Literalist

We recently started trying potty training around here - very recently. Eva picked out a treat at Target yesterday for her to get whenever she successfully used the kiddo potty, and she chose gummy worms! So last night we got home and headed for the bathroom, after talking up using the potty all day and now there was the promise of a gummy worm. So, Eva quickly took off her pants, had me help her pull off her diaper, and then sat down on the top of her potty with the lid down while saying, "Ok, I get a gummy worm now!" I said, "Babe, you have to go pee or poop in the potty, remember? That is why you sit on the potty." She answered, "No, you said worm if I was on the potty. I am on potty but I don't PEE on HERE??? Worm! Worm please!"

So yeah, we have a little ways to go.... 

Reasons that 2.5 Year Old Eva Cracks Up Her Mom

1. She often pronounces "I love you," as, "I lub you." Still 'bery' heartfelt though.

2. She makes deals with me - in similar fashion to how I sometimes talk to her. Although my deals go like this: "If you eat two bites of veggies, you can have some ice cream - deal?" Her deals go like this: "Oh-KAY, here is a deal, I will watch TEE-vee, not a lot, just a little, and then go to sleep, and then wake up, and then watch TEE-vee, and then we can play together, and then watch TEE-vee - is that a deal?" 

3. When I picked up her cup that had fallen on the floor of the car's back seat, she exclaimed, "Momma, I am SO proud of you!"

4. She dramatically uses the phrases "I promise" (sometimes accurately, often when telling stories about herself), "That is just terrible!" (when trying to type her name and struggling), and "Don't say that!" (when I say no to something.)

5. She tells intricate stories to and with her toys, dolls, and me and her dad - most of the day. Some of them I can track, those that have characters and plot lines - some I can't so much... Regardless of the story arc, her little voice recounting the adventures  of a bunny going to school or a little girl driving with Diego to the grocery store are pretty darn cute - and funny - to overhear. 

6. Am pretty sure she has two imaginary friends, Galla and Holly; sometimes they are her friends, sometimes they are called her sisters, and sometimes she says, "My sister and my brother" - names and person-hood changes are fluid it seems.   

7. She plays a game lately that usually signifies that she wants to held, cuddled, or reassured in some way - I call it the "The baby animal game." It goes something like this: "Momma, are you a momma bumble bee?"  I say, "Yes," so she can say, "I am a baby bumble bee, and I need you to hold me, I hurt my wings, I can't fly." (Then she lays down face on the floor, flapping her "wings" until I pick her up and hold her.) Or another common version of the game is:" Momma, are you a momma polar bear?" "Yes, I am."  "Oh, I am a baby polar bear, I hurt my foot."  This morning it was, "My foot fell off - help me, help me - oh, there it is, silly! It was in the water. Got it! Silly polar bear!"

8. She apologizes at silly times - like when others make a mistake (I drop something and she says, sorry!), or an inanimate object runs into/get run into by/  her (like say, a pole in an aisle at Home Depot, which she runs into and then chuckles, saying, "Oh, sorry pole.")

9. She can tell the story of Lady and the Tramp in a reader book of hers almost word for word; its actually impressive/ little scary how much she knows what detail comes next and in what order. My favorite lines are the repeated ones that Eva retells with exaggerated intonation and smiles. "What's that noise, Lady assssssk-ed." And, "Lady, we are safe and sound, I'm the bravest dog around!" with a rhythmic punctuated thing going on.

10. She dances, a lot, all over our house, in the yard, at stores, while waiting for food at restaurants, etc. Her latest new place to dance is in front of the mirrors on the doors at our new apt. - and she GOES for it, talking and singing to herself, admiring her bad skills pretty happily. :)

11. She pronounces some words really cute - like "a-pot-mint" (apartment) and "wool-pill" (whirpool) - random ones I just heard tonight and remembered as so funny... should remember more later on. 

12. She plays giggle, tickle, hiding and sleeping games with her dad ALL THE TIME. One of her recent ones includes hiding under a towel or blanket, saying "Shh, I am asleep," and then throwing off the cover to exclaim "Surprise! I am not asleep!"

13. She pretends to put us to sleep. Complete with tucking us in bed, kissing us, saying "Good night sweet-art," then closing the door - and a split second later, opening it grandly saying, "What's wrong? What's wrong? Do you need a song?" Then she sings an abbreviated version of one of her favorite nighttime songs, and does the whole routine again, closes the door, and then opens it abruptly again, asking, "What's wrong?" She can do this up to about twenty times if we go along! (Keep in mind that as far as games go, laying in bed while she sings to us and hands out kisses is an okay one to play along with.)

