long time no blog

Friday afternoon, Rachel and I went to GiGi's house so Jarrad could do some work in the house without worrying about waking the baby. We stayed through Saturday afternoon and came back home after her second nap. I was so happy that the change of setting didn't really phase Rachel; she slept as well as she usually does (not that great lately), she was in a great mood the whole visit, and she played with GiGi and Pop even when I was nowhere to be found (they let me go back to bed Saturday morning when Rachel woke up at 6:30am). It was, again, SO nice to have the chance to go straight back to bed until 9:00am. Now that Rachel is nearing her first birthday, I am suddenly getting some freedoms back, like being able to hand Rachel over for hours at a time while I have a chance to do whatever. Anyway, Pop really fell in love with Rachel on this trip. He told her of all the mischeif he planned for the two of them, and he told her she has him wrapped around her finger! She got a big kick out of him too, especially since he got right down on the floor to crawl around with her, playing hide and seek, and chasing her all around. So sweet! Rachel also had a great time watching GiGi and Pop's cat, Sadie. Sadie is a very old, set-in-her-ways (some may say "snooty," but I won't say it) kitty who was not interested in Rachel's antics. Rachel still loved trying to figure her out, though!

Today we went to the park for a picnic with Koen's family and the local chapter of HITCHUP. It was a beautiful day for a picnic, and Rachel got to experience swinging for the first time. She had a blast, and I had a great time seeing some families I worked with in the school system a couple of years ago. It hasn't been too long since I worked with some of those children, and they all looked so big and grown-up...it made me think about how fast Rachel will grow up.

Progress Report

Rachel did so well on the potty while we were at GiGi and Pop's house this weekend, but she's having a rough time in general. I don't know if the sleeping and the pottying might be related, or might be caused by the same thing (a growth spurt? teeth coming in?), but I'm praying we figure it out soon.

We have hit a HUGE potty milestone, though. Today while we were at our picnic, it became apparent that Rachel needed to poop. I wasn't sure what to do, so I thought I might try to find a bathroom and just see if she would use a regular potty. I didn't find one, and her diaper was very wet, so I changed her. It was time for us to leave, anyway, so we packed up and headed home. All the way home, Rachel was grunting, her face got flushed, then pale. I was sad at the prospect of changing a poopy diaper (I haven't changed one in at least a month), but I encouraged her to let it out. When we got home, I rushed her inside, and she had not pooped in her diaper. I put her on the potty, and she immediately let it all out! I was SO excited that she had refused to poop in her pants, but I felt terrible that she had held it so long (isn't that dangerous??). She had appeared to do the same thing Friday (but I was unsure she really had held it), when I thought she was pooping during lunch, but didn't actually go until I went to change her and set her on the potty. I guess we're carrying the potty with us from now on, and I don't think I mind!

cute moment

Rachel is working on several new skills, not the least of which is walking. I am hoping all her new knowledge is the source of her sleep and potty problems, but only time will tell. Today, Rachel was playing with one of her burp cloths (she loves small pieces of cloth). She carried it over to the Boppy pillow and tried to wipe off a stain that's been on it forever! Later, she was playing with her cell phone from her "My First Purse" Aunt KiKi gave her, and she put it up to her ear for the first time, like she was really talking on the phone! This week, she has also begun making all the signs I've been using with her: "more" "eat" "no" and "potty" (she doesn't always use them correctly). At GiGi's house, her potty was set up right next to a wall with an outlet, and she kept looking at it and making the sign for "no." I can't believe how much she is learning and imitating now. We have to start really being careful of our own behavior so she doesn't imitate any of our bad habits!

non-toy toy of the day

GiGi let Rachel play with a really big [empty] oatmeal container. Rachel is really into putting things in containers and taking them back out again, so that was great fun for her.