Ponytails

This little cutie loves her ponytails and simply enjoys painting with just about any tool available. Now I love collecting them - the paintings that is - I'm just not sure where I'm going to put them all.

What amazing little person she's turned out to be - friendly, saying hello to parents who pass us as we walk in and out of daycare; happy and full of a desire to share that happiness, with a smile or a touch when she senses one of us isn't feeling quite happy....already a mediator, which I hate, but boy, that's when she reminds me of me the most. With us as parents, we know why she has her independence and loves expressing it - and is proud when she accomplishes things no matter how big or small. "Katherine do it." came first - "I do it myself." is now. She's amazing.

Today she asked for her cheerios and milk in the car...and specified, "the milk from earlier" - how does she know that? She's connected the need to get her stuff in her cubby before she goes home, not just that she's going home. And she continues to know everyone's names, parents' names, their cars, the teachers, kids' belongings....I think she has "WOO" too! ("Woo" is the strength or talent to "Win Others Over" - there's an interest to get to know people, learn their names, connect. GallupOrganization's Strengthsfinder tool).

My little Monkey (2004), my little munchkin - our peanut from the beginning who likes Eddie and Pearl Jam and knows all the band member's names, and rocks out with either of us to our music in the car. She's a lot of fun.

Today we played in the snow and ate snow when we came home. She walked backwards into daycare...I didn't know she could do that.

Update

To keep this from being a once a year blog instead of the more common once-a-day, I thought I better update. It has come to my realization through a long drawn out interview process for another internal job that I want to spend time with my family and especially my daughter. At 2 she's changing drastically every day - more verbal than most 2 year olds, she's a pleasure to talk with and full of humor and wit. While the position seemed the perfect opportunity, this process afforded me time to deliberate (more than I've ever done I believe) on my future, how I approach it, options, paths, etc etc. In retrospect, I think my extreme deliberation was an innate force telling my professional, goal-setting being what my heart already knew.

Family Vacation

Labor Day Weekend began our week long family vacation this year with my parents, and sister and her family in Upstate NY. Not bringing our journal in which we capture all the fascinating things Katherine does in her development, I thought I'd capture some of them here. She's speaking in sentences already...."I want this yogurt." was the big one the other day. And she's catching on to everything we say. It's truly amazing. At 21 months, who knew she could truly learn shapes like rhombus and trapezoid....horse vs. pony.

Being in Saratoga, we headed for the track where she saw both horses and ponies - the former, racing and the latter, giving kids rides - and later at the hotel, she noticed a framed print of a horse racing and started to say "pony" and stopped just short, and corrected herself and said "horsie".

She's met again Aunts, Uncles and cousins, second cousins..etc. She is affectionate with them all...especially "NonnaPoppa" or sometimes, "PopPop". Nonna babysat so we could go to dinner on our anniversary and Katherine was so good - going right to bed. She's been going to bed VERY late...of course...but she still goes right down. Lays there a bit and shuts her eyes and goes to sleep. It's so cute.

Belated post - Kati's 1st Birthday

Amazed by this big beautiful cake from Aunt Mimi -

a comment on Marianna's blog remarks how cool it is she's trying to use her psychic powers to put out the candle.

Then she finally digs in, well sort of...her first touch of the icing struck an "ew" face at the odd feeling.

First Halloween!

Have you ever seen a cuter pumpkin!?!
I think not!

my first trip to staten island

....was to attend my friend's baby shower. It's amazing what you'll do when you want to be someplace. When else would I have a reason to go to Staten Island. I'd tease I never went over those bridges...Goethals...Rt 278...why go there? "I don't go east of Manhatten." I'd say. Now I had a reason, so Peanut and I trekked out together and I'm feeling quite adventursome. Tuesday I go to Brooklyn for the first time and now I'm not even worried. :) do i sound like a country hick? or a NJ-ite? I'm excited, though, b/c now I'll know how to get to Brooklyn to visit the new baby once it's born...all very exciting. And all very good reasons to adventure past the East River!

Customer service is dead.

I should probably edit that to "is hit or miss", which I guess can be said for just about anything. However, when you're in a retail setting, the one thing you'd think you could count on is employees helping you - with a smile would be even better. I have to say, my initial disgust has been somewhat metered by a second experience at the same store which was much more pleasant. I can only accredit this to the fact that my first experience was at 5pm on a Sunday, and the second was at 6pm on a Tuesday. It is a well known fact around here (being the metro-NY area) that weekend shopping is hell. And if you dare, or must, you risk being the recipeient of poor manners and rude behavior and this is from both other shoppers, as well as employees. Now on Tuesday (or almost any weeknight) you can be in the same place with the same people working and experience smiles, offers of assistance, and fewer shoving by shoppers b/c there are just fewer shoppers.

The NY Metro area on weekends is like the rest of the country during Christmas shopping month....so imagine what Christmas is like here.

As for people and rude behavior, I'm just sick of drivers as well. Now that I've been commuting 45 minutes on highways that are blocked up in the morning, I experience more inconsiderate behavior. I've concluded these people have not been taught the difference between right and wrong; they were never told to treat others as you'd have them treat you....rather, it's bite or be bitten these days. The world can be a sad, sad place some days.