Potty Time!

First, I want to make it clear that I am NOT trying to potty train her now, but I saw on the show "The Doctors" that one Mom was putting her baby about Lilly's age on the potty when she knew she was about to go to the bathroom and she would go. I thought that may not be a bad idea because she would start learning and it would be less to clean up. So I tried it and she does pretty well. She seems to know what I mean when I tell her to "go potty". She has done it several times over the past few days. Sometimes she just tinkles, but that is good, too! After she goes she seems so proud of herself and I do praise her, but when she doesn't go on the potty it's not a big deal and she doesn't get scolded or anything. I do have to pay close attention to her to know when she is about to go, though. She is also walking EVERYWHERE now. She knows what no means, but usually continues with her whatever she is doing anyways. Most of the time now she will say "aah-aah" and shake her head no when she is doing something she knows she isn't supposed to do. The noise is because that is what my Mom and Grandmama told me and my sister instead of no-no. I guess I picked it up and use it most of the time myself.
She has been getting up at night some and waking up about 4:30am and won't go back to sleep until I put her in the bed with us and nurse her. Last night Brendan had to go into work to help out. So, when she woke up last night in the middle of the night I let her cry it out. It took her almost an hour, but then selpt until almost 7am! At least 10 hours! Hopefully she won't wake up for long tonight, if at all. Tonight, when I put her down she said nigh-nigh (night-night)and then started talking to herself (in her own made up language). She is constantly talking now, even though we can't understand most of what she says.
Some words she does know/say are:
cat
book
night night
mama
dada
ball
mine?
bye bye
uh-oh
puff (gerber puffs)

She also knows what the cow, cat, and sheep say when we ask her and knows where her nose is along with other people's and even the dogs' noses. I have tried to teach her ear, eye, and mouth, but she doesn't seem too interested in them yet. She tries to imitate things we do and say and expects us to imitate her back. I see what they mean when they say a baby is like a sponge. She picks up on so much more that I realized. I will add pictures once I upload them to the computer.

Just Dance!

Lilly now loves to dance! When she hears music from a commercial or TV show she starts bouncing up and down. Her favorite is the "Hot Dog Dance" on Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. She also likes the opening song. Her favorite place to dance is right in front of the TV armoire holding on for better balance. She is getting more confident with walking every day, but once she loses her balance she is content to crawl. She is a VERY quick crawler! She also thinks that it is funny when someone sneezes (or fake sneezes). She giggles and then pretends to sneeze herself. She loves to copy things we do. She is interested in everything that we eat now and would much rather eat that than any of her food. I share with her the things she can have, but when I'm eating something she can't have she looks at me so sad and sometimes starts smacking her lips just to make sure I understand that she wants me to share. I usually give her a couple of Cheerios to snack on and she is content. She also likes to share here cheerios with everyone, including the dogs. Even if you don't want to eat one she keeps trying to push it into your mouth until you eat it. We call her the cheerio monster because she loves them so much. She could probably eat them all day long and not get tired of them. It's hard to believe that this time last year she was still in my tummy and now she is walking, talking (well, some words), and has a mind of her own. She is absolutly amazing and we love her so much!

Brendan and I have been getting some things done around the house to make it more desirable to a potential buyer. We got the exterior powerwashed, replaced a cracked storm window, and adjusted a storm door that was hard to shut. So hopefully it will be ready to go when the right buyer comes along. Our lot in the new neighborhood has been cleared and we have finalized our selections. I am really excited about moving to a more family oriented neighborhood and as long as everything goes well we should be there just in time for late spring to enjoy to neighborhood pool!

I have also been trying to figure out what we will get Lilly for Christmas and her Birthday since they are only 3 days apart. I have picked up a few little things, but I don't really know what bigger items to get her that she will use the most. I hate to have stuff taking up space that she really won't use. I like the concept of the 3 in 1 smart trike so she can use it for a while. Any suggestions would be appreciated!

Trick or Treat!

We finally got our pumpking carved this past week and Lilly helped. She mainly just played with the pumpkin guts. She was too cute! This past Saturday we took Lilly trick or treating with her cousin Cason. Cason was so sweet and really looked out for Lilly. Lilly was a pink butterfly and Cason was a Carolina Football player. What a good day for it since we beat Tennesee earlier that day! She really enjoyed watching Cason and his friends. She also kept digging in her Halloween bucket and pulling out her candy (even though she can't have any). Then, Sunday we took Lilly to the Fall festival at the church. She got to participate in a few activities and she got to sit on top of a big horse with Mommy. Of course I left the camera in the car and didn't get a picture of it.

Last night Lilly really started walking more. She is now up to about 8 steps and doesn't hesitate to walk as long a her destination isn't too far away. Her top 2 teeth have finally popped through, too. My parents went on a cruise last Saturday and will be back Thursday. My Mom will really be suprised at her progress. We are also planning to go to the beach this weekend and meet up with some of Brendan's friends from work down there. It should be fun, but I do have to make myself run at least 18 miles one day while we are down there. I have really had a hard time fitting in my marathon training. It gets really boring running by yourself for hours at a time. I am hoping that my Mom will want to watch Lilly while I run and maybe Brendan can join me on a bike. Even if it's just for part of the run so it won't be so boring. I WILL RUN THE WHOLE MARATHON December 11th. I just know not to sign up for another one unless I have someone to train with and until Lilly is a little older so I don't feel guilty for being away from her for so long on the weekends. I am really looking foward to November and Lilly's first Thanksgiving!