"Bless you, mommy"

Eloise's vocabulary continues to impress me daily. She's managed to somehow switch a "you" in a "I" ("Eloise, you have new socks now." Eloise responds...."I have new socks.") and even a "thought" into a "think." I don't know how she puts this all together but she is and it's really pretty amazing.

Today's display of vocab-prowess included her new fascination with saying "bless you." I've always said "bless you" after someone sneezes and I've tried to teach her this but once again, I think school has really brought this one to light. They have a classroom full of snotty, sneezing kids so I can only imagine the amount of times they get to practice that one daily.

So today, I woke up sicker than a dog. Although Eloise runs around with a smoker's cough and green snot running out of her nose like nothing is wrong, I, on the other hand, get these daycare germs and want to die.  I spent all night nauseous and ready to vomit. I finally did so early this morning after we came downstairs. I tried to sneak into the bathroom unnoticed so not to scare Eloise but instead I lift my head from the bowl, turn around and find her saying, "Bless you, mommy. Bless you, mommy."  Seriously? Omg, I love her so much. Although a pinch confused on the usage of "bless you", she's still the cutest little Monkey going:)

Puddle Stompers

What to do on a cold, soggy day in Charlotte?  You bust out your Puddle Stompers and matching rain coat, of course. Eloise, Gramma, Mimi and I had a blast!

Eloise's first boyfriend

I know they've been coming in droves. Her boy friends have far surpassed her possible girl friends quite literally since day 1. And she's been holding out on telling us exactly who is her one true love is. But after careful review and analysis, the jury has reconvened and Miss Eloise has officially shared her heart. It's with Michael. Michael from school, I mean. Not her Daddy.  After Mike found Eloise laying beside him reading stories (and no one else) at school late Friday afternoon, we were kind of on to her.  Then she officially professed her love this weekend by repeatedly asking for Michael. Therefore, I'm letting you know....Eloise, at age 21 months, now has a BF and his name is Michael. We'll call him, "Michael-with-curly-brown-hair" because Mommy has no idea what his real last name is.

Eloise in the first person

You've already heard about how "Ella-weez do it" but our little miss thang has taken her first person language skills to an entirely new degree. Apparently all day, every day at school she walks around parroting whatever the teachers say but changing the name to herself. Examples provided from the teachers...

"Michael, it's time to read books." Eloise immediately responds, "Ella-weez read books" even if she's clear across the room doing nothing with books. "Stewart, no pushing." "Ella-weez no pushing." "Colton, leave your shoes on." "Ella-weez shoes on." "Lillian, are you hungry? It's time for lunch." "Ella-weez hungry." "Mia, it's time to change your diaper." "Ella-weez dirty diaper." I could quite literally go on and on. Her verbal skills are off the charts and it's totally 100% due to all of the time she spends practicing.

I thought I caught wind of miss Chatty Kathy when I went to pick her up yesterday. From the hallway I kept hearing Eloise talking so I listened more closely and it was something similar to the above. "Ella-weez, no running." "Ella-weez use paint."  I came into the room and she still didn't see me so she kept at it. Hilarious! (although I will say for the teacher's sake, this might get annoying all day, every day, but since she's mine, I love it.) And thankfully since I find it all so amusing, she does continue her first person parroting act here at home but I only get a few hours of it each night where they get it all day. Lucky duckies!  "Ella-weez lucky duck." Lol. Ok, I made that last one up.

St. Patty's Day Fail

I'd share with you a super cute picture of Eloise all decked in green from today. But, ummm.....Oh that's right, I completely forgot that today was St. Patrick's Day. And that she was having a special green party at school in celebration of the lucky saint.  Ugh!  Mom of the Year status for this one, seriously. Unreal. There was not one child, teacher or employee in the entire place that did not have green on today. Of course, except for my daughter, Eloise. The Leprechaun's Lackey.  You know they put her on party-clean-up-duty for that mistake.

Honestly, at some point I'm going to get it together. I really will. Because by now, the Rookie Mom Status has completely worn off. Rather, I'm just a complete moron. A moron mom who had her daughter decked in pink and polka dots on St. Patrick's Day.  And the total irony??  She has red hair AND is Irish. Lord save me. Or someone save me. I mean, really.

A couple of cute moments

Last night the Monkey created her very own dance party. She even invited all of her monkey friends!  After nearly retiring the music table forever, Eloise has developed a renewed commitment to her former favorite toy.  The music table has by far had the longest shelf life of all the toys that have come and gone from this house and so I'm not really surprised that she's still getting her groove on all these months later.

And last night was no exception.  After strumming a tune and shaking her little rump all on her own, she dashed off and came back with Noni, because "Noni dancing."  Then off she went and came back with Nana, because "Nana dancing." Then Mimi, because "Mimi dancing." Then Baby, because "Baby dancing."  I was too entertained to grab the camera in the midst of all of this but I did manage get one pic at the tail end that truly captures the Monkey's love for music and shaking her groove.  Check this out. Closed eyes, smiling and pushing that little butt out. Can't you just see her at a concert someday??

