light as a feather, stiff as a board

Hello faithful blog readers! You probably noticed my blog vacation. Rachel, Jarrad and I had a great time visiting my family Friday and Saturday. Rachel got to hang out with her cousin, Tyler, and they seem to be enjoying each other more and more. But, of course, the grandparents enjoyed the silliness most of all. Poppy got out some of his fun hats, masks, and wigs to entertain the kiddos. On Friday, Rachel decided that her preferred entertainment was walking, holding onto someone's fingers for balance. So, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, that's all the child wanted to do. When we tried to take a break, she'd holler for more. When we tried to sit her down, she gave us the stiff-leg. When she got her way, she was talking, giggling, and grinning the whole time. Aunt KiKi pointed out that Rachel walks belly-first. That's because we can't keep up with her! It's a pretty funny sight. And the funniest thing is that she's not actually going anywhere. She's just walking.

So, this morning, when I got her out of the crib and tried to sit her down, she gave me the stiff-leg, as usual. But, she felt really stable, so I let go. She stood there, giggling, for a long time before she gently sat down. We practiced all day, and she took a step here and there. She finally took two steps in a row before falling forward. When Jarrad got home tonight, she took about five steps in a row! She thinks it's a fun new game. I think it's saving my back. I know what you moms-with-more-than-one-kid are thinking...that I shouldn't encourage her to walk just yet. I know my life is about to get a lot more difficult once she walks, but I can't get over the excitement of watching her develop this new skill!

Rachel had a really great first Easter. Aunt KiKi gave her a princess Easter bucket with cute chicky glasses and some other toys, and two beautiful spring dresses. She also bought her too-cute Easter Sunday outfit (picture coming). Cousin Anthony came over on Sunday and brought two singing and dancing Easter bunnies from MeMaw and GGPaw. Rachel wasn't sure what to think of these. She got adventurous and touched the one that wiggles his ear while he sings, but today she decided he scared her. When I was trying to get her to walk, she kept her eyes locked on that bunny and wouldn't let go of me. Yesterday afternoon, GiGi came over with a fuzzy Easter card and a soft basket with goodies, and, last night, Aunt Mamber came over with her collection of little PoundPuppies for Rachel (remember those??).

On Friday, Rachel and I went with Poppy to see some of his relatives. They all seemed to enjoy Rachel. Saturday, we went to my Aunt Doris's house for my mom's family get-together. We had a great time seeing everyone and visiting. Our friend Koen and his family even got to come, and Bob got to drive Uncle Roy's tractor! We are so blessed to live near so much family!

Rachel was clearly glad to be home today. She took two good naps and did great on the potty. I hope she will sleep well tonight!

Progress Report

I may be ready to give up the potty charts in favor of only reporting how many diapers she used each day. Over the weekend, she used two diapers Friday and Saturday, one diaper Sunday, and no diapers today. She did have one small floor accident right before bed tonight (she stopped as soon as Jarrad yelped at her and swiped her onto the potty), which ruined an otherwise perfect day! She has been very potty-friendly lately, even sitting and playing on the potty for 15 minutes today when she evidently didn't need to go. I kept offering to help her up, but I guess she was having fun. It's refreshing after the few difficult days we had last week. I hope she continues to love it!

cute moment

Rachel's cousin, Tyler, reportedly does not kiss people very often; he prefers to kiss his stuffed animals. However, this weekend, he kissed Rachel several times! I guess they're going to be good pals!

non-toy toy of the day

Her Easter basket, of course!

life lesson

I had a rather emotional weekend, partly due to exhaustion from traveling and not sleeping well. As a result, I have two life lessons. First of all, I have always been an "over-achiever." I am a student at heart, and I am anxious to be the best [insert title here] possible. At the moment, I am obviously consumed with being a mommy. I thrive on the daily challenges and I look forward to the adventures of each new stage Rachel goes through. Because of this, I spend a lot of time with Rachel. Maybe you've thought this in reading my blog, that perhaps I spend an excessive amount of time with Rachel. Does she need me right on top of her all the time? When I was home, I said something to my mom about playing in Rachel's room. She looked at me funny and told me that concerned her a bit. Huh? Why? Am I doing it wrong?? Oh no, am I? She explained that it's a little odd for a 26-year-old to spend most of her day playing in a 9-month-old's bedroom, and that most people have other things they need to be doing. That's true. That's true. I am doing it wrong. I have been telling myself, "I will have only one child only once. I should enjoy her, I should watch her, I should study her." That is what I want to do. But is it healthy? My friend, Carla, and I were talking about self-indulgent parenting and trusting our instincts. Maybe I am being self-indulgent. As of last week, Rachel has become a lot more clingy. She acts afraid of some things (like the dog and the singing bunny), and she doesn't want to let other people hold her. I know it's developmental that she go through this, but how much of it am I fostering by being in her face all day? My mom felt bad that her observation upset me, but I'm glad she mentioned it. At least I can momentarily step outside of myself and try to consider my options and what's really best for Rachel. I imagine I will look back and grieve many parenting decisions I make by the time Rachel is grown. I am glad to have anyone point out anywhere I might be at fault. As I told my mother-in-law once, "Anytime you want to give us advice about Rachel, you go ahead, and we'll either listen or we won't." I just want to be the best mom possible.

Second, last night, Jarrad cautioned me that I need to be careful about how much I talk about Rachel's pottying. Huh? I suppressed potty talk for a long time, because I was unsure if it would work, and I didn't want to get ahead of myself with outrageous claims. But, now that it really seems to be working, I guess I am getting more and more excited about it, and I will talk to anyone who cares to listen, and, apparently, even those who don't. When Jarrad pointed that out to me, I felt horrible. I am afraid I've come across braggy, and I don't mean to. As I told my brother (because if I've been obnoxious to anyone, it would definitely be my brother), potty training Rachel has been my little experiment--something I've found fun and interesting. I don't fancy myself a better mother, or Rachel a smarter baby because of it, and I hope that's not how I've made anyone feel. I try to be honest about my parenting style and not hide when I've discovered a shortcoming. I don't lie and say my cloth diapers don't smell bad and are sometimes tricky to launder. I won't pretend I feel validated every time I choose to let Rachel "cry it out" (or not). And I won't say infant potty training is superior to waiting. For me, it has been a worthy venture, but I know...I'm weird.