready for the next step. One day, Mom was at our favorite coffehouse (Homers) and she found a business card for Miss Natalie Nelson's Lil'Sprouts Montessori Preschool -- Nature Based, Christ-centered, a little urban farm in the city -- mom and dad loved the sound of it! So, we visited and found a beautiful log home with a huge backyard that has raised garden beds, a green house, a big tree house, little fish ponds and best of all CHICKENS!! Miss Natalie is a really neat lady. She, her new husband, Mr. David, and her housemate Miss Laverne are the teachers. There's a neat little kitchen where we learn to cook organic foods and even to recycle! (mom loves it that this place is granola!) We kids have an "egg business" that includes collecting eggs from the chicken coop, putting them in cartons, and selling them to our parents. We have "circle time" where we sit cross-legged on mats and Miss N. says i'm good about sitting still and paying attention. We learn praise songs, things like days of the week and months of the year. Unless it is bitter cold, we go outside for awhile in the afternoon. We wear slippers inside and rubber boots to run around in outside. Mine are green and look like frogs. Well, gotta run. Week #2 is coming up. We're enjoying spending the weekend as a family!
Christmas 2008
We had a delightful holiday week! Mom says it’s one of the most relaxing she can remember. It started Sunday as we headed to Gammi and Papa’s (notice I changed her name to “Gammi,” so mom says we’ll go with that). I ate all kinds of good things (as usual) and we went to some fun parties – at the Bradfords I played with my new friends Reece and Ava Gray. Christmas eve we went to church and mom and I joined the procession of children who brought the baby Jesus up to the manger. Then, we went to Great Gram’s house for dinner and to open our stockings and a few gifts, too. I got a “cell phone” from Great Gram and a baby doll from Gammi and Papa. To mom’s delight the baby is not Caucasian (she wants me grow up appreciating many different ethnicities!) We named him Moses and now he has a brother T-Shawn, which I named after one of Grandma Jeanne’s friend’s sons. Afterward, I entertained everyone at the Shums with my favorite yoga position – the down dog! We headed for Leavenworth Christmas morning to see Grandpa Carl & Grandma Jeanne & Uncle Alex. We all gathered around the tree to open gifts – I opened some cool new books and then ran off with them while everyone else opened their gifts. Finally, they lured me back in and I discovered all sorts of goodies – even a high chair and a cradle for my baby dolls! We watched daddy played in an alumni basketball tournament at IMAC. I wasn’t sure at first about the whistles and the buzzer and daddy being jostled around out there, but then I decided it was pretty fun to run around the bleachers and watch people. As we watched, I kept saying, “Go Daddy!” He loved having us there. In the last week, my vocabulary has exploded. I like to say, “C’mere!” and “OH MY GOSH!” “I see you!” (which I kept saying at Christmas eve mass in the cry room). I like to point at the dollar bill and say “George Washington.” I like bust out singing “Happy Birthday, Jesus” like mom taught me at Christmas. Tomorrow is my last day with Miss Peggy before I begin Lil’s Sprouts next week. Mom and Dad are praying for a smooth transition!
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