Stick-throwing, with plans

My Beebster is obsessed with throwing sticks (not to mention.. rocks, flowers, pine cones, anything she can get her hands on basically..) into the creek. She LOVES going down to the creek to throw sticks. We went down this afternoon, and Dan and I were laughing because we truly think we might not last this spring/summer without her falling into the (shallow) water at some point before the season is finished. She loves to see what she threw as it floats down the current. 

If it's not sticks and throwing things into the creek, she is also obsessive about bugs. I think she may be a future farmer with a speciality in entomology as well. She calls all bugs "bees" and hovers by the well-known spots along the creek where bugs happen to be in swarms. She'll put up her two fingers that she wants '2 more minutes' to "I want to see bees, Momma." She asks her Dee to come with her, and it's funny because Maddie will go but not too close and then she'll come back to us sprinting. Maddie is NOT a bug girl. Faith, on the other hand, gets a little too close for my own comfort. I am not a bug person either! All this of course while she continues to ask every day to go back to see "boos, baas" at the Pennsylvania farm show!

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Yesterday Faith declared that she is 'Michael' while watching "Mary Poppins." Maddie gets such a kick out of Faith when she says that she is Michael or Brother Bear or any other 'boyish' character. Faith is also earning the nickname here lately of 'Stitch.' She gets on a kick where she likes to destroy things, and Maddie will ask her "why do you destroy everything you touch?" (like Lilo asks Stitch). They were playing cars with their train tracks today, and Faith will be playing so nicely and then out of nowhere, just destroy their whole set-up. Maddie will then say that she is Lilo and that Faith is her puppy (Stitch) that she must teach. Quite funny!

Best ever little sis

Beebster simply adores her Dee. It's really neat how much she thinks of her big sis, with the love and adoration being reciprocated fully. The Dee and the Dis are a unit.

Dan and I are seriously going to have to consider having Faith take dance classes next fall. She just LOVES going to Maddie's dance classes, and is constantly begging to go stand in her corner of their room to watch her Dee. She really does so well though, and plays on the steps week in and week out without fail. The mothers tell me all the time how well she plays there with her figures, her cars, her pets, and her ponies. She always takes a book or two as well. But, she asks about a dozen times every week to sniff her blankie and "I see Dee! Where Dee, Momma?" and sits on my lap intently watching their class. 

Since about Christmas or so, she's been going in with the girls at the end of class to line up for a sticker. Ms. Dawn and Miss Melissa are really good about giving her a sticker, and they're always very sweet to my Beebster. It's really nice of them because it means so much to my little Faith-y to get to be like Maddie and be with her big sis and all the rest of the big girls. You see her entire face light up when I finally give her the green light to go ahead and either stand in the back corner to watch (which she does very well) or I let her go ahead with Ms. Dawn if they invite her in for the exercises and gymnastics portion of the end of each class. Last week she got to do the trampoline with the rest of the girls, and today she got to do the crab walk and the bunny hop on the mats with the rest of them. She listens so very well (except for twice when she wanted to inch her way a little too close to the mats) and sits Indian style in line with the rest of the girls. It's adorable. She would sit there cross-legged so nicely, and then come sprinting out to me saying "Momma, Dis!! (meaning, I'm doing it, Momma!) while jumping up and down and clapping. She did this about 6 times, and the other mothers were cracking up laughing. She was SO proud.

I remember when she first started standing in the back of the classroom to watch, a lot of the little girls would raise their hand during class and go "Uhhhh.. Ms. Dawn! There's a strange kid in the back of the classroom!" and it was so funny. Now, Faith has girls lined up wanting to sit next to her and Maddie. I'm assuming they think she's cute. There was one little girl there today who hasn't gone in awhile who did ask what Beebster was doing in the classroom, and to that Maddie quickly responded, "oh, that's my sister. That's my Fafe. Come on, Beebster!" It's really so funny.

Faith gets so excited these days too when they invite us in to watch the girls practice their tap and ballet routines. She even starts imitating the dance steps and dance moves, and does quite well actually. She waves enthusiastically to her Dee and always goes up to Maddie and hugs her at the end. She happened to be wearing a strawberry shirt today and the song for their tap dance is something about a "strawberry patch with Sally." Ms. Dawn noticed Faith dancing to the music with her strawberry shirt and said that they might have to bring Faith up on stage at the end of that number to blow kisses to everyone. Hahaha. That'd be hilarious! And, what cracks me up is that Faith would totally do it without hesitation. She would love it!

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Faith's been talking and talking non-stop since a little over a year, and she's adding many new words and phrases to her vocab every day now. She's always talked in her own Beebster language, but now people other than myself, Dan, and Maddie are understanding her also. Her new word is 'Guy' for her beloved big boy cousin, Donovan. She started saying 'guide' the other day (in the "Give a little Whistle" song of 'Pinocchio') and then she quickly realized that 'Guy' is also very easy to say. Now, she's got a 'Guy' in all of her Cars set-up's. 

Our brother bear

My second child has been nothing but precious lately.

