The Zoo

On Friday, Wade and I took Harper to the zoo for the first time.

 Despite the nice, cool weather it was not the time to go.  Many, if not all, of the animals were out for seeing, but the attractions, snack stands, and rides were all closed.  We still had a good time, but we'll definitely go earlier next year.  Harper's favorite animals (let's not get into specifics here) were the fish and the momma and baby elephant:

Now if only we could find a petting zoo!

Fashionista

This is what she did when I said, "Freeze!"

Pre-Terrible Twos

Harper is still far off from the "Terrible Twos" phase that everyone claims toddlers go through.  However, she's been giving us all a taste of what that's going to be like for the past few weeks.  I know she's got it rough.  She's able to comprehend what's being said to her far better than she can communicate which often leads to frustration and anger.  Sometimes this frustrated anger is expressed through tears or grunts of exasperation, but there are other times when she gets overly emotional and hits someone (or something, including the poor dogs).  For the most part, we redirect her.  We tell her it's wrong to hit and try to distract her with something else.  But sometimes she likes to get her point across and lashes out again.  So we've been trying Time Out.  At first it was very effective.  One minute sitting in an area that is completely removed from distractions was enough to get the point across that we aren't going to tolerate hitting.  After the minute is up, we go to her tell her the offense that is unacceptable and ask her if she would like to say she's sorry.  98% of the time this works.  Lately, though, "no" has become her favorite word (wait, haven't I been saying this for the past few months???).  For example, after her minute was up in Time Out the other day the situation went like this:

Me: Harper, you know Momma doesn't like it when you hit.  Can you tell Momma you're sorry?

Harper: No.

Me: You aren't sorry for hitting Momma?

Harper:(shyly) Nooo.

Me: Hmm, okay.  Well, do you want to stay in Time Out until you're sorry?

Harper:  (very excitedly) YES!

So I left her sitting in Time Out and went back to whatever it was I was doing before.  She was devastated so I didn't let her sit there much longer before going back and repeating what I had asked her before.  This time she jumped up and put her arms around my neck and laid her head on my shoulder.  We're trying to get her to see that we don't hit her when we're upset or angry and when we do do something that hurts someone else or we do something that they don't like, we apologize and make them feel better.  It seems to be working somewhat.  She understands that being sorry means giving a hug or a kiss.  Time Out isn't enough to get her to stop hitting or throwing things, etc. but she does think twice about doing the action (either while doing it or right after you can see it in her face or she immediately hugs you).  Sometimes I feel that Time Out is ineffective and is just making her feel bad about herself.  Sometimes I feel that it is just teaching her the wrong thing - do something bad to someone/something, hug them/make it right, everything's okay but really nothing's changed - and we're not getting the right point across to her.  But I'm at a loss for what to do differently.  I do get on her level and talk with her, but I know that she's only 17 months old and cannot comprehend everything I say.  We really try to not spank as I feel hitting equals more hitting (at least that's how it is with Harper).  I don't like yelling because it scares her and sends the opposite message.  So until I can figure out another way of handling these types of situations, we're sicking with Time Out.  I know things will getting better as she learns how to express herself more through words.  I also know none of us is perfect and there will always be outbursts.  My hope is that we're teaching her the right way and that there will be more outbursts of love and happiness rather than anger.  This parenting thing is not without it's challenges.  But when those little arms go around my neck I feel like melting into a sappy puddle right on the floor.

Cuteness Abounds

The school year is once again underway for Wade and me.  Lots of reading, late nights, and crazy schedules.  But we're still able to find time for some fun.  I have pictures to prove it, too :)  

Harper's Nutella experience.  From head to toe.  Literally.

Watching Youtube videos with Daddy before bed.

Having fun at lunch with Mimi.

Getting all dressed up, complete with curls (and Mimi's necklace)

And just acting silly!

Finally Friday

Just some silly time before bed last night.  Harper thought her new swimming cap was hilarious and was more than willing to smile or give me funny faces to snap pictures of.

Happy weekend to everyone!  It's good to be back to regular blogging!

I Couldn't Resist

It was hard to pick just a few pictures to upload yesterday.  Here are just a few more that I couldn't help but share.  If I can get some videos to upload I'll have those to share tomorrow.

And We're Back!

My new laptop arrived in the mail today.  The first thing I did was upload all of my pictures and videos from over the past couple of months (almost 600!).  I won't waste a lot of time today with words.  I've decided instead just to post a bunch of pictures with captions.  Hopefully this means I'll be back to regular updates!  Since my last update Harper has been up to:

Walking...

Playing Peek-a-Boo...

Celebrating...

Eating strawberries...

Swimming...

Sleeping in Vermont...

And growing hair to wear in pigtails

 

Nursing No More

Today was the first day Harper has ever gone without nursing.  For the past few months she's gone from 3-4 times a day, to just morning and night, and recently down to either morning or night.  I knew the inevitable was coming, but I didn't expect the progression to happen this quickly.  She's just over 15 months and I expected us to go until at least a year and a half.  In a way this is a good thing.  Wade and I are going on our first out of town trip.  We'll be gone for 3 days.  The longest we've ever left her was around 7 or 8 hours and that was when she was around 4 months old.  I didn't know how she was going to handle 3 days without nursing, but it looks like that won't be a problem.  That's good for all of us, I think.  I must admit, though, that a part of me is mourning the loss of this closeness that we've shared for so long.  It means that my little tiny baby is no more.  It's forcing me to accept the fact that she's growing and so is the dynamic of our relationship.  She's becoming more independent each day.  It's absolutely amazing to watch her grow and develop and while I am outwardly cheering her on, the inside of me is selfishly clinging to the little baby she once was.  Oh the anguish we parents must endure so our children can grow, huh?  And we've only just begun!  I'm proud that we were able to last this long.  We surpassed my goal of a year and so I can't complain.  Now, let's see how I handle being away from my sweet little girl for 3 days!  Eek.

Around the House Yesterday...

Right now we're into necklaces (pretty!), hair accessories, and wearing no pants while at home.  Love this age.