14. She remembers words to songs like its her job; I catch her singing large snippets of Chim-Chiminey, Feed the Birds, Baby Mine, Sesame Street, Jesus Loves Me, Clang went the Trolley, and standards like Twinkle and ABC's at random times. I don't even know that she know these songs until she sings them back to me. (Then I secretly start to think about what songs I better sing more of so that she will know them and repeat them back!)

There are so many more, but I wanted to remember some of these hilarious little quirks that make Eva M our little joy. I am loving this girl's personality and all she teaches and reminds Peter and I about - I can't wait to see how she continues to develop and entertain us with her sweet, funny, emotive and larger the life expressions!       

Moving - and Finding Home...

Last weekend we made the official leap over to our new apartment, a few doors north of our previous one. With the help of some friends and cute short people running around underfoot, we hauled all of our big pieces and much of our small stuff up the road (thanks again helpers!!)  We had been moving over bookshelves/books, artwork, ktichen stuff, etc. before this weekend, but now - we really live in our new digs. As in, we sleep, shower, and have most of our life set up over here. And so far, we like it. We have plenty of work left, including continued cleaning and unpacking and moving in both spaces - but, its been pretty fun so far and our new apt is MUCH larger and fits our life really well.

Eva loves her new bedroom and has slept through the night without any trouble in her new big girl bed! woo hoo! She is, however, waking up a little earlier and starting her signature call for us; "Can you hear me?  Hello - can you hear me? I am awake! Let's play!" Her room is now definately a big girl room - no baby stuff, a full dresser full of big kid clothes, dresses hung up in her own closet, her cuddly toys in her own little bed - no dual space use in her room either. The only time I got nostalgic while making this move was when we started packing up her old bedroom, the office turned baby-space that we so carefully painted, hung up pcitures in, built her crib and stocked it with diapers, in. It kind of hit me that we brought her home to this empty room crafted so carefully and then she became part of our home/family after that. When we first brought her home it felt so foreign and like an experiment! Who is that bundle laying in that other room? Now, every move we make, she will make it with us and define a lot of where and how we set up home. Kind of crazy for me to think about.

Overall Eva's done great with all the moving transitions, but she did have one meltdown the day after all the excitement of the move that kind of broke my heart. She had been going back and forth between the two apartments while we moved for about two weeks now, and after her first night over here in the new space, was fighting a cold, a little whiney, and I think unsure of what else was going to change. She started crying at breakfast over nothing, and then said, "I want to go Home!" I said, "Babe, we are home, remember? This is our new home where mom and dad and Eva all live togeher." (For awhile ther was confusion about if we would all stick together for the move, so I thought I'd reinforce that again.) Then she said, "NO, no, no, I want to go HOME." And I said, "Where is home, babe?" To which she tearfully exclaimed, "I don't know where home is! I am just sad."  :(  Here is where I started to cry a little and both Peter and I did some hugging and holding and then played in her new playroom together for awhile. She recovered fine, but the poor girl reminded me that having everything change and feeling unsure about where you belong is a tricky thing. I can't imagine kids who have to move a lot, or never get to be grounded or steady somewhere - like in refugee camps, shelters, or even on base camps or on the road all the time. We all adapt in some ways to any kind of move, but in a fundemental sense, HOME is where we are safe, secure, connected and loved. And what surrounds us physically in whatever space we're in reinforces and helps define that sense of home. As we set up this new space called HOME I am reminded of that - and so grateful for this space that helps shape our home and the people that fill up our sense of home.

Ok, back to unpacking. :)        

Summer's End

It feels like the real end of summer around here lately. Classes are back in full swing now at NPU, the weather doesn't stay warm without it getting nippy by dinner time, leaves keep crackling under the stroller whenever we're out, and all our schedules and routines are in the process of being switched around for this new season. I feel like we "accomplished" so much this summer - seeing people, places, making memories, trying both everyday and wild stuff with our willing toddler.  Here is my seasonal collage to remember some of the highlights from summer 2010:

Quoteable: There could be trouble

"Hey, I am just going to go get in some trouble, o-KAY? Don't worry about it, just keep typing."

Then, "giggle, giggle," followed by the pitter patter of her little feet, and a door slamming. 

