Clara Turns 2!

My littlest lovey is two years old, and I feel very conflicted. On one hand, I love this age and love watching her grow and learn new things. She's so much fun! On the other hand, where did my baby go?! Anyway, the purpose of this post is not to wax nostalgic but to describe Clara's birthday. So here I go.

We started out with Swedish pancakes, as is tradition. Clara didn't understand why Mommy wouldn't let her eat the fun "2" pancake. She kept trying to grab it off the plate.

Then she got distracted by something (probably one of her siblings) and flashed this cute smile.

And then she noticed I was taking her picture, and she got shy cute.

She liked the yummy pancakes!

After breakfast, we went to Castle Rock's annual Touch a Truck event, which I thought she would like because she gets excited when we drive by big vehicles. What I didn't anticipate was that she would NOT like all the horn honking. I forgot they let kids honk the horns. She insisted that either I or Daniel hold her the whole time, and she did this for the first half hour or more that we were there:

You have to admit, her little concerned face is pretty darn cute.

But I felt so bad that on her birthday we took her somewhere that scared her! There was an indoor part of the event with crafts and prizes and treats, and she at least liked that part. 

Anyway, when we got home Clara had lunch and a nap. Then it was time to open presents! The first thing she opened was this button art thing from Grandma and Grandpa. She's so cute when she does it, saying all the colors as she does them. She doesn't match all the colors correctly yet, but she's still getting some good fine motor skill practice.

Watching her actually open the presents was really fun for me. She picked it up pretty quickly.

And, of course, Aubrey and Carter were right there to help her out (even when she didn't need them to, haha).

I didn't get a photo of her playing with it, but the above toy from Grandma and Grandpa is a cute Little People farm with animals and a farmer. It has songs and makes noises, and all of the kids have enjoyed playing with it. They particularly like sending the animals down the little chute.

Nana and Papa got Clara a few paint-with-water coloring books, which she immediately wanted to color in. She had to color on every page in all three books, but she never actually colored any of them all the way, haha. Also, why is it so cute when kids lie down on their tummies to color or read or watch something?

Mommy and Daddy gave Clara a stroller for her dolls (which used to be Aubrey's, but it was completely new to Clara, so... Free present for the win!). She immediatey wanted to test it out. She's really so cute about her dolls. Loooooove.

Mommy and Daddy also gave Clara this awesome, big doll house, which someone gave away for free. I don't understand, because they could have gotten a good amount for it. I'm not complaining though!

All three of the kids thought it was awesome and played with it for a good amount of time.

My favorite was when Clara put her baby doll in it to play. Hehe!

For dinner I made the creamy bow tie pasta the kids love.

And then we had Texas sheet cake.

I think she liked it! Haha.

Anyway, it was a low-key day, but it was good. I feel like this sweet, adorable girl deserves a parade or fireworks or something, but since she didn't even know it was her birthday, I guess there's no need for all that. Either way, we love and adore her. I have all the feels about her growing up; it's so wonderful and heartbreaking and fun and hard and... well, bittersweet. Love, love, love.

Elsa, Tiny Kisses, and Purple Yogurt

She's two. *sniff* It goes too fast! This is my favorite age, and it's my last time getting to experience it with my own kid. Clara is just so wonderfully fun; I don't want her to grow up. She has an infectious laugh and is so kind and sweet yet stubborn. She's a complete joy all the time, except at bedtime, when she's a complete buttface who makes ridiculous demands and keeps her big sister awake. We kind of adore her.

• Cute Clara-isms (some are already irrelevant, but I had to write them down):
• "I do it!"
• "Fup" for "syrup"
• "Faffite" for "flashlight"
• "I see it?" when she wants to see something
• "Sound?" when she hears something that she is unfamiliar with
• "Buhbook" for "buckle it"
• "Woah"
• "Fit tee" for "fishy"
• "No thank"

• "Poe poe poe" for "pull" when she's pulling on something (obviously)
• "Baaaa" and then "bash" for "bath"
• "Gahguh" for "cracker"
• "I keem" for "ice cream"
• "Snugguck" for "snuggles"
• "Go-guck" and then "yo-guck" for "yogurt"
• "Um" before she says things ("Um, Mommy?")
• "Ocean" for "lotion" (which she constantly asks for)

• "Coming?" when she wants you to follow her
• "Coming!" when she wants to follow you
• "Pie go?" for "Where'd the pacifier go?"
• "Watt" for "watch"
• "Oopie" for "oopsie"
• "Puh-puck" and then "puh-pup" for "purple"
• "Puh-pup yo-guck" for "purple yogurt," which is blueberry yogurt (which she ALWAYS wants)

