So about that contest I gave myself in my last entry, to blog each day in
March…umm, yeah. I blinked once and 31 days of March flew by. And then I
blinked again, and 30 days of April flew by. And now we are almost done May...and I don't want to be blogging the last weekend of May, so I am squeezing in time now to write. Actually, I've been typing this very entry for the last 22 days now, adding pictures from the archives for Sophia to look back on. Major spoiler alert: Way too many pictures to count below! (More can be found following us on Instagram: pebblesandporridge)
The time is going by so incredibly quick, even more so now that Sophia is on the move and walking! Sophia started walking on March 13th, 2015, on what would have been my dad's 62nd birthday! How cool is that. Soph, you've always been vocally expressive, but in your 21st month, I've noticed your language vocabulary soar. You can probably say close to 100 words, and it seems like you understand everything we tell you. You love repeating exactly what we say, and you recently learned how to say "please!" Now, everything is followed by "please," which makes your wish so hard to ignore.
The time is going by so incredibly quick, even more so now that Sophia is on the move and walking! Sophia started walking on March 13th, 2015, on what would have been my dad's 62nd birthday! How cool is that. Soph, you've always been vocally expressive, but in your 21st month, I've noticed your language vocabulary soar. You can probably say close to 100 words, and it seems like you understand everything we tell you. You love repeating exactly what we say, and you recently learned how to say "please!" Now, everything is followed by "please," which makes your wish so hard to ignore.
With Sophia learning to walk on her own, we realized she needed something to hold onto for balancing support (and extra confidence), so instead of offering our hands to walk with her, I gave her two empty toilet paper rolls. We played a game of walking to give daddy the rolls, and I slowly took my hands away that were supporting her from underneath her arms. Within 15 minutes, she was walking by herself from one end of the house to the other!
I have a feeling she knew how to walk for a few weeks before this, and just needed that extra confidence boost and support to really strive on her own! Since she's been walking independently, I feel so much freer! I don't have to carry her around all day...she was getting heavy at 20 lbs!
Here is Sophia at the shoe store, shopping for her very first pair of walking shoes! We ended up buying a pair of "Pedi Peds" which I found to be amazing flexibility and support for her little feet. This was just 8 weeks ago, and she's already up a size!
How is the sense of passing of time for you? Are you finding time is zipping by? Days are turning into weeks quickly? Are you able to allot time each day to contemplative and mindful practice? I wonder these things, because I myself, realize I have to make sitting silent practice a priority each day, otherwise I'm running around looking like a crazy banshee. Well, I certainly hope you are enjoying each moment, each peak and valley.
On the subject of moving, we moved into our home one year ago, on
May 1st 2014! We’ve extended our lease for another year, and are so
happy to be here. We kind of entertained the idea of moving again, just to
switch things up and keep us on our toes, but we decided that where we are is
just perfect for now. We’ve got a lovely space, with a huge backyard, and a
finished basement that we’ve made into a home office and reading nook and our
exercise area.
When we first moved in. THEN...
And NOW... a living room filled with tot's stuff
It is funny how we can take a space and make it utterly ours, even when it isn't "ours." Do you feel there is any true sense of ownership in this world? We humans can be so caught up with the sense of ownership (of land, of material objects, of our own bodies), and I wonder if really, truly we own anything at all? Take for instance, our homes, well, we may think we own our home, but we are just paying a mortgage to a financial institution, so the bank owns our home, and the bank has borrowed that money from the Bank of Canada, so the bank doesn't even "own" that money. And gosh knows how the Bank of Canada regulates the printing of money. And even if we do pay off our mortgage, and are so excited because our four walls are "ours," and all the property taxes that we pay for "our" land, now truly becomes ours, well is it really "our" land to claim? Who lived here first? And should the entire world not be our native land? This is all coming from one who isn't a History person, and one who doesn't really understand the purpose of war and the fighting/defence of land. Instead, our whole planet should be "ours" for travelling light on, going with the flow, not taking things seriously, not becoming caught up with the sense of ownership. But, I will admit that it certainly is nice that although we are merely tenants in this space, it does feel calm and lovely, and we've done the best we can to shape it as we would if it were our "own." I quite like having a peaceful and humble space that we can return to after going out, to rejuvenate and refresh us.
Gurshawn gifted me with a treadmill on my 31st
birthday this year, who I’ve named Millie. She sits in our basement, and gives
me a good workout every other day. I’m working up to 10 km in one hour, and
then I’ll be the one who is giving her a workout.
She loves going grocery shopping, especially when Daddy takes her! Her favourite store is Longos, because if you look up on the palm trees near the bananas, there are two monkeys hanging out there! She spotted them way before we did!
Here are some pictures of our not so little toddler!
Dyson buddies
At the Waldorf program, feeding the sheep!
Squishies
Very snuggly
Art fun with daddy
Snacks taste much yummier in a tiny muffin tray
Galloping through toddler-hood
Creating a mosaic in Art class
A story after playing dress up
She loves to wear her monkey...
While sweeping the floors!
(She must remember how I used to babywear and clean up)
More Art class fun (I love the use of a roller, instead of a paintbrush, to get their little hands used to different materials and tools)
Bad to the bone
Helping with our before-the-weekend chores
When Sophia found two bunnies, she was so excited! This is the lovey that she cuddles up and sleeps with. No sleep is a restful one without "Jelly." We had been hiding an extra one from her, in case the original got dirty or thrown in the mud! Here she found two and couldn't contain her excitement!
Often, it is really hard for Soph to stack blocks upwards. But, with shaving cream acting as glue, that eliminates the trickiness of the task.
Daddy setting such a good example as he focuses on his own drawing, giving Sophia independent time to work on her craft
Walking along the balance beam is a fabulous task to master which assists with reading skills
A real live giant bunny
Love our early Saturday mornings! (6 AM!)
One of the first warm days of Spring, we spent in the park!
Such a relief to not have to bundle up a toddler and get out the door.
A fabulous time hanging like a monkey at Gymnastics
Who loves potty time?!
Her new "bi-sick!"
Painting with balloons (Art class has really helped solidify her knowledge of colours)
Ironing can be so fun!
Problem solving in the maze at Gymnastics
You loved the airplane ride across the cable wire!
Your shoes (size 5) are getting too small for your growing feet. Time to move up to size 5.5.
Creating a bird's nest with moss, and eggs with modelling clay.
Snuggles in the afternoon with daddy!
Got your new library card?!
You chose some new reading material to read with daddy this evening!
Why do you look so tall?!
Your FIRST horse ride! You really had so much fun...
Even though this picture doesn't suggest that.
One day, we will buy you a pony...or maybe a my little pony.
Flashback! The same donkey from last summer!
Don't let these pictures fool you. It isn't all smiles and giggles. (She really wanted to water the plant)
First ice cream of the season!
She's 22 months!
Well, I've overloaded this entry with pictures, and this will be all for now! I'm excited to write next month, when I discuss our REAL potty training endeavour (Goodbye, cloth diapers!), and my tingling uterus ;)
Happy weekend to you! Enjoy the sunshine and the showers!