And here's one more pic. My little Sweet Petey just before bed time. This is post dance party so clearly she and Mimi are all tuckered out.  Look at that face. I just smoosh it and kiss it every second I get!

And here she is!

Drum roll please.......and ta da...here she is! Covered in chocolate and dirt and running around, finding sticks and dangerous objects to play with. Here's the girl you've been waiting for!

We had an absolutely beautiful weekend in Charlotte including tons of sunshine and 70+ degree weather both days. Eloise enjoyed several hours outside exploring and finding lots of trouble to get into. We also had a fun overnight visit from Aunt Corinna who helped me follow Eloise around and make sure said trouble zones weren't actually entered or eaten. Her little ones are starting to be mobile so this weekend with Eloise may have turned out to be a pinch of boot camp training for what it's like to have a 21 month old running around. She's non-stop. Which speaking of, Eloise turned 21 months on Friday. I completely forgot. Mom of the year, I know.

Lastly, the balmly Charlotte weekend was especially helpful during the Corporate Cup 1/2 Marathon I ran on Saturday morning. My goal was to get a 1:34 and I did just exactly that, a 1:34 (7:08 per mile pace). It was a really tough course but luckily I had great weather and the help of 2 running buddies to keep me going the entire time. Without them, there is no way I would have reached my goal. I'm so thankful for my newly found running group in CLT!

Oh wait, and here's a picture taken from Corinna's phone of Gramma riding trikes with Miss Eloise:)

The good week continues

Eloise continues to adjust to school as each day is getting better and better. She even surprised us all with an hour and 15 minute nap yesterday. But don't bank on that being a permenant change because today she skated by with just a 30 minute one. Either way, she was all smiles when Mike went to pick her up so that's good. Let's hope for one more great day tomorrow and we'll close out the week on a good note!

We're making some headway

For the time being, this blog is going to exist on daycare updates alone. Sorry. I just can't find enough time in the day. Bottom line. Working moms. How do you do it? Because I'm not. I find any excuse not to bath my daughter so I can have a little extra playtime with her. (ok, she bathes every other day. it's not that bad.) I sometimes buckle at dinner time and let her eat in the living room. She walks around here with not one Mimi monkey but 2. She only sometimes listens to me and I sit back and watch my control slipping out of my hands with every single second she defies my rules. 

But alas, I only get to see her for 1 hour and 45 minutes post work and I feel like I'm doing the best I can. And with that, I can only hope and pray that somehow this all works out. That she knows her boundaries. That she learns her manners and that somehow in all of this, she grows up a good kid. She certainly won't grow up a kid that lacks any amount of attention or love, that I can guarantee. Will she go to school with dirt under her nails on occasion? Yes. Will I forget to brush her teeth every once and awhile? Yes. But will she be a kid who knows her mommy loves her more than life itself? Yes. And that will simply have to be enough.

Now, onto my daycare update. We've made some serious headway this week with the Monkey and school.  On Monday she had her first ever completely cry-free day. How exciting!  Drop off was amazing with her zooming off to play with some trucks and barely even noticing that Mike left the room.  When I picked her up, she was happy to introduce me to some of her friends.  Then first thing this morning she professed her new found love of her teachers by telling me, "love you Meka and love you Keisha" while I was getting her diaper changed. When we got to school she revealed her secret and told them herself. (Temeka and Keisha are her teachers:) Very cute. Pick up wasn't as great but she still had a good day all together. For some reason she doesn't like going outside at school, which is very strange because she loves going outside at home. Nonetheless it makes her very upset and I rolled in there just after they were outside so I caught her in the midst of her meltdown. Tomorrow we're hoping for another "Monday" as far as good days go. Stay tuned!

Happy almost birthday Gramma!

Love, Chloe

(and good news....my new lens arrived! Pics of Eloise wishing Gramma a happy birthday tomorrow!)

"Ella - weez do it"

On top of "self, self, self," I get a lot of this as well. "Ella - weez do it. Ella - weez do it." I know, I know, you can do it. And then she does. Whether it's eating or getting something from the shelf, what have you. She's Miss Independent, that's for sure.

Also another school update...today she was great at the drop off. Rather than crying when I took her coat off she pointed to one of her friends and told me his name was "Michael."  Then I told her instead of pointing maybe she could give him a hug or a kiss, to which Michael opened up his arms immediately. (smart kiddo:) Eloise, being the typical girl she is, instead leaned in for a kiss and when he went to reciprocate, she pulled back. Playing hard to get starts at an early age. Soon enough Michael will be chasing Eloise around the playground. Poor kid doesn't even know what's in store for himself. A man's rite of passage starts in daycare. Who knew?

