Hay Happens and Hay's Happen

D O G spells DOG. This is what I hear when she is “supposedly napping.” How did she get her little Mickey Mouse reader since it wasn’t in her crib? I leave it alone and don’t worry. Next, she shows up in my bedroom. How did you? What did you? How did you? AAH! You escaped!

It’s over.

I finally realize the crib years are done. Now, I am just hoping she will still honor our 2-hour quiet time.

So, the next day, I tell her, “Tatum, as you know, you are to nap at this time, but you may get out if you need to. I only ask that you stay in your room since mommy has to work. This is our quiet time; your time to be with YOU and my time to be with ME!” She agrees and honors our agreement beautifully. The only thing is that she refuses to be in her crib.

Oh well…no crib? I put her in and she gets right out! The cage has been unlocked, and will she be confined anymore? NO!! Eventually this freedom-excitement will wear off, but in the mean time, I find her on the floor…napping. Or..on the chair..napping. No crib, thank you very much!

This apparently is much more comfortable.

The crib here is merely a place to put in whatever she can find to put in there!

For now, it’s so much more fun to be free from this confinement. 

Freedom is so comfortable. (and so is no clothes!)

An Aquarium in Arizona! I had no idea. Yes, we have our own Sea Life here in the sunny state, and it’s pretty fun. Doug and I had the brilliant idea to arrive when they opened at 10am. On a Wednesday morning, how could it be busy? Strollers, pouches of babies, and many mommies had the same idea. But, no worries. It was to be a SPLASH!
They handed Tot a mask, and we were off to see various fish from crappies, zebras, convicts and cuttlefish. Who comes up with these names? A depressed government official?

She peered closely in, and good thing she was a Tot so she could see!

But then there were times it was hard to peer over the side so….tippy toes!Personally, I was fascinated by the expressions of the fish. What were they thinking? Did they want out or were we the joke looking at them?Look at those Mannas and Sting rays!
Then, we saw it. The porcupine fish. Again, what!? There is already a porcupine. Let’s think of something more inventive why don’t we? He was adorable. Doug told me that predators have eyes in the front and prey have eyes on the sides. Definitely a sought after fish those eyes!The stingrays were magnificent. Honestly, they were the most graceful beings present in the water.

Tatum enjoyed the sea horses, starfish, and even got to touch the shrimp which did not look fun at all.

The aquarium boasted of “Ziva” the turtle. I guess he is still en route because we couldn’t not find this guy anywhere. Tatum was determined!

 

Well, the many sights… it made me want seafood!  We just ATE it all up! 

Of course afterwards, we headed out towards the food court since this was the first thing on her mind. Alas.. we see it…THE CAROUSEL. $3? We have one of these within walking distance of our house and it’s SO MUCH cooler. So, I had the little talk with Tot. “Honey, don’t you want to wait for the REAL carousel next to our house?”Thank goodness for these rides that don’t require quarters in order to look cool and inviting.

This was the best…it had TWO ..count them TWO steering wheels! Dream come true. What control!

We had a great time with “Dougie” and our many wet friends. Thank you for hanging with us, carrying Tot, and being the best host ever! Plus, you were the best dressed one at the aquarium in a sea of yoga pants.

Evidence of a good time.

 

I’m going home to make salmon now.

 

 

Tatum has a new friend. He’s a furry guy who comes with clothes and shoes. I think she’s a bit jealous of the shoes being for the dog because she forces her toesies into the different pairs and attempts to walk around.

He watches and probably is happy he doesn’t have to wear the shiny silver sandals. They don’t look that comfortable for his paws. Paws…that’s  a perfect name. Do you think Coti will be jealous?
Well, Paws won the opportunity to sit and watch Tatum learn her Big K and Little k. Coti? He watched from below. Good sport he is!

Upon this, Tot drew some lovely design of scribbly colors. Masterpiece; I had to pause and just clap! Good job, little Tot

I continue to be in awe of her little sweet heart. I needed to pause because these past two weeks, I’ve been uber-busy, beyond what is healthy for me…and for her. She just looked at me today and said, “Mommy, I love you.” *MELT*. At church today, I was reminded of how much I love her, and how GRATEFUL I am to have her in my life. 

AAhhhh!!!

Tatum wants to know!

Is this what birthdays are all about? Heck yeah! No, really it was about celebrating our friends and making them feel special.

She’s practicing her “Happy Birthday to you” as we prepare for our first party. 

First stop: Robert and his Firetruck extravaganza. This three year old little cutie is of course Tatum’s choice of the best of the best. 

Jennie (and her hubby Scott and the LO in her tummy!) made us feel so special with a nice display of yummies. The big hit of the spread was the teeny marshmallows in the dairy less ambrosia. 

Janette, Levi, and Tot all enjoying the hot dog. Darn, the vegan dogs I give her won’t taste so yummy now!

She of course had to be the only girl among a sea of boys, as usual. She’s learning to hold her own, I’d say!

Robert’s theme was fireman, and Tatum had to take a spin in the suit. She’s ready to put out the fire, but first, she had text Robert to tell him she’d be right there!

Now, here is the cake!

(Tatum snuck in a quick kiss to the birthday boy)
This party was fiery hot, dear Robert.

Now, where is that second cake? Next stop, Sophia’s 5th birthday. Melissa made this party awesome by having and even bigger PINK cake.

We had such a great day with our friends, and we found TWO cakes!

 

 

After Tatum drinks her milk in the morning, she often comments, “I’m cold, mommy!” As much as I love to help her solve her dilemmas, I told her to go upstairs and get her blanket (her kiki, as she calls it)

So, she ran upstairs, came down with kiki in hand and plopped on top of Coti’s place to cuddle.

She figured Coti might be cold too.  It’s pure puppy love!

One of the things I’m teaching Tot is to notice things around her. Also, when she is engaged in activity, focus! This Playdoh activity kept her focused and engaged for a solid hour.

This morning, we read our Bibles together in my bed for about thirty minutes. Awesome.

She focused and paid attention today in gymnastics to Taina, and she seemed to enjoy it immensely! Alton and Avery are wonderful classmates also. Taina said Tatum seems like an old soul.

This concept also leads to LISTENING. Sometimes, she makes the choice not to listen. For example, today, she really wanted one of the Lysol wipes, and freely took it from under the sink and grabbed a few too many. As she was doing this, I repeatedly asked her not to do this and to put it back. So, she threw it. Ah…a moment of learning opportunity. I just stared at her and she knew that wasn’t nice. She did not listen and knew it. Immediately, she picked it up, put it back and apologized. BIG KISS! Awesome. Gosh, getting mad is normal, but how we react and carry out being mad is another thing. She may have wanted some wipes, but sometimes you don’t get what you want. Mad.. Instead, let’s stop, take a breath, and say, OK, maybe next time, Mommy. Practice!

I’m so proud of how she is responding to learning. Sure, she makes mistakes everyday, and so do I! Shoot, why would we need Jesus if we were perfect? But, her recovery time is so quick, and she is also quick to apologize and learn from it.

I’m paying attention, Tatum. I love you!