• "Daddy/Mommy, look!" and "Watch, Mommy/Daddy!"
• "Waweefall" for "waterfall" (She shouts it enthusiastically when we see one.)
• "Watch a pad" for "watch iPad"
• "Apple auce" for "apple sauce" (which, by the way, she's obsessed with)
• "Ah mon" for "come on" (Her saying, "Ah mon, Carter!" when she wants him to play with her just kills me.)
• "Ah doing?" for "What are you doing?"
• "Sorry, Mommy" if she accidentally hurts me or destroys/breaks something
• "I do it!" (about EVERYTHING)
• "Go, Mommy!" whenever we're driving and I stop at a light or park somewhere
• The way she says "cookie" is the absolute best. Ohmygoodness it's adorable!

• Whenever I read her a touch-and-feel book, she grabs one of my fingers and rubs it on whatever the thing is to make me feel it too. Hehe.
• For awhile there, she would just sing "mama" over and over in a made up tune. 
• She likes to throw things in the fish tank that don't belong there. She also loves feeding him and yells, "Fishy ate it!" when Luke eats the pellets.

• She gives these sweet, little kisses that are so soft and quiet and wonderful. She'll just lean over and randomly kiss me wherever is closest, like my arm or my leg or whatever. Best kisses EVER.
• She always wants to be the one to turn off the light at bedtime. But she can't reach, so Aubrey would lift her up to it every time. Then, when Aubrey stopped being in the room for Clara's bedtime, I started doing it.

• When I put her to bed, she always says, "Huggy kissy!" as I'm leaving. So I go over and give her a hug and a kiss, and then she says, "Aubrey huggy kissy" to tell me to give Aubrey a hug and kiss. When it's naptime and Aubrey's not there, she still says it. So I hug and "kiss" Aubrey's bed. *shrug*
• She is always singing "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star," which she calls "how I wanna" because of the lyric "how I wonder." When she sings it herself, she just says random words/sounds, but she has the tune right! 
• She always draws all over herself. It's never safe to leave out a pen or marker.

• She started insisting on having the door open at nap time and bedtime. I think she's scared. Whenever she senses we're about to leave, she cries out in a panic, "Leave it open!"
• She recently watched Frozen for the first time. It was her first movie! She actually watched the whole thing with rapt attention. We had her watch it because she somehow got obsessed with Elsa. It may have been Aubrey's Elsa dolls or the Elsa bandaids we had for awhile... I don't know. But at some point every Barbie-type doll became Elsa. She calls them all Elsa. Also, she loved this Elsa dress so much that when I tried to take it off at the end of the day, she pulled it back down, held on tight to it, and said, "No, keep!"

• When we went on our trip to California this past summer, she often had a hard time falling asleep--new places with new sounds and a different crib, etc. When she struggled, I'd snuggle her on my and Daniel's bed to help her calm down. She was always so tired that she would fall asleep quickly, but only while snuggling my face. If, as she was falling asleep, I moved my face away from her face, she'd scooch over until they were right up against each other. Once she was asleep, I was able to pry myself away, but oh man... it was hard to leave the snuggles.
• She really likes having pockets. Here she is running around with her hands in them because she loved them so much.

• When she wants me to sit by her, she pats the seat next to her to indicate that I should sit. She finally started saying, "Mommy, sit" as she does it, which just adds to the cuteness.
• One time I was lying in bed when I needed to be doing something else. I don't even remember what it was or when it was. But Clara was in there on the bed with me, and I said to her, "Clara, I need to get up." Like the sweet, wonderful girl she is, she reached her arm behind me and tried to push me up into a sitting position. I almost died from the cuteness.
• She sleeps with a crap ton of things in her bed--two baby dolls, baby Yoda, Dolly Llama, Tygee, Pink Bear, and a sippy cup with water. And she insists on having all of them.

• At church, when we sing the hymns, she watches the music conductor and waves her hand around like she's conducting too. She does NOT like it when I try to move her arm in the correct pattern though.
• She started pretending to be asleep when I go to get her out of her car seat. Then, after I say, "Oh, she's asleep!", she pops her eyes open and gets this cute, big smile on her face.

• She does this hilarious not-so-sneaky "boo" that I have to pretend surprises me. We'll be in the same room--I'll be looking right at her--and she'll creep up to me really slowly and quietly (with a big grin on her face) and then yell "Boo!" when she gets right in front of me. She laughs so hard when I act scared.
• She loves walking around in other people's shoes. My favorite was when she put on Aubrey's tap shoes.

