Go Girl!

You have had an explosion of developmental activity in the last week. You are crawling on all-fours almost all of the time now. You have started climbing on anything and everything, including the couch, massage chair, stairs, ottoman, etc. You can even get down once you climb up! You are pulling up and standing all the time. You are jabbering constantly. I think you might give your sister a run for her money in that department. It has been amazing to watch you over the last few days. The wheels are turning. I think you are enjoying your brother and sister being at school. You have to entertain yourself, which is making you more motivated to do things on your own, and you don't have one of them constantly doing things for you.

Fingers crossed, you will be walking before we know it! My baby is growing up!

Call in the HazMat Team!

This afternoon, you were playing on the floor with some of Jonah and Sadie's toys. I was sitting in the chair flipping through a magazine. I looked up and said, "What is all over Violet's leg?" You were covered in what appeared to be chocolate. I noticed a clump of something next to you. I was getting ready to yell at the kids for leaving food on the floor (even though I knew they didn't have chocolate today) when Jonah walked over to you and ran away screaming, "OOH. IT'S POOP!!!"

I went over to get a closer look, and sure enough, it was poop. It was not only all over your legs, but your arms, hands, feet, onesie, floor and the kids' toys! I picked you up and there were a few of the cards that you had been playing with poop-glued to your leg. It was awful! I asked Jonah to run a bath. While he did that, I did my best to get as much of it off of you as possible. It was a 10+ wipe situation. And the smell...oh my goodness!

The diaper was literally completely filled and oozing out all over. It was black and gooey with chunks of something that looked like raisins (which you have never had). After I carefully got you out of the onesie without depositing any more poop on you, I carried you to the bathtub and began the HazMat removal process. As I was doing so, I wondered out loud what on earth you could have eaten to have caused such an explosion and why it was so black. Jonah said, "Chocolate?" No. "Fig Newtons?" No. "Yogurt?" Definitely not. "Blueberries?" Of course!!! You ate a ton of blueberries yesterday! If I had known blueberries would cause this kind of reaction, you wouldn't have been constipated for the last 6 months! I have found a cure!

After getting you cleaned up, I went into the living room to survey the damage. It was worse than I thought! There was black/blue poop everywhere. Big pieces, little pieces, smeared pieces, poop hand prints, toys covered in poop, you name it. (Believe me, the picture does not even begin to do this situation justice)! I know you're thinking, good grief Mommy, how long was I sitting in my own feces? But I swear, I had just put you down on the floor not 5 minutes before and you were completely poop-free.

Jonah and I built a fence around the 'accident scene' with dining room chairs so that I could figure out how to remove it. I called Nana and she did a search and came up with vinegar and boiling water. Needless to say, our house no longer smells like a hazardous waste dump, but it does smell like vinegar! I'm not sure which is worse – but at least it worked.

The funniest part was when the kids tried to help me clean up. Jonah came in wearing a snorkel and giant clothes-pin on his nose and Sadie was wearing goggles!

Oh, the joy of motherhood!

Home Sweet Home

We got back from vacation yesterday. You were SO happy to be home! You did not enjoy the sand at all. (See picture) In spite of that, you still managed to have a good time. You loved splashing in the pool. You and Sadie were the only ones who did not get sunburned.

Nana and Gramps came down for a few days. You were very happy to see them. Gramps built several sand castles. They were the hit of the beach!

You learned a few new tricks while we were gone, including: saying "Nana" (appropriately), opening dresser drawers (and pulling everything out) and dancing! Now anytime someone sings or you hear music, you start swaying and moving your arms from side to side. It's totally adorable.

You are also communicating more by pointing for things when you want them. This morning, you were eating and you started signing "more" (which is what you do when you want something). I asked you what you wanted and you pointed to the cabinet with the cups. I guess you were thirsty because you guzzled down some water!

Here is a photo montage of you sleeping on vacation:

Day One

You are 15 months old. I can't believe it. You have grown up so fast! You are such a joyful addition to our family. Your brother and sister adore you and you can't get enough of them! Each morning, the very first thing you do is yell for Jonah ("Donuh")! You holler for him until he comes to get you. You also will call for Sadie ("Dah"). It is precious.

You are starting to push up onto all fours. Your mode of transportation currently is Army-crawling. You can pull yourself up to standing but never stay too long. You can say "Mama," "Dada," "Jonah," "Sadie," "more" (in sign language and occasionally out loud), "uh oh," "no," and "go."

Here is a picture of you having your first bath in the big bath tub on July 28th. You joined your big sister, which you both loved. Jonah watched and wanted to get in too but there just wasn't room!

We are getting ready to go on vacation in 4 days. I can't wait to take you to the beach and see how you like the sand and water!

You are so funny. You love to make us laugh and will often do silly things to entertain us. You are so sweet and loving. You are such a "Daddy's Girl" and get so excited when he comes home in the evenings! I love watching you grow and I love seeing your personality emerge each day.