Tuesday, August 9, 2016

Arwyn Week 59: Arwyn Says Thanks - 8/4/2016

Arwyn, sweet little Arwyn, made my heart melt this week.  After breastfeeding one morning, I asked her if she was all done or if she wanted more.  She didn't really respond, but seemed done, so I picked her upright in my arms.  Then she looked at me and used her hands to make two sign language signs: a hand twist for "all done" and a hand to the chin moving outward (similar to blowing a kiss) for "thank you."  I hadn't seen her make those signs before, so that was exciting, but it was also just so sweet that she was thanking me.  It really made my whole day.  We learned about "back it up" for going down stairs from our friends the Mitchells, to help prevent face-forward tumbles before they have the coordination, and it worked like a charm with Leia.  Arwyn, on the other hand, absolutely refuses to go down backwards.  It doesn't matter how many times I physically turn her around and say  "back it up" to her, she just turns herself right around and goes forward again!  She's also climbing up on the tables all the time, so we are really in trouble with her!  Daddy is out of town for a couple weeks, and everyone is feeling his absence.  But when we called him up on FaceTime, Arwyn was so fired up to see his face interacting with her and hear his voice.  It took her a second to register what was going on, but then she figured it out and got so excited, it was really cute.  Unfortunately, when Poppy (not Daddy) came to pick her up at school, she was very upset, which is weird since she loves her Poppy, but luckily she calmed down by the time they got home.

Leia, on the other hand, was so excited that her Poppy was coming to pick her up.  She always likes to know what's going on and plan out her day, so she's very on top of who's picking her up and what kind of day it will be after nap (school day, Mommy day, Daddy day, etc.).  Leia was also very sweet and well behaved for Nana and Poppy.  They reported only one little temper tantrum, but she got herself under control very quickly.  She really seems to have figured out how to control her emotions better, which I credit to the emotional learning they do at school.  I've also noticed that when she gets really mad, she's now stomping her foot a lot, rather than hitting, which I also wonder if they taught her at school.  It sure makes me happy, and it's a lot funnier to watch.  Leia has started being really good at "writing" and telling stories.  She puts marks down on the paper and refers to them as letters, and points to them a lot while she's telling us never ending stories that she makes up on the fly.  Her verbal skills never cease to amaze us.  We had a fun adventure of navigating down the creek from our house to Nana and Poppy's with the Olcott's this week.  Leia, Echo, and Rye got points for successfully making over, around, and though tricky rock sections.  Everyone had a lot of fun, and we found treasure to boot!


Josh's PVC pipe slide is officially complete!  Unfortunately he put some car wax on it, making it so lightning fast that it's way too scary for the kids to even use!  Hope the wax wears off soon...


After a fun morning of water skiing, Leia spotted Dan's amazing unicorn and just HAD to have a ride!

Arwyn was more fired up about squeezies than unicorns...she will learn...


Password = Arwyn

After watching a 2 second demo, Arwyn masters the recorder in about 30 seconds flat!



Quick visit with my little buddy Zane when I went to the Bay for my 20 year high school reunion.

Password = Leia

Leia is big into story telling these days.  Today the mysterious Mike was the topic of interest.



After her first terrifying trip down, Leia prefers to just climb up and stay at the top.


A little water play with Cousin Emmett.

Leia loved her new shoes from Grandma so much, she had to wear them to bed!

Teachers put a cute pony in her hair at school today!


Ready to ride her speedy giraffe!

Leia still trying to practice her big girl bike...needs to strengthen those quads a bit more so she can push those pedals better!

Waking up her sister and talking on the "phone" rank pretty high on Arwyn's fun list.

I can tell she loves the independence of deciding she wants to jump, walking over to the tramp and climbing up on her own, and just jumping...big smiles!

Uh oh, watch out Arwyn, doubles time!

Password = Leia

Bouncing sisters!

Sort of like Harley Davidson Ape Hangers for a 1 year old!

Peek-a-boo I see you!

Look out, baby shark attach!

Love that happy laugh!

"Come on Mom, let me see that camera!"


Looking so serene and angelic just after a minor tantrum at not being allowed in the hot tub with Leia.



No comments: