Millie 2 2/3 Years Old

Time for another Millie Bear update.  However, I just went back to read her 2 1/3 update in November and really not much has changed, as far as her likes and dislikes go.  What HAS really changed is her talking, which is so fast now that it's hard to keep up with what all she is trying to tell us. ;)  I've quit writing down the funny things she says because there are just too many every single day.

updates/additions to Millie's likes:

• Chase is still her favorite game, but we've been working on hide-n-seek some too.  She likes the counting part, but she's terrible at the hiding part.  She wants to do the counting every time.

• Still singing her heart out, and Twinkle Twinkle is still the default song of choice.  Now though, she's really getting into some songs from school: This Little Light of Mine and I May Never March in the Infantry seem to be her two school favorites.  We always have music playing during nighttime naked time; The Okee Dokee Brothers is the current fav and it's cute to hear her sing along to it.

• Dancing has really amped up.  She likes to "whip her hair" to Willow's song of the same name.  Recently, us three girls have been boogying to Pharrell's Happy song.  Yes, Syd too.

• New food loves: we are finally able to give her dairy without restriction (but we can still tell if she has too much), so mac-n-cheese and pizza have become quick favorites.  She likes the "baby pizzas" where I make them with biscuits.  And although it isn't dairy related, she loves brown rice.  She'd like nothing better than a big bowl of brown rice with veggies for dinner...no meat, please.  

• Blankie/Owl isn't new, but Owl is apparently losing his luster and Blankie is the clear favorite.  She loves touching the silky lining and rubbing it on her face.  Now she makes us roll him up into a taco shape where none of the other fabric is showing and only the silky part is on the outside.  Blankie/Owl aren't allowed to leave the house though, so it's only for bedtime or when she is extra tired and whiny.

• This Winter has seemed so long; we all miss the park and walks and water play out back.  Unfortunately in the absence of these things, I've allowed her to watch a bit too much TV.  She still loves Curious George and Little Bear, but she's had a different favorite movie just about every week.  Winnie the Pooh, Monsters, Inc. and Monsters University are old news.  She's since moved on to Finding Nemo (she loves Dory), then The Care Bears Movie (which is too scary for her), then The Lion King ("where'd 'Fasa go??"), then the Jungle Book (so old that the graphics are awful), then Toy Story 2 (yayyyy, it's Jessie and Bullseye!), arriving at her current favorite of Toy Story 3 (it has both Jessie AND a huge purple stuffed teddy bear).  Some days, she'll watch the whole thing, but most of the time she's up and playing during the movie too.  Looking forward to shelving these until next Winter (where they will be guaranteed to help save my sanity, once again).

• Kitty hunting is all the rage.  We have 3 outside kitties that live just down the road and she loves to go on a kitty hunt.  Thankfully, one of them (Dewayne) is very friendly and lets Mills pet and play.

• She loves being a big sister.  It's finally registering that she gets to do some things that Syd can't...like chew food ("babies don't have teeth!") or go to school ("it's not for mommies or daddies or babies").  I'm so proud of the way Millie interacts with Syd 90% of the time.  She likes to play with her and read to her and feed her...and she gives such enthusiastic hugs that Syd usually ends up crying and on the ground.  There are plenty of moments where she steals Syd's toys or gets a bit needy with my attention, but it's really surprised me how well Millie has adjusted.  I always say how lucky we are that Syd is so laid back, but we are just as lucky that Millie has such a loving little heart. 

updates/additions to Millie's dislikes:

• Cayden moving so far away

• I've created a little monster with the picture taking...I started offering treats if she would smile.  Now she thinks she gets a treat every time.  She really loves smarties candy.

• wearing clothes...she's constantly disrobing or asking us to help her take off her clothes

• letting other little kids look at or touch Syd

• playing dress-up

• sharing and taking turns

 Millie says:

• she pronounces veggie chips as "guppie chips"

• the other day, she wanted me to open a package and told me to go get a "sharp".  I guess this is what she calls either knives or scissors because I'm always saying to "be careful, it's sharp!".  To be clear, I don't let her play with knives or scissors...

• she likes to look at our gum...in our mouth.  and she calls it "grum", as in "let me see your grum, daddy".

• Aunt Kathy gave her a little cash register that she loves playing with, especially the coins.  she's constantly looking for her "poins".

• instead of "car wash", she calls it the "wash car" (which she still hates, by the way)

• when we get Syd out of her bed, Millie always says "didja have a good nap, syd?"

• Millie loves to ask "whazzis?"...which is actually "what's this?" but she says it so fast and it is one word with a random 'z' sound thrown in.  Even when she knows what something is, she still often asks; we usually have to end up turning the question back around to her to break the cycle.

• I've overheard her telling Syd: "not so fast, Syd" 

• her go-to pretend strategy either involves counting and telling someone to sit in timeout (or if they're really in trouble, they get a swat) OR pouring you a cup of coffee and telling you it's hot.  also, baking cookies or bday cake in her kitchen are other favorite pretend scenarios

• she loves to use my own words against me: "just a minute, i'm busy"; "i'm not kidding"; "i'm not playing this game".

• we've done a pretty good job of cleaning up our mouths in front of Mills these past few months, but apparently she hasn't forgotten.  last week when she spilled something, I let out a groan.  she said "heyyyy, don't say that word!".  I told her it wasn't a bad word, and she asked "not like God Damnit?".  uhhhh, nope.  sigh.  love this kid!

This Friday, we embark on the potty training journey, since next week is her Spring Break.  Wish us luck!