• When Carter gets sad, she opens her arms out to offer him a hug. She also brings him Mr. Purr, which is something she learned from seeing Aubrey and Carter do that for each other and for her.
• The kids love a few Weird Al songs, including "The Hamilton Polka," which we listen to a lot in the car. The song ends with a sustained note that is apparently Clara's favorite part. Whenever we listen to the song, she belts out that note, oftentimes way too early. But man, she holds it out. It's one of my favorite things she does.

• When I pick her up from Nursery on Sundays, she starts shrieking with joy while running back and forth a few feet like she can't contain herself. It's the BEST.
• Sometimes she puts her hands over her mouth when she laughs, and it's so genuine, and I love it. She also puts her hands over her mouth and gasps when she gets scared. That's cute, too, but also sad.

• She is a complete food thief. If someone (mostly me) is eating something she wants, she will just grab it and shove it in her mouth. She also steals her siblings' drinks if they leave them lying around. At the same time, she is also very giving when it comes to food. If either Aubrey or Carter says they want a certain food and Clara has it, she will give it to them.
• She likes to take her fruit out of its container, put it on the table, and put it back again. She's so wonderfully weird.

• She loves seeing cows when we're driving. She doesn't do it as much anymore, but she used to gasp and shout, "Cow!" when she saw them. Then she'd say, "Where cows go?" She actually still asks that question after we pass them.
• She loves baby Yoda, so we got her a stuffed animal of him. We did it while we were watching The Mandalorian, and it was so cute how she pointed at the TV.

• She is VERY cautious. When we go to the playground, she very rarely does anything other than walk around and maybe throw some wood chips. We recently went to a park with a little suspension bridge, and she utterly refused to go across the bridge. She would act like she was going to go across but then back out at the last second and run away. She kept saying, "Fall down!" when she was on the structure (which I had to lift her onto). She wouldn't run around and play. Then at the park this week, she freaked out when I tried to put her on the structure. She didn't even want to go on the swings. Weirdo. I hope she gets over it!

• She developed a deep love for bandaids and asks for one every time she has any sort of ouchy. For  awhile there she had a scrape on her knee and a little eczema scab and insisted on bandaids for each one every night at bedtime. Then she'd start looking her legs over to find other cuts and ask for more bandaids. I got baby Yoda bandaids and Frozen bandaids, and that may have made the whole obsession worse... But it's so cute to hear her ask for Yoda and Elsa. 
• Seriously, everything she does is cute. Take this shoulder shimmy, for example (and the way she plays just in general):

• She loves babies and shouts, "Baby!" whenever she sees one (or even just a stroller or infant car seat). She gets SO excited. D'awwww.
• For some reason, she loves sitting in drawers and buckets and boxes.

 

 

• She loves climbing over the top end of Aubrey's bed--over the wood headboard--to get on it instead of just getting up from the side like normal. Her crib is over on that end, and she also likes to hold onto the crib with one hand and the bed with the other, putting her feet up on them too. Then she just hangs there.

• She randomly says, "I B I B I," and we have no idea what (if anything) it means. Maybe it's, "Eye be eye be eye?" Haha.
• When she has a hair in her mouth or if you ask her if she has something in her mouth or what she's eating, she opens it really wide and just holds it open. And for some reason, it's hilarious and adorable.

• I swear she spends half of her day asking where everyone is. "Where Daddy go? Where Aubee go? Where Caree go? Where Nana go? Where Gamma go?" She has even asked where someone is when they are in the room with her. Asking about everyone is actually one of her stall tactics at bedtime/naptime. As I said, she sometimes asks where Aubrey is when she is in the bed next to Clara. She once asked Daniel, "Where Daddy go?" Oy.
• She loves loves loves going for walks. I really need to take her more often...

• During dinner, she likes to "make" food for at the toy kitchen and serve it to me. She brings me pretend food with the little oven mitt on her hand, and it kills me! She gets a big smile on her face when I pretend to eat it and say it's yummy.

• Unfortunately, however, she doesn't really eat real food when we serve it to her. She refuses to try any meat or vegetables we give her. She also won't eat yogurt with fruit chunks still. She just generally sucks at eating dinner, with the exception of a few pasta dishes we make, plain rice (sometimes), bread (sometimes), and mashed potatoes (again, sometimes). Thankfully, she finally starting eating pizza. That was a big win! Every time she bites into a raw baby carrot, she spits it out. But, you know, she likes eating still-frozen pancakes and waffles. So whatever.
• Also, she will not stay in her seat for dinner. She wanders around and plays, and when we tell her to eat, she just brazenly says, "No." I hate that she figured out how to unbuckle her booster seat...

