Marit is 15 months old!

Marit is 15 months old!

It's funny how different things are with a second child compared to the first. How quickly time passes and how easily you forget things unless you write it down. I hardly have time to see the kids and so I maintain this blog as my way to "write everything down" so we don't forget. Most of these tidbits are all little things and even those that seem like a big deal, like when they got their first tooth, said their first word, took their first steps, aren't really in the grand scheme of life. Nonetheless, I usually kept track of one thing for Theo, and that was his age. I wrote it on my calendar and I would count his age in days for a while then it became weeks until he was at least 6 months old. Strangers would have to do the math when I said "28 weeks" and so at some point, I switched to months. I kept counting months until he was at least 2.5 years old. Well, things are a little different for baby #2. When Marit was born, we stopped counting days after about 2 and weeks after about 3 and we more or less estimated her month (but usually I had to count to be sure). Luckily, now that she's 1, it's a lot easier to remember and we've stopping counting. However, sometimes celebrating these monthly birthdays is fun and it is a good way to check in on her milestones and to stop and reflect on what a beautiful lady she is becoming.
Today, I look at these lovely pictures that we had taken in Costa Rica last month and despite the fact that we continue to call her, "Baby Marit", she is no longer a baby at all! She is a full grown toddler with big beautiful blue eyes and long arms and long legs with a great toothy smile! I can hardly remember what she was like when she was small, which is why, today, I am making a list of what she can do so that we can look back and remember these fun little moments and memories. Before I know it, she'll be two.

Love those eyes!

Marit takes after her big brother in many ways and has learned a few tricks of the trade. Here are a few of the things she has learned how to do over the past few months:

• Goes up and down stairs on her own without crawling
• Insists on using a fork and spoon (and even does quite well with adult forks at restaurants)
• Picks out her favorite books to read and nestles herself on our lap and rests her head back. Her favorite books are Dr. Seuss touch n feel, Katz lift-the-flap, and Thomas the Train.
• Climbs up on Theo's high chair as soon as he vacates it for a better view
• Drinks juice/milk/water out of a straw at restaurants
• Prefers to climb up playground slides rather than go down
• Loves to sway/dance to music, specifically the Thomas the Train birthday cake toy
• Sticks her hand in the toilet when the seat is left up
• Says a few words like "Ball", "Juice", "Choo" for shoe, and "Gran-pa"
• Can reach the door handles and tries to open them (scary!)
• Carries her shoes around and says "Choo choo" and tries to put them on (or Theo's or Daddy's)
• Arches her back to try to get down from being held
• Immediately rolls on her belly when lying down to get her diaper changed
• Lays on the floor screaming when she is tired, hungry, or both (I thought the terrible two's started at two and not 14 months)
• She tries to hit or bite us when she is mad
• She loves to run around in her diaper "naked"
• She blows bubbles in the tub and loves to splash
• Works the remote controlled Lightning McQueen car toy
• Turns on and off the motorized Lego Duplo train and fills it with "gas"
• Climbs on the coffee table to help build (or destroy) Theo's Lauri peg tower
• Puts on a rubber bracelet by herself
• Helps us get her dressed without much fuss
• Hates having her hair done (especially pigtails)
• Loves picking out her pink fuzzy jacket to wear and gives it to us and then turns around and puts her arms back so we can slip it on for her, just like a proper lady should
• Plays with the velcro on her shoes and routinely takes off one of her shoes in the car
• Holds a crayon and makes art projects at Miss Janet's preschool
• Loves the hot tub at swim class and only tolerates the big pool
• Sleeps with her "lovies" - her crochet blanket from Maggie Clayton, pink bunny from Uncle Dan, and yellow fuzzy blanket from Grandma JoJo
• Loves playing with her toys, including her Fischer Price Dollhouse, shape sorter toy, play kitchen with food and shopping cart, and anything that is Theo's (wooden Thomas the Train table and Disney Cars toys)
• She went to the dentist for the first time and was excited to climb up in the chair but didn't appreciate having her teeth examined. Turns out she has all 4 molars and we need to start brushing! She has 6 on top and 5 on the bottom now. She is a size 24 months/2T and wears size 6 shoes
• She's grown at least an inch since her first birthday and shows no signs of slowing down
• She has excellent balance, like her brother, and enjoys standing on the balance board
• She puts up with a lot of sibling abuse from Theo but continues to adore him