This was an actual quote from Eva as she craned her neck around the corner and looked at me while typing on the computer... and don't worry, I did go check on her and took away the toothpaste she was trying to eat. :) After I laughed, hard, at her pre-emptive warning to me about getting into trouble.

I love this girl.

Once upon a time...

Eva loves to tell stories and make up silly plot lines lately. She usually talks about something that we've done lately, or that she's seen Dora do lately, and mixes it up with new characters and some crazy connections. Her stories crack me up and are also very good diversions when she's crabby or doesn't want to do ________ activity. She also starts her stories with the prerequisite, "Once upon a time," although sometimes it doesn't come at the beginning. Here is just one example of the "power of story":

This past week we were packing a lot and she got a little frustrated one afternoon since we weren't playing together very much. It had been raining the day before and so we had been cooped up a lot - and she decided that she wanted to tell me a story. So, using her cherished angel mouse that she only gets to hold once in awhile (it's Peter's breakable childhood toy), here is a story about an angel, being in the rain, flying, and going to sleep (sort of). I give you, Miss Eva M, storyteller!  

Moving!

For those of you who have not heard already, we are moving soon! We found a great apartment literally five buildings north of the one we've been in for eight years total (five years when we were first married, three years since our move back to Chicago.) While we've loved many things about our current apt, the 2-bedroom and second-floor space with a growing and loud two year old has been increasingly frustrating. We're the only family in our six-flat building with a kid, so I also feel bad for our neighbors who have endured hours of running feet, talking Elmo doll, and her loud stories and songs on the deck! (She's also endured hours of traffic noise, late night party noise, cigarettes on the back deck, etc.) So, after our quest to find a house for over a year ended with no great choices and a still limited budget, we were very fortunate to find a perfect compromise to our current living situation - we found MORE room, MORE liveable kid space, and LOWER rent - all in our same little neighborhood (across the street from where Peter/sometimes I work!)

The more we move our stuff over, the more I am getting excited about our new place. We will have about three weeks overlapping of having both apartments, so we've been taking trips over when parents are in town to help or we have time on the weekend. Today I wiped down just about every surface in the apartment. For some reason, it feels more like home now that I've removed so many layers of grit, grime, dirt and sawdust. Now those doorknobs, bathroom tiles, closet shelf corners and dusty tops of the curtain rods are not only clean - they are mine! :) The new place will hold our stuff really well and is a great mix of big space, liveable lay-out, lots of charm and Chicago-esque built-ins and storage - right alongside modern updates (like central air, new appliances, our own laundry, redone hardwood flrs, etc.) It has three bedrooms + a den/playroom, a small backyard and side yard with patio and flower spaces, a garage we will get to use half of (!!), huge storage spaces in the basement, seven closets, two built in bookshelves by a fake fireplace, one built in buffet/hutch, one built in butler's pantry, and loads of character/beautiful dark walnut wood trim. There are some things I don't love about it - the top of my list includes gold lights in a few rooms and the landlord's rule that I can't paint the newly redone walls. But - I really can't believe how great this space will fit us - even though its consuming a few weekends of life right now. It is also so fun to re-decorate, re-imagine life in a space, and re-set up our home, even though its a lot of work. 

I am reminded today that God is good - options feel good - and that living in a city with a small child on a budget can surprise and reward you from time to time. :)

We'll send out a little "We are moving" update sometime too with all our new stats, but just thought I'd share some details for those who have asked to know more. (Also, to explain why I haven't written more/emailed you or called you back lately... hee hee.)

I put couple photos below that I took when we walked through the new place the first time - so they are from before the space was finished getting redone, but you can get the general idea of what our new little home looks like at least. We really do love it so far!

Laugh-out-loud Quoteable

While Eva and I were at a well-known department store the other day, a voice began speaking over the intercom and said something close to this:

"Thank you for shopping at Kohls. Please go online after your purchase is complete and fill out a survey to let us know about your shopping experience. Your satisfaction is important to us. We want to hear from you. Please remember to fill out a customer satisfaction survey. Thank you for shopping at Kohls."

To which Eva replied, with her head turned up toward the ceiling, and in a LOUD voice: "Okay, OKAY guy, I heard you the first time!!"

How many times have I wanted to say THAT in response to an overly long intercom message myself?

I couldn't stop laughing, for awhile; Eva kept walking next to me, totally unfazed.