• She loves dipping chips in salsa and bread in vinegar but not for her to eat. She instead tries to feed it to me or Daniel.
• She's really good about throwing away her trash and taking her dishes to the sink. I hope she keeps that up!
• She is obsessed with this cat color-learning video on YouTube that Grandma plays for her. Her favorite part is the black cat. She loses her mind when she sees it. No idea why.

Seat Stealing, Curly Hair, and Neck Hugs

 

LOOK AT THAT FACE! Oh man, people, I am struggling with the knowledge that this little girl is going to grow up. She is so much fun right now. She's truly the sweetest and has both Mommy and Daddy wrapped around her little finger. I'm a little bit obsessed. Here's why:

• She's finally starting to say recognizable things! She says:
• "Owwie" when something hurts or when she just doesn't like something that's happening
• "Shaw" for "help"
• "La la" or "ah wa" for "all done" (this is already outdated; she says "all duh" now)
• "Uh oh"
• "Ahhh" (like the refreshing sound people make after taking a drink) for "yes"
• "Buh boo" when she she wants to fist pound. She just holds her fist out and says it.

• "Appy" for "apple" (which she loves to see and say but doesn't like to eat)
• "Moe" for "moon" (which she excitedly points at every time she sees one in a book)
• "Showwie" for "shower, which she likes to point at
  
• "Cawk" for "car" and "truck"
• "May" or "nay" (I can't tell) for horse
• "Pop" when she wants to push a button (like the garage button, which she loves)
• "Oh no!"

• "Shoe"
• "Sigh" for "outside"
• "Pea" for "please"
• "Bah" for "ball"
• "Wawee" for "water"
• "Mine!" (learned from Carter... ugh)
• "Caca" for "hot chocolate"
• "I diiiih" or "I dee" for "I did it" (and her totally adorable proud face!)

• "Bye bye" (and she waves, and it's too cute)
• "Bankey" for "blankey"
• "Ah-bah" for "Aubrey"
• "Cah-cah" for "Carter"
  
• "Baaa" for "bath"
• "Woo hoo!" (which she says when she runs down little inclines)

• "Baby" (soooo sweet... she loves babies)
• "Cack-ee" for "cracker"
• "Dow" for "down"
• "Pane" for "plane" (which she recognizes the sound of from inside our house)
• "Ah go?" for "Where'd it go?"
• "Itchy" (which, sadly, she says a lot lately because of her eczema)
• For awhile there she would run with her arms sticking straight out behind her. It was so funny. 

• She loves her stuffed llama, Dolly. When I put her down for a nap the other day, she started whimpering when I tried to leave. So I let her turn off the light (which she really likes to do). But she kept whimpering. So I got her an extra pacifier to hold in her hand, but she still whimpered. I finally realized what she wanted and said, "Oh! Do you want Dolly?", and she said yes (well, she did her "ahhh" sound, and it was very animated).
• She has a sweet tooth like her mommy. In particular, she loves chocolate chips and marshmallows.

• She is such a sweetheart and gives me the most amazing hugs. When I'm holding her, she'll put her hands on the side of my neck and pull me in for a hug. And then I melt into a pile of goo on the floor.
• When she wants me to pick her up but I'm busy and take longer than she wants, she stands next to me and does a cute little jump trying to get up to me. Breaks my heart.
• She has beautiful, curly hair, and I love it!

• Aubrey and Carter are obsessed with the Trolls World Tour soundtrack, and during a particularly country-ish song they always pretend to be riding a horse or driving a carriage and snapping the reins. Clara started copying them, and now she does it whenever she hears the song. 
• She used to play with a big exercise ball at the activity center while Carter was playing soccer (until an employee there yelled at me about it), and there's just something so cute about a little girl with a ball as big as she is.

• When I turn off the car and the music stops, she makes a little sound of protest. Sometimes, if she's upset in the car, I just ask her if she wants music, and she always indicates that she does. Then she's no longer upset.

• When we drive Carter to preschool, we drive over a part of the road that has a big dip. I always say, "Weeee!" when we hit it, and Clara has started saying, "Weeee!" just a few seconds before we hit it and before I can say it. She's so smart!
• Everytime she hears the garage door, she says, "Dada!" Heart melted.

• When we get to the last page of The Going to Bed Book, she starts rocking back and forth, even before I read the words "rock and rock and rock to sleep." So cute!
• When you tell her to say someone's name ("Can you say 'Aubrey'?"), she points at the person instead of saying his/her name.

