Oh, the possibilities!

I seriously started this post weeks ago...the days are getting shorter or something...

I don't think I ever posted a 23 or 24 month update on Madeline, and seeing as she's almost 25 months now, I should do a brain dump.  It's all starting to jumble together, the pregnancy is flying by and before I know it, it'll be Christmas.  But first, an update :-)

I'm amazed at what Madeline knows, retains and recites now.  It's not just one isolated incident, but many, many incidents and I know I've forgotten most of them.

- Case in point #1 - Madeline sat down on her bottom while in the tub the other night and said "uffda."  This is clearly something I say, and she picked it up from me. I laughed out loud when she said it.
- Case in point #2 - out of the blue she's started singing her "ABCs."  I've sung this to her countless times and she usually listens and follows up with "again!" But she never once led me to believe she could recite it on her own.  She's also consistent because she always forgets "E." She doesn't forget the "E" anymore :-) Here's my shy girl reciting her ABCs and hiding from the camera.

 (and this bear? it goes everywhere with her)

She also recognizes her letter and knows the associated phonics.  Again, we've done letter recognition for quite some time, but she wasn't interested so I didn't push. Learning will happen.  But all of a sudden, she's seeing letters everywhere, pointing them out. Many times, it's not a letter, rather an object shaped like a letter. Like this:

(pretend you see a picture of a U-shaped hook that her diaper bag hangs from in her room). hehehe. I obviously never got around to taking a picture!)

- Her newest thing is to repeat exactly what we say. It's comical. And I'm just grateful that the TV isn't typically on because she would recite things I'm certain shouldn't be uttered by a 2-year-old.
-The stuffed animals. Oh, the stuffed animals! Her crib has turned into a dumping ground for her animal brood. The bear in the video above is her favorite - she feeds him, diapers him (and insists on a wipe, gotta do it right!), shares all her toys with him, and he has to have his own blanket for naps/bed.
- Her top two-year molars are completely in, but her bottom two are still giving her issues.
- She knows the Costco parking lot (and has for some time). She loves Costco and gratefully will sit in the cart now. While we're still in the car she starts saying, "see no-man, see no-man" because there is this large, lighted snowman lawn decoration in the store right now. 
- She doesn't have any inhibitions when around Craig and me, but get her around other kids and she's timid and clingy. She has learned the kids in her class at school and they don't seem to bother her, but kids at the playground or in our home kind of freak her out.  I'm very curious how she is going to react to baby brother.
- She's refusing warm clothing...T-shirts are her go-to staple.  I'm really hoping this trend doesn't last long!
- Still no interest in potty training, but every once in a while she will sit on the toilet.  I'm not going to push her, she'll get there in her own time.
- Her imagination is taking off - her mimicking has turned into doing things (sweeping, actions that she sees Craig or me do, etc.)
- She "reads" books to herself.
- I can give her a look and she'll follow up whatever she's demanding with a "pees." One of these days she is going to say please and thank you unprompted and on a regular basis!
- A milestone happened last night: someone other than a family member put Madeline to bed.  Granted, she was still awake and complaining when we got back from Small Group at 9:30 and didn't fall asleep until after 10, but she willingly got in her crib without Craig OR me being here. That's a first.  This is going to make getting out the door to Bible Study a lot easier...
- And I cannot keep up with her vocabulary at all.  She's learning and retaining new words, phrases and thoughts on a daily basis.  I noticed recently that "a", "an", "the" and other filler words are completing her sentences. 

There's so much more, but I simply cannot remember!  I'll leave you with a more recent picture and a preview of the next post...