I am a big girl!

Mommy and daddy say that I am no longer a baby---I am a toddler. In this picture, you can see how big I am getting! In this picture, I put on my pink boots all by myself. I guess I put them on the wrong feet, though. It made it a little hard to walk.

I have been playing a fun big-kid game recently. I think it is really funny to point to an object and say "mommy" or "daddy" and then immediately shake my head and say "nooooo." I know that those things really are not mommy and daddy, that is why the game is so funny. When I want to be extra silly, I will point to mommy or daddy and call them "ham." Isn't that hilarious??? I sure think so.

The Double Whamy Blizzard of 2007

The snow banks are taller than me!

It is fun sitting in the snow.

I kicked my boots into the snow banks.

The neighborhood kids and me.

Wow! We got a lot of snow! First, we had a big snowfall last weekend. Then, this week we had a few more days of snowfall. I do not how much snow actually accumulated, but I know that there is a lot of snow outside. The schools were closed on Friday, but daddy still had to go to work. I felt sorry for him because I had so much fun playing in the snow. I have a good pair of boots and a nice bright snowsuit, so I was all set for the big blizzard of 2007.

On another note, I am feeling much better after my bout with croup. I am still coughing a little bit, but I am pretty much back to normal.

I also thought you would like to know about my continued language development. I am learning new words everyday. It is pretty exciting. Also, I have been trying out some new variations of the word "mommy." I learned how to say "dad-dee" many months ago. I never really called him "da-da." It took me a lot longer to say "mommy." I started-out saying "mum." Then I moved to "mum-may," then "mom-may" and then "mom-mee." I am calling her "mama" these days. I am not sure why I call her so many different names, but she does not seem to mind.

My First Visit To The ER

I have croup. For those of you who do not know what that is, it is a common virus that is characterized by a cough that sounds like "a barking seal" and a fever. I do not feel the best, but it could be worse. I got sick on Valentine's Day. That night I had a coughing fit and afterward was having a little bit of trouble breathing. Mommy and daddy took me to the emergency room at Children's Hospital at 11:30 pm. I got to stay up until 2:30 am!

The hospital was super boring. We had to wait a long time. I hope I do not have to do that again! The nurses and doctors poked and prodded me. A nurse had to do an uncomfortable procedure on me and he said, "Sophia, can you be brave?" I had a quivering lip and tears in my eyes and said, "brave...brave...brave...brave..." until it was over. I did not even cry! I really am brave! The doctor gave me a yummy liquid steroid to ease the inflammation in my throat. It made me feel a little better. I will keep you posted on my progress, but I should be better in a few days. Mommy and daddy have been really nice to me and are letting me watch lots of Sesame Street.

Here are a few pictures of me in the last few days. I look pretty good for a sickey!

Happy 32nd Birthday Mommy!

You are the best Mommy ever!

Happy 34th Birthday Daddy!

I love you soooo much!

Did I mention that I like to eat?

I have to get that last little bit of yogurt out.

I guess I spilled a little.

Oh well. It was definetly worth it!

I am very adept at using my utensils. Occasionally, I just choose not to use them. On this particular day I was really hungry and wanted to eat the yogurt as quickly as I could. There was that last little bit left that I really wanted to have, so I decided to drink my yogurt.

On another note, I am having a pretty exciting life these days. I am continuing to learn new words and phrases everyday, like: smile, more, try, sit down, chair, walk, draw, do that, nighty-night, bear, star, and help me.

I also know two colors: brown and blue. I can pick out those two colors correctly (almost) all of the time. I also think that I am understanding the concept of "two." We have two red kid's chairs, two heaters in my room, and there are two birds in my Frosty the Snow Man book. When I see two of the same thing I will say "two." I do not totally understand what that means, but I know I will soon.

My favorite things

One of my favorite things to do is to draw. I may look like my mommy, but I have the artistic talent of my daddy. I use crayons, chalk and markers. Surprisingly, they all taste pretty good, too. I have a large variety of designs that I draw---spirals, lines, and star-like shapes. Often, daddy will turn on some good dancing music, and he and I will dance and draw for a long time. It is easiest to draw with some good tunes on. You can see some of my latest masterpieces in the pictures.

More pictures of Mommy

Mommy

Mommy

Mommy

Me enjoying some of mommy and daddy's birthday cake

So many people told me how much I look I like my mommy when she was little. I feel so lucky because I think that my mommy is so pretty. I thought I would share with you a few more pictures of mommy when she was about my age.

Christmas 2006

Presenting: "the Baby Jesus."

The Mulloys & Heffelbowers dressed up for Christmas

I am so happy hanging-out with my Grandpa

Are all of these presents for me??

I love my new baby dollie.

As you can see from the pictures, I had a great Christmas. First, we celebrated Christmas in Green Bay with the Mulloys and then we celebrated Christmas with the Heffelbowers in White Bear Lake later in the week. I had so much fun.

Mommy's Baby Picture

This is a picture of me at Christmas (16 1/2 months)

This is a picture of Mommy during Christmas 1975 (11 months)

Do you see any family resemblance?

It Snowed!

I can't believe all of the snow! It is so white and cold and fluffy.

I've fallen and I can't get up!

Several inches of snow fell yesterday afternoon. Mommy (which I pronounce "mum") and I went outside and played in the snow. It was a winter wonderland. The snow and the ice clung to the trees and bushes. Later, daddy took me outside and I had a ride on a sled. I got bored sitting there, so then I pushed the sled through the snow. I am so happy that we have snow for Christmas.