• If we leave the front door unlocked, she opens it and just stands in the doorway looking out. Occasionally she throws shoes and toys outside while she stands there. It's super helpful.
• She really likes having sword fights. That's all.

• She gets very proud and excited when she puts things on her fingers, particularly the Trouble game pegs and raspberries.
• She got the rocking bike for Christmas but was afraid of it for awhile. She'd cry if I put her on it. But eventually she gave it a chance, and now she's a fan. She rocks so fast that she moves across the room, and then she gets mad when she runs into something or ends up on the hardwood floor. Here she is on one of her first successful... rocks? Rockings? Whatever.

• We watch a family show on some nights before bed, and she always comes downstairs with us even though she doesn't really watch. If Daniel gets up for any reason while we're down there, she runs to his seat, climbs up, and starts rocking forward and backward with a mischievous/proud grin on her wonderful little face. Then Daniel comes back, puts his hands on his hips, gives her a pretend stern look, and says, "You stole my seat!" And she loves it and just giggles in response.

• One of the family shows we watched had a unicorn character, and everytime she saw him on the screen, she'd point and babble excitedly. So I guess she likes unicorns.
• She has taken to wrapping our baby doll in the toy apron we have and carrying it around so sweetly. Of course, every time I try to take a picture or video of her doing it, she throws the doll on the ground and walks away. I did get this shot of her with the doll at least.

• When I put her to bed, she waves at me after I say "Night night!" Then, when I blow her a kiss, she does it back to me. Loooooove.
• One time Carter put stickers all over my face. Clara watched. Now she thinks stickers belong on  faces, and she always puts them on her own face.

• She has a weird obsession with throwing bits of toilet paper into the toilet. She often joins me when I use the bathroom, and she usually pulls toilet paper pieces (some insignificantly tiny and some wastefully large) off of the roll and tosses them in the water. Sometimes she pretends to wipe her bum before she throws it in.
• For awhile there she kept saying something that sounded like "I shiny," but we never could figure out what she meant.

• She is conscious of being messy while she eats and likes to have a paper towel or baby wipe so she can wipe her face between bites. 
• When either Carter or Aubrey sits on my lap or snuggles me, Clara gets very upset and starts stomping and shouting, "Mine!" about me. I find it so funny and so cute.
• She decided she likes cake. This particular one is homemade funfetti. 

• For some reason, she loves sticking her finger in my ears. She does it, I giggle like it really tickles, and then I turn and look at her. She then pushes my chin with her little hand so she can reach my ear again. And so it goes, on and on.
• She and Carter often play a cute game at dinner, in which they make silly faces at each other and then laugh. I love it.

• Sometimes when I pick her up, she tucks her knees in so I can't put my arm under her bum to support her weight. I have to just put her knees against my stomach and hold her by the armpits. She also likes to throw her head back and bend her whole body backwards when I hold her, which makes it difficult. She thinks it's funny though and always laughs.
• She makes funny sound effects when she plays, like saying "shaw" when she throws something and "wah" when she pushes a car.

• She is a super sneaky food and drink stealer. If one of her siblings has a drink and leaves it somewhere (especially chocolate milk), she grabs it and chugs away. She also steals their food from off the table if they get distracted away from it.
  

• When we tell her something informative, she nods her head a couple of times to indicate she understands. An example is when we say something like, "Okay, Clara, no more books after this one. Last book." The nod isn't slow or fast; it's somewhere in between.
• Little girl loves parmesan cheese! 

• She always watches the music conductor at church during the songs, and then she starts waving her arm around trying to copy her. She gets mad if I try to hold her arm and move it the right way though.

• She says "Mama" a lot, which I love, and now she has started saying, "Mama, mama" super sweetly while patting my arm or leg to get my attention. Who could say no to that?
• She loves baby wipes and always wants one (or a paper towel) when she eats. And she always wants to wipe the table after she's done. I love it.

• Whenever we say it's time to change her diaper, she giggles and runs away. I make it game and chase her, and she laughs so cutely when I catch her. Then, after she's all changed, she'll run upstairs to where the diaper pail is, open it, and point inside to show me where the dirty diaper goes.
• She has been known to make herself at home in Aubrey's bed when we're doing our nighttime routine.

• When she's done eating, she'll go throw away her trash or put her bowl in the sink without being told. She's just a little mimic!
• She likes to stand on the ottoman while I'm sitting on the couch and fall into my arms over and over again.
• She has finally decided she likes slides. It took her awhile, but she got there.