She's always precious, but she's been so funny and affectionate these days. Not overly feisty! Haha. She awoke last night at roughly 3:31am or so with a belly ache and telling me she had 'booped.' She sure had, which she never does in the middle of the night. This then set her off for about 2 hours I think chatting and talking about how much she loves 'Arara, Belle' ("I love Arara, Belle") and attempting her best to get her Dee to wake up with her, to no avail of course. 

*****

Faith likes to label herself as 'Brother Bear' from the Berenstain Bears whenever they read those books. Dee is always Sister Bear, and she is always Brother. It's quite amusing and makes us laugh. We've been borrowing books constantly (and videos and soundtracks) from the library these days, and they are quite into the Berenstain Bears mysteries with the Bear Scouts. Faith LOVES 'Dr. Wise Old Owl' and calls for "hoot, hoot" whenever she sees him! 

*****

The Beebster is totally my child in many ways-- a mini-me. I think she definitely has my personality. But, she is totally Dan's child in a lot of other ways. The girl loves any chance to get her mitts (Maddie loves when I say that!) on the XBOX controller and loves any chance to press the buttons on it. She'll stand at the video game console thing at Target with Dan forever just to press the buttons on whatever controller they happen to have. She'll even run to it when she sees it! Not to mention, the girl is quite gaseous. It's hilarious when we're eating dinner and holding a conversation and Maddie, Dan, or I will ask her something and she'll let start a series of funny gas noises. She seems too petite and precious to be able to make those types of sounds, but that's the Beebster in her!

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She's been making me so proud and happy with her vegetable eating lately. She's got a thing for salads and celery with bleu cheese. She LOVES it. She ate celery with bleu cheese every single day this week for lunch and likes it as an "appeteaser" to her dinner. Last night we had broccoli and I didn't even put it on her plate since I didn't really feel like seeing it just sit there. She asked me, "what this, Momma" about the broccoli on my plate, and picked it up and ate it. I couldn't believe my eyes. She kept showing it to us in her mouth, and I figured it was going to come right back out, but she swallowed all of it and really seemed to like it! Considering this girl hasn't eaten many vegetables since she was roughly short of a year (she used to be my vegetable lover!), I have been very proud of my Beebster's new found love for some select vegetables. 

Little 'Ruff' with a bee sting

Little Beebster's been absolutely precious lately.

She put herself in a time-out today for taking something from Maddie, but other than that she has been a lovely little Beebster. Haha. 

The other day she went the entire day saying she was a "Ruff" (a puppy) and not "Dis." She kept barking and standing next to Maddie as if Maddie were walking her. It was quite the sight. Today we went down to the creek in the afternoon, and after picking some flowers with Maddie, Faith was insistent that she had been stung by a bee in her eye. She kept holding her left eye shut with her hand and going "Da Da, awww Dis.. a bee... Momma, awwww Dis, a bee.... Dee, awww Dis.... a bee!" We couldn't stop laughing, not even Maddie. Then Maddie started asking her stuff like "oh really, was it a red bee with purple spots or a purple bee with red spots?" (like in the 'Berenstain Bears and the Truth') and kept laughing at Faith's answers of "Ess!" and her "whopper."

Beebster's also got 4 cars that she takes with her everywhere these days. She has named Flo as 'Momma,' Dinoco Chick Hicks as 'Da Da,' baby Sally as 'Dee,' and Dinoco McQueen as 'Dis.' It's quite funny, and she's sleeping with the 4 of them as I type.

Faith saw Maddie in her nightgown tonight, and wanted to wear a nightgown too. She doesn't own one though since I'm always worried she'd pull off her diaper since of course they don't have bottoms, but Maddie noticed how much Faith wanted one and told her she could borrow her blue nightgown. Faith was THRILLED. They hugged and Maddie goes, "I just love you so much" and of course Beebster responded with an "Ess!" She looks precious in her big nightgown and they were running around chasing each other. I put a pair of bloomers on underneath just in case she decided in the middle of the night to try and pull off her diaper!

Beebster with her fake donut

Great things come in small packages

It's taken Faith until now (2 years and almost 4 months) to say the word "No." And, I think it's so darn adorable when she says it.

She was saying "Ess" (her 'yes') since about 16 months old and she's always uttered a grunting noise and a head shake to say 'No.' But, it was only the other night- after we'd gotten back from a day with cousins- that she actually said 'No.' She was sneaking out of her room as usual, and I told her "Beeeeeeeeebster.... get back to your room.." and she stood there and emphatically told me, "NO, Momma!" I was floored since this was the first time she said it (I never get tired of firsts) and asked her to say it again and again. It's so darn cute the way she says it.

So, Maddie and I have been having so much fun hearing her say 'No' that we've been coming up with "hypothetical situations" for her. (Hearing Maddie say, 'hypothetical situations' is quite hilarious in itself). We were walking the other day and we'd ask her stuff in the format of a Karen Katz manners book: "Beebster.. if Momma says 'Jump off the cliff, what would you say?'... if Momma says 'Eat your dessert before your dinner, what would you say?' if Momma says 'Cross the street without looking, what would you say?'" And, to these, she kept responding, "No, Momma!" or "No, Dee!" It's too cute. 

