stylin'

today i told greta we were going to go upstairs to get dressed. she headed up a few minutes before me, and when i got upstairs this is what she had decided to wear today. the bow and diaper were already on, but the sweatband wrist cuffs and shiny black dress shoes were her choice.

words

i remember a few months back i posted about all the words greta could say as well as understand. i also commented about the language "explosion" that is developmentally supposed to happen around 18 months. for greta, this has meant she is stringing words together. like, REALLY putting words together on her own.
she has been able to repeat phrases for a while, but these have mostly been phrases we have taught her or word combinations she has picked up from us. you know, quality speech like "who dey" and "no piggies on the table" and other useful phrases like "help please" and "all done". but in the past few weeks, she has been putting 2 and 3 and sometimes 4 words together.
like today at the blue manatee bookstore. she and this 3 year old boy were sitting next to each other, looking at books. i thought it was the cutest thing i had ever seen....until that boy gave greta a book to look at and she looked at him and said, "thank you boy". i almost passed out.

caterpillar love

cute video of greta trying to kiss a caterpillar.

markers

here is a video of greta coloring, and me trying to get her to show off her color recognition for the camera.

jake speed at tunes and blooms

so another thursday with fantastic weather, good music, and great friends to share it all with. we met up with some of greta's pals at the zoo to listen to jake speed and the freddies. these concerts are PERFECT for kids and adults....the freddies started at 6pm and finished at 7pm, which was just enough time to feed the kids dinner and then let them dance and play before heading home for bed. enjoy some video of greta dancing to jake speed's old timey sound.

butterfly show

thursday morning, greta and i headed to the krohn conservatory for the butterfly show. the butterflies were beautiful and the flowers were gorgeous. and all greta wanted to do was climb up and down the stairs....

Earth Day 2009

After a nap, we headed back out with a walk from our house to sawyer point for Earth Day.  The Rumpke Mountain Boys were serving up some good bluegrass.  Greta thought those guys were great, and also enjoyed the animals from sunrock farms.  

Check out the video below of Greta's dance moves.

 

Springtime - Eden Park

It's finally warm AND sunny.  And we took the opportunity to head out to the park for lunch and a little fun.  Greta found a slide and some stairs to climb to go back down and she did it over and over and over.  

She also provides just a bit of color commentary in the video about how cool Mama is in her sunglasses.  

playdate with grandma

my mom came over for a playdate with greta and me. greta and grandma played with all of greta's pretend food and dishes for quite a while...it was a real feast, as you can see. greta even now says "delicious". after they played, we went to sawyer point and played on both playgrounds! greta had so much fun she napped for 3 hours, which is a new greta record by quite a bit! thanks grandma for a fun day!

Zoo Blooms and Tunes

Every April along with the Zoo Blooms, the Cincinnati Zoo has an event every thursday night with live local music.  It's a great time, and since it starts at 6 PM it's a great way to take kids to a concert.  We went this Thursday and met up with Stacy and Scott.  Was a beautiful night.... 

Check out Gavin and Greta, and those awesome tulips... 

And for some behind the scenes on just how these cute kids pics happen... check out this hilarious video of Stacy and Melanie... 

18 month checkup

greta had her 18 month check up (is she REALLY a year and a half old??) and it went well. some tears with the shot at the end, but that was about it. i told her we were going to see doctor bird (her pediatrician) and the whole way there she repeated his name. she even said it to him when he came in the room. she was very brave, and liked when dr. bird showed her the light he was going to use to look in her ears. just like last visit, she enjoyed dancing on the crinkly paper on the table.

so where does she "rank", you ask? head circumference is again in the 90-95th percentile. to put it plainly, she has a big noggin. she weighed in at 25 pounds, which sounded like a lot to me but it actually means she's "slimming down" a bit. she is now just a bit over the 50th percentile for weight, which means that she is pretty average. which means nothing, really. but we find it so interesting to see these growth charts and see how she's changed. and we like to laugh at the part of the chart from about 3-6 months where her weight was off the charts. as for her height, she is 33.5 inches tall, which is almost the 95th percentile for height. she must get the height from her mother. or her father. oh, who am i kidding. we have no idea how she is "tall" and imagine that it won't stay that way. but we're just glad she's healthy and well.

happy easter!

easter 2009 turned out to be a beautiful one. the day started off great....the easter bunny left greta's basket in plain sight on her learning tower, so it didn't take too long to find. after easter pancakes, joe, greta and i headed to easter mass at st. monica's. we then went to joe's family for an easter egg hunt and brunch. check out the video above and the slideshow below. greta obliged and hunted for a few eggs, but clearly was more interested in going through her normal routine with all the toys at grandma and grandpa's. she tried one piece of candy and decided that was enough....she definitely preferred her new books from the easter bunny over all that sweet stuff. guess that leaves more for mama and papa to enjoy. we finished off the day with a visit to my family and then we headed home to call it a day. happy easter!

easter 2009

to our 18 month old color wheel champion!