Christmas Cookies

Daddy and mommy thought it would be fun to make Christmas cookies and have me help decorate them. Isn't that funny? Hello!?! I am only 16 months old! I cannot DECORATE cookies. I can only EAT cookies. I never knew that a cookie could taste so good. The sprinkles and the colored frosting made the cookies beautiful AND delicious.

On another note, I continue to learn more and more words. It is pretty exciting. I can say "teacher" (pronounced "tee-true); "barbie" (pronounced "boppy"); and "peek-a-boo" (pronounced "mee-a-moo").

Oh Happy Day!

I rarely smile or laugh for pictures, but this was one of those rare occasions. I actually smile and laugh a lot. I just refuse to do so when a camera is around. I just could not contain my excitement over the delicious meal that I had eaten. I have quite the refined palate for a toddler. For dinner, I had salmon, squash and beets. Yummy.

Play Time

Now that it is cold, we are spending a lot more time playing inside. I love drawing with daddy, which I pronouce "da-deeee." We can spend a long time drawing and listening to music. Sometimes, I will stop drawing to shake my butt if a good beat comes on. I also like playing in my toy car. Bun often comes along for the ride, too. I beep the horn and turn the keys and mommy or daddy will sometimes push me around the house really fast.

I am really trying to talk these days. Mommy and daddy are getting better at understanding me, too. When I want to see something, I say "see, see, see" until they give it to me. I can also scream really, really loud when things are not going my way. That gets their attention fast! I am trying out new sounds. I am trying to say "seal," but it sounds like "see-ohh." I have come-up with a few things that are uniquely my own. For example, when I want to go downstairs I say, "dah-do." I say "dah-do" because it is really hard to say "downstairs" when you are just learning to talk.

Snow

I am the queen of making funny faces! This one is a classic. I think that I started making it when I was about six months old. I have now added a new version of it at 16 months old. I make this face when I say the word, "Snow." First, I crunch up my nose, then I blow out of my nose, and finally I say "snow" in a very nasally sort of way. There has not been too much snow yet this winter, so I have had limited opportunities to say "snow." I am hoping for a big blizzard soon.

Happy Thanksgiving!

I love to read.

I am super cool.

Green Bay Grandma and me at the Wildlife sanctuary.

The light show at the botancial gardens.

Feeding the geese with mommy---notice the kernel of corn I am dropping for the geese.

Thanksgiving was busy, but a lot of fun. On thanksgiving day, we went to White Bear Lake Grandma's and Grandpa's house for dinner. The food looked delicious, but I pretty much just ate the pie. Holidays are great! I spent the night at Grandma and Grandpa's house in my pack 'n' play. I DID NOT want to go to bed. Mommy stayed in the bedroom to help me fall asleep. She watched me do all of my fun night-time things: talk to Bun, jump in my crib, hold the crib rail and lean back as far as I can, etc.

The next day, we had the long car ride to Green Bay. But, it was worth it. We had a lot of super yummy food. We fed the geese at the Wildlife sanctuary, went to a Christmas light show at the botanical gardens, and read a lot of books. Also, everyone got to hear my latest word, "wooh." I like to say it all time, particularly when I fall or something else falls.

Thanksgiving was great. I cannot wait until Christmas!

Getting Ready for the Holidays

Mommy and me in the sky-way downtown Mpls.

Bun and me (in my pretty red dress) drawing a picture

I am getting excited for Thanksgiving and Christmas. I was a little baby last year during the holidays, and I can hardly remember the great times that I had!

On Sunday, we went downtown to see the Mary Poppins show at Macy's. There were a lot of people waiting in line, but it was worth it. On Saturday, we had our Christmas picture taken. I got dressed-up in my pretty red dress. Usually, I do not like having my picture professionally taken, but this time I enjoyed it. The photographer was really nice, and she even got me to smile a little bit. I bet you are excited to get your Christmas card with a picture of me on it!

Having Fun at Home

I posted a few pictures of me having fun after my bath and before bedtime. In one of the pictures, I put mommy's necklace on my head and it looks like I am wearing a crown.

I am having a lot of fun learning to talk these days. Mommy and daddy do not always understand what I am saying, but they are getting pretty good. Here is a short list of my words:

eat, ball, shoe, outside, baby, bubble, mama, dada, (a whole ton of animal noises), dog, cheese, down, bow, moon, spoon, Bun (who I sometimes call "beebee"), uh oh, no, and other words that I cannot remember right now.

If I try to say a word and mommy and daddy do not understand, I just whine and point a lot. That usually does the trick. I will let you know when I learn some more words.

No Snow in Minneapolis

We were supposed to drive to Green Bay this weekend, but a big snow storm hit Wisconsin a few hours before we were going to leave. I was really sad about it. I wanted to see Grandma and Grandpa and eat all of their yummy food. To make matters worse, no snow fell in Minneapolis. I have been trying on my boots for the last several weeks, just waiting for the snow to come. Alas, I must wait a little longer. But, I am getting pretty good at walking in my clunky boots.

This weekend, we went to the Minnesota Children's Museum. I ran around this thing called "the Ant Hill," which was a series of crazy tunnels. Daddy crawled in it with me. I still do not know how he fit inside of it! Mommy and daddy purchased a membership, so we can go whenever we want to. I am so lucky.

Nighty-night

Every night, mommy or daddy read me books in the rocking chair as I drink milk. It is our little snuggle-time and bed-time routine.