It's funny because people are always commenting to me that Faith doesn't talk, and that their kids have been talking since they were a lot younger than Faith. It's annoying, but I could care less. Maddie was the same way, and both she and Faith DO talk and WE understand what they say. Faith carries conversations and talks constantly, and her family that loves her so much understand everything she says. In fact, Maddie oftentimes is the translator for her little sis when other kids can't understand her. It's really sweet. It's not only us though, because people that take the time to listen to her understand what she's saying as well. It was neat the other day we were at Donovan's because Grampa, Nene, and Aunt Lisi all understood everything Faith was saying. 

*****

I realized that I've never mentioned how Faith loves to be hypnotized. She's very sensitive to touch, and has always loved to be "hypnotized" since she was a little baby-- 4 or 5 months old. She's totally in a zone and gets transfixed when you give her a back rub or a belly rub. She'll literally put her arm in the air and wants you to rub her arm underneath. Or, she'll put her foot in the air so you can get underneath her leg. It's so funny because it's an easy way to calm her down if she's full of beans. In the last picture, Maddie was hypnotizing Faith by rubbing her foot. Faith sits very still, and just loves it!

She's also my salad afficionado. She loves salad with bleu cheese dressing-- she'll even eat the cucumbers!

"It's a Small World"

My sweet little Beebins singing "It's a Small World" in the car on the way back from Donovan's house.

"I booped!"

I love this of Beebster after she pooped on the toilet. She gets so proud!

Arara and Beau

Beebster is so mesmerized these days by her princesses. Her very favorites are her Arara (Aurora), her Beau (Belle), and her Snow White (a name she can't say, so she just says 'Dis'). She just loves them.

She's been so proud of the princess sweatshirt that has now been passed down to her from her Dee. She doesn't mind the fact that it is slightly stained and the stains won't come out in the laundry. She LOVES this sweatshirt. After her nap today we told them to get ready to go to the playground. Faith asks constantly to wear her 'Arara Beau' (meaning her sweatshirt) and I told her she could wear it today since there was a little bit of a breeze. She started jumping up and down and clapping and then ran as fast as her little legs could carry her to her room. She came out to the living room about 3 minutes later with her 'Arara Beau' sweatshirt tucked up inside her one arm, a pair of Maddie's Arara socks (that are a little big on Faith nonetheless), and her brown 'fancy' shoes even though I had her pink sneakers already out in the living room. It was absolutely precious how excited she was!

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I now know what Faith does to her Dee when Maddie falls asleep before she does. I happened to catch her in the act! These are always the nights that Faith ventures out of her room.. the nights that Maddie falls asleep quickly and leaves Beebster awake and wanting her best companion. It's really so funny, and reminds me of the endless nights I used to spend asking Steph and Lis "are you still awake" when we were little and shared a room because you don't want to be that last person still awake. You want company! Anyway, I found Faith flopped over on Maddie giving her kisses and lifting her shirt to rub her stomach and saying "Aww Dee! Come on, Dee!" She's the best little sister.

Bad guys don't get toys!

Faith-y calling Santa to tell him the 'bad guys' don't deserve toys!

'Floppy disk'

As I write, Maddie is reading a book to the Beebster in their bed. They just came out for the first time requesting their purses that were hanging on their doorknob. They have them full of "accessories" and then Maddie asked if she could go get Faith a book to read to her. She came out and said she chose one to teach to Faith, and you can hear Faith in there going "what this, Dee?" and Maddie is talking to her about "wispy clouds" and more. Haha. They're quite the pair.

My Faith-y went to the doctor yesterday. The fevers and throwing up only lasted a day and a half, but then she started with this cough on Saturday I think. She has coughing fits that remind me of the night that Donovan scared the crap out of me and had to go to the hospital. It turned out he had croup, and although Faith's cough doesn't sound like a seal or a barking dog, I worried that it could be that. I hate seeing her not be able to catch her breath. Not to mention, the fits last as long as an hour and a half like last night. The doctor said her lungs are perfectly clear though, and it will just go away on its own. Last night when she started coughing at about midnight and couldn't stop by 1am, I turned on a HOT shower and closed the door. I took her in then and it was like a sauna. This has worked like a charm to sit there for about 10 minutes and let the vapor open everything up for the poor girl. 

She's so precious these days being so inquisitive about everything. It makes me smile so much when you hear her little voice asking, "what this, Momma? What this, Da-da?" Or, she wants to know where we are going, "where dis go, Momma? where dis go, Da-da?" She is also always telling us where she would like to go, and it usually always ends with "Dis go.. boo, baa" as in she would like to go back to the farm show. That farm show had quite an impact on her little farmer life!  I love how the sentences and phrases start coming together, in their own unique way. She's been doing that since about 20 months, but it's getting more elaborate all the time. 

She's been in love with Aurora now for a month or more. It is so ironic to me that now Aurora is Faith's favorite princess just as she was Maddie's for a year and a half. She calls her her 'Arara' and wants to hear those songs all the time in the car.