"Self, self, self"

Our new nightly routine is such: I pick up Eloise around 5:15pm. We're home by 5:30pm and then immediatley get dinner going. She hunkers down at the table and we eat together. Off to the bathtub next and then some playtime along with Mickey Mouse Clubhouse or Toy Story.  This is all crammed into a mere 1 hour and 45 minutes because she goes to bed at 7pm. Ahhh...the life of a working parent. It's a total rat race between leaving work and getting Eloise to bed and no, I don't feel like we have enough time together but for what we have, we make the very, very best of it.  Being a full-time working mom truly makes you appreciate the time you have with your baby.  I defintely don't take a second for granted. Even when she's screaming and being bad and trying to push my buttons.

Today when we got home we did the same drill....immediately get dinner going.  Tonight's dinner was going to be a serious hodge podge, I'll admit it. She likes to eat right away so I have to race around here a little and get her something to snack on while I have her chicken nuggets (or whatever we have that night) cooking in the oven. Well tonight I decided we'd have some sweet potatoes.  She still eats these in the baby food version so I poured a good amount in the bowl and Eloise went crazy yelling, "self, self, self" to which I quickly figured out she wanted to "eat by herself" with no help from Mommy.  So I handed over the spoon and I'll be damned if that little girl hasn't mastered using a spoon (at least with sweet potatoes). Alas, another 2 thumbs up for daycare.

I've let her practice with her spoon numerous times but I'll admit, sometimes it's just easier to feed her the cereal or the rice or whatever it is.  And because of this, she hasn't used her spoon enough where I feel it's safe to just hand it over and let her eat unattended. She's great with a fork, but spoon usage around here gets quite (messy) scary.  Throw a kid in daycare and all reliance on Mommy is quickly thrown out the window. I wonder what's next? Maybe she'll drive herself to "school" tomorrow. Or at least dress herself. I mean, really.

Sadly I missed the photo-op moment of her literally shoveling sweet potatoes in her mouth so you have to take my word for it. It was quite impressive. She had a few drops on her shirt and her mouth was a mess but she didn't get any on the table or the floor. Mucho impressed Monkey girl!

And the additional good news for you....I finally ordered a camera lens and should get it early next week. By the time you next see Eloise you'll think she's 5 or something. I'm sorry it's been so long!

Daycare update

I know you're all chomping at the bit for a daycare update. And I'll say Miss Eloise has had a good couple of days this week. I'm nearly afraid to say it but I will....I believe she is starting to officially adjust. Although she still isn't really sleeping there (naps for maybe 30 minutes tops) she's having a much better time, is eating at each of the meal and snack times, and is really coming around much sooner than I expected.

Of course she still has her moments - as in just today when I went to pick her up and instead of going right into the room, I peeked through the window on the door first. I couldn't see her anywhere but then all of a sudden I heard some banging on the door and yelling, "out, out, out"....Well who do we think that was?? I open the door just a hair and there's my girl, covered in paint from their art project, hair all over the place because she won't keep her rubber band in, and tears running down her face trying to escape from the room.  Despite this the teacher did somehow convince me that she actually had a good day.  I wasn't so sure but it makes me feel better to take their word for it. Sigh.

As I've said to friends, she needs to conform like a good little soldier.  All of the other kids already went through this hazing period and she's next in line. Soon enough she'll be a little daycare robot as well. And I say that in the nicest, kindest, it's-ok-it-doesn't-bother-me kind of way.  She can still have the little spark plug personality she has, but she needs to warm up to her new friends and teachers, love all of the fun activities they have to do all day, follow the rules and routine, and nap like a good girl. Then we'll be all set. It's kind of like having a bully on the playground. As soon as the bully cuts the act and starts playing nice, everyone has a good time. Not that Eloise is bullying the other kids. Alright. Alright. Bad analogy. Ugh. You get my point. I'm looking for "Good Soldier Status". I'll keep you posted.

A couple of other updates in the child care arena....Number 1 - apparently it's not called daycare. It's school. Whatever. And my 2nd update.....Hawthorne Lane Preschool called me and left a message. They are opening up a 2nd classroom for 2 year olds and Eloise is in.  Yay!  But not really. I don't think we're going this route now that I'm working full time. I need to email or call them back and say "thanks but sadly, no thanks."  I do find it interesting though that they had so much interest in their school that they had 13, 2 year olds on a waiting list and so they opened up another classroom and are hiring more staff.  For our family, daycare, I mean school, is a better set up for Eloise (I think.  If she's still not adjusting in a few weeks I'll have to figure something else out.) so we're going to stay the course.  With all fingers and toes crossed Eloise will quickly learn to love her "school" and we won't need to regret our decision with Hawthorne Lane.