Slice of Life | A weekend with Daisy

(Don't faint. Yes, we made some progress on the hair front. I said some. This was pulled out promptly, you understand, after the camera went away.)

 Alright, well, time to own up: I haven't posted on here since March. Bad mummy.

In that time, Daisy got herself 100% potty trained, turned three and went to Disneyland for the first time.

Three year old Daisy is... awesome. She is just a beautiful girl, inside and out: sensitive and caring yet wilfull and determined.

She's doing great at school: her latest school report has her as excellent in many of the areas she was originally lagging in just last fall: cooperation and socialization to be specific. These make mumma happy because I am supremely confident that, no matter what, she'll learn A-B-C and 1-2-3, but that social and emotional development at this time in her life is critical. By all accounts she is happy, well-adjusted, confident, and fun to be around. Gosh... I'm wondering if they gave us the wrong kid!

Right now, my favorite thing to do with Daisy is sing pop songs. If you know me, you'll know that I'm a sucker for my poppy-boppy dance tunes and, I'm pleased to say, I've shared the gene. Daisy and I love nothing more than singing along with Kylie Minogue, Katie Perry, Niki Minaj and the like. She's getting really good at picking up the words now plus she's learning a few really hilarious dance moves - one of which involves her bopping her booty up-and-down at you while she looks over her shoulder at it. Priceless.

Otherwise, we bounce on our trampoline, swing on our swings, play with our dollhouse, dress up as doctor, and generally do all the normal things most 3 year olds do. Of course, we think it's all so unique, cute and super-smart because she's ours.

Anyway, there is so much more to say to catch up on the last 3 months but, at the same time, so little time to write it. Instead I thought I would share some pictures from last weekend, where I got to spend two complete days with Ms. Daisy (an anomaly!).

A slice of life with Daisy... enjoy!

On how 3 year olds are geniuses

As most any toddler-mom will know, potty training is divided into two parts: #1 and #2. Most kids get #1 down first and then take a little longer to get #2 in the potty. This is pretty understandable given that #2 is harder to "time" and takes a bit more - shall we say - patience.

With Daisy, pee-pee turned out to be relatively easy, once she decided this potty thing was for her. Poop, however, has been a challenge. Initially she did great, pooping in the actual potty but not on the toilet. However, she gagged hard whenever she saw her own stuff and the wait time did not match her timeline for sitting still. (Toddlers patience tends to come in 30 second spurts, I've found.)

So we've spent months trying, but not succeeding, to get her off of her schedule of pooping in her diaper at bed and nap times.

Finally, I hit upon the jackpot combination of manipulations. A friend with a daughter of a similar age made up a  reward chart for her daughter and each time she did-the-deed, she would get a sticker. This seemed to work for her so I thought I'd try it. But knowing Daisy is my daughter, I intuitively knew that a series of stickers, alone, would not be enough to entice her. There needed to be an end-goal. Something bigger and of higher-value that she was working towards.

In this case, it is the "Big Girl Bed".

With my new manipulation strategy in-hand, we recently began to experience success. Yay! Daisy has not done #2 in her diaper for almost two weeks at this point. However, no victory comes without it's challenges.

Challenge #1: Her body is trained to poop at nap and bed times. This means she has been skipping naps or not going to sleep at night, in order to complete her, um, task.

Challenge #2: As of this evening, we have come to realize, after FIVE stickers in one day, that she has figured out how to, well, ration, her poop into multiple toilet visits in order to win more stickers on her chart.

That's right, you read correctly: the kid is doing more, more-frequent, smaller poops so she can get more stickers. At this rate, we'll be pulling the crib rails down by mid week.

Of course, it really is genius and demonstrates quite the self-control.

Once more, thwarted by someone 1/10th of my age.

The victory smile

 

Almost 3

Well, this is embarrassing: it's been almost 5 months since I last posted on here. In that time, Daisy has gone from two-and-a-half to almost-three. It sounds like nothing if you don't have kids but, if you do, you'll know how much difference half a year can make, especially at this age.

In essence, her personality has pretty much been shaped. All the previous posts on here continue to ring true. Daisy is sensitive, loving, concerned, a little cautious, funny, goofy, strong-willed, and an old-soul. She's a dynamite package that presents as cotton candy.

The major development in the past five months has been her independence. Gradually, little-by-little, she has extricated herself from our arms and our side and has begun to explore the world independently. Practically speaking, this has been a bit of relief. Now we can at least do the dishes without her whining for our attention. I know many moms feel a pang of sadness when their children begin to need them less but not me. I see her inner confidence grow and I feel nothing but pride and satisfaction. Maybe one day I will yearn for these days back again and, certainly, there are times when she puts her little hand in mine or calls me "Mumma" in that sweet little voice, that I take a mental note to bottle the feelings, knowing I will want to relive them at a later date.

No, I would not trade these memories and moments for anything but I enjoy watching the progress of her growing up. Each new achievement, each little footprint in the sand, makes me feel nothing but happiness and joy.

Personally, the past few months have been hard for me with my health issues but it has always been Daisy's sweet smile, goofy antics, and genuine concern for "Mumma's bad back" that have put a smile on my face.

Here are some photos from this past weekend of Daisy jumping on her trampoline in the back yard. The weather, even for Northern California, has been amazingly mild this winter and we never imagined that her Christmas gift would get this much use this early in the year.

For her 3rd birthday we're taking Missy to Disneyland, where there will be an overabundance of Princess-worshipping. I cannot wait!

Thanks for stopping by. I hope to be back a bit sooner next time!