so last month i mentioned you knew a few colors....and then a week or two later you knew them all. and by all i mean all the ones you would find in a box of markers. plus gray and pink. you will just point to things and say the color that it is, which still continues to amaze us! the way you say orange "noinge" has got to be my favorite.
you moved to your new room this month and i've got to say that the transition went so smoothly. in your new room, you like to pile your favorite books (goodnight moon, wheels on the bus, papa please get the moon for me, and the lady with the alligator purse) in the rocking chair and then climb up into the chair and read them to yourself. lately you also like for your babydoll to sit in the chair next to you, and you cover both of you up with the blanket. and you are pretty good at 'reading' these books. you repeat several words and phrases from the books, especially wheels on the bus. when you say, "all through the town" i could just squeeze you it's so darn cute. i think you also like that your clothes are a little more accessible now. you often pull the same two dresses off their hangers and try to put them on.books are definitely your favorite toys. books and your little yo gabba gabba figures, which you like to arrange in different places around the house.
as the weather gets warmer, you are enjoying walking along the sidewalk on our street, where we often see our neighbors tom, patrick, and emily. you will point to their house and say all their names. in fact, when we read goodnight moon each night you say that the house in the book is "emily's". lately you have been practicing your independent streak by wanting to go down the stairs outside by yourself, which frightens mama tremendously. while outside, you often pick up the same two pinecones and carry them around.
you like to be naked and you also like to put your shoes on by yourself, which can make for an interesting wardrobe on some days. and your memory is pretty amazing....like when we were looking at a picture of mama and papa on their wedding day and i told you it was when we got married. now whenever we see that picture or any other picture from our wedding, you say married. or when you see the library near our house and say "books".
not only do you say a TON of words but you babble to yourself constantly, especially in the car or when you are looking in a mirror. you are so expressive that we are sure you are saying something, we just wish we knew what it was. you love to laugh and still and probably always will love to sing songs and be sung to. you love ANY song your papa makes up, especially the icky icky icky song and the zoo song. and you love to sing all the bouncy rhymes we learned at the library.
we have seen glimpses of those typical toddler tantrums, but nothing too severe yet. mostly you just like to say "no" any chance you get. you also will try to do something on your own and then ask for help, only to get frustrated when we try to help because really you just want to be able to do it by yourself.you have lately taken an interest in wearing mama's bracelets, whether it's on your arms or ankles. and mama's growing belly is definitely interesting to you....you will say "belly" and pull my shirt up to kiss or lay on my belly. it is incredibly sweet, even though i don't think you know exactly what you are doing or why. this may officially be your last month as an only child, and i can't wait to see you as a big sister. you are such a sweet, kindhearted, gentle soul who i know will love having a brother. at least eventually. we love you so much.

new digs

here are some pics from greta's new room. we had the third floor converted into two rooms by putting in half-walls and a gate to separate the two sides. greta's room is on one half and the other half is still a guest room for now, but eventually will probably be another kid's room or a playroom. she loves to run back and forth between the two rooms. you can see that we basically moved all the stuff (records, mirrors, etc) from her old room upstairs, with the hope that it would feel familiar. i actually love it! it feels cozy and is the perfect little room for her....

old digs

here are some pictures from greta's old room. until 2 weeks ago, she occupied the bedroom right next to ours. but with a baby on the way and many sleepless nights ahead, we decided it might be best for all involved to move greta to a room on the third floor. with creaky, old hardwood floors and a newborn waking up several times a night to nurse, we figured greta might get a better night sleep if she was a little further away from all the action. i was a nervous nelly about the whole thing.....would she like her new room? would she miss the old room? would she feel like she got "the boot" because of the new baby? but of course, she never missed a beat. she loves going up to her room, and of course she still likes hanging out in the old room too.

red is my signature color

the waiting game

today i had my 37 week dr. appointment. when i went to my 37 week appointment with greta, i was sent straight to the hospital where she was delivered a few hours later by emergency c section. needless to say, i was a bit anxious for today's appointment.

but except for the appointment taking FOREVER because of a switch to electronic medical records (indicated by the letters EMR written in red on my chart that i pessimistically assumed meant 'emergency'), all was well.

blood pressure....normal. swelling....minimal. platelet count....good. and weight gain? according to the doc, my weight gain is "awesome". awesome? not sure weight gain can be "awesome", but i'll take the compliment. they will keep checking all of these things each week to make sure that the preeclampsia doesn't return. but i'm feeling good. really good actually. except i cry a few times each day. but if you know me, that's not really a symptom of pregnancy but more a symptom of melanie.

week 38 here i come. from here on out, these are uncharted waters.

Reds Opening Day

It was 40 degrees.  It was raining... but all that means is it's time to bundle up and head to the ballpark!  Greta made it 6 innings, including a 45 minute nap before we had to call it a day and head home.  

In her second trip to the ballpark she added in a 'Go Reds' cheer, that no one could possibly recognize as her saying Go Reds, but it's definitely what she is trying to say :)  

WHo is this guy?

Nap Time! 

Anyone know this guy?

Family Photo! 

Like my hat? 

greta loves glasses