A smile and a problem

Leah and Jason were happy to be reunited after another long weekend apart.

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L: I like you Daddy.
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J: I like you, too.

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L: I love you Daddy.

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J: I love you, too.

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L: We're friends.

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J: We are friends.

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L: We're family.

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J: Yep.

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L: We're married!

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J: Uhhh...

Leah has grand ideas about being married to a prince, complete with glass slippers, a beautiful dress, earrings and a cake. She tells me every day that she's marrying a prince, and I'm glad that she sees princely characteristics in her Daddy.

Now for the (unrelated) problem. Leah's hair is getting longer and thicker, (yay!) and she loves to twirl it around her finger when she's falling asleep. But lately, she's been twirling it into little knots that are impossible to comb out! Literally- I usually end up combing the little knot until it falls out onto the comb.

Does anyone have a good product to recommend that keeps the tangles out?

Tonight Leah started screaming from her room because she had twirled her finger so tightly into her hair that it got stuck. Ouch! We need help!

What's In A Name?

A few months ago I posted about Leah's clarification to her name when I called her a little chickidee. I thought it was cute. And at the time it was.

But it's still going on.

I can't call her anything without getting corrected- "No, it's Leah". Sometimes I play with her and say, "You mean you're not my little grilled cheese sandwich/ice cream cone/fluffy bunny?"

Leah (in all seriousness): No! It's me!

Other times I just want to call her something sweet, like tonight as I was tucking her into bed.

Me: Good night my little princess.

Her: No, it's Leah.

Me: Oh! Good night, my little Leah.

Her: No, it's LEAH!

Sheesh.

It's a little less Romeo and Juliet's "Oh, what's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other word would smell as sweet" and a little more John Proctor from the The Crucible's, "Because it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my life! How may I live without my name? I have given you my soul; leave me my name!"

Okay, okay, it's LEAH. Admittedly, I took great efforts to picking out that name when she was born. I'm glad she likes it.

What A Downer

Leah has started saying some "bad words" lately- it's like having a grumpy little rain cloud following me around the house. A choice few-

Hey! Dat's mine!

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I can't do it.

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Leave me alone.

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Hey! Leggo!

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Don't touch that!

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Shhh! Be quiet!

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Dat's my toy.

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I don't like it.

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(sigh... I'm not sure where she got most of these...)

Kangaroo Zoo

Leah and I have started attending a Mom & Me craft/cooking/activities class, and today we went on a field trip to Kangaroo Zoo, which is basically a giant indoor bounce house. It was awesome, and Leah loved it. Most of it. She wouldn't go on certain slides, based on the creature that was sitting atop it, but for the most part, we had a blast. And I certainly got a workout helping her climb up stairs like this. Her favorite part- girly girl that she is- was this fancy room, which had flower lights all over the walls. Pretty cute, huh?
I'm not sure who had more fun- me or Leah!

My String Bean

When I say 'smile', Leah really delivers!

Leah's two year check up was yesterday, and I was shocked to hear that she is now 24 pounds and 36 inches long! That means she's in the 25th percentile for weight, and the 95th percentile for height! My sweet little tiny! Who has never been above the 5th percentile for anything! I'm so surprised! And glad to know I'm not crazy- I thought she grew out of the last round of clothes fairly quickly!

But my favorite moment of the day yesterday was when Leah came screaming out of the bathroom- and the bathtub- "Dere's POOP! Dere's POOP in the tub!" hee hee- it was so funny to see how offended she was by it. Guess we won't be attempting potty training anytime soon!

Smarty Pants

Jason has been traveling the country for the last few weeks- first with a trip to San Diego for a genetics conference, and then to Minnesota for his first PhD school interview. So, while he had lots of great things to say about the weather! the view! and the beaches! in California, I have to admit that I secretly thought he was getting his just rewards when he was stuck in the middle of the Frozen Tundra of Minnesota, with weather in the negatives each day.

Leah and I spent the time at my parents house, which meant lots of lazy days of delicious food, great company and no worries. Thank goodness Jason's going to Nebraska for another interview in a few weeks. I'm ready for another vacation!

What A Princess Does On A Snowy Day

A snack, a stroller, a castle, and a tiara, and we were set.

Happy 2nd Birthday, Leah!

We celebrated Leah's 2nd birthday on the 30th with a Monkey George themed party. Leah got a tricycle for her birthday, and I wanted to give her a chance to ride it before May, so we had the party at our church building. All of the kids brought riding toys, and they had a lot of fun riding around the room. We played games- Pin the hat on the Man without the Yellow Hat, Feed Monkey George, and Monkey See Monkey Do- and all the kids loved their cupcakes and balloons. This year, Leah blew out the candle on the second try!She had a lot of fun, and keeps telling me she is ready for another birthday party. I guess it was a hit!