Strange things to be proud of...

[mamahill]

Ok, I have no idea why I found this so funny or why it brought so much pride, but I decided today to teach Ainsleigh how to use a straw. I thought for sure it would take a few tries, but there she went, sucking away like a pro, and I couldn't stop giggling. And the more I giggled and said, "Yeah! Mommy's so proud!" the faster she sucked. She was beaming.

And the second thing, is that I realized she has been "blowing kisses" for a while now. Joel kisses her and then blows kisses and mostly she giggles, but she has begun puckering her lips and then grabbing her face. Sometimes it's more like she's smacking her forehead, but she always throws her hand out afterward.

So while these aren't huge milestones, they are the everyday moments that have me just looking at her with wonder and being so thankful I am blessed to be her mom. So what new little things has your little one been up to today?

[blnony]

Oh Sarah-
How precious. Its just amazing how beautiful it is to see the world through a child's eyes. At night, I find myself thinking back on the day and smiling. Sometimes the job of mommy is best thing in the world. (Just not on those sick days...)
Audrey has learned to climb! She has figured out how to climb onto the shelves of the bookcase. She scared the heck out me, but she was just so proud of herself. I had to laugh. This also pertains to any stairs. She gets to climb up the stairs to her room at night (I'm behind her) and when she gets to the top she just beams with pride.
Also, we've learned to chew!! This one I'm so excited about. She has started to really like table food and she is now chewing instead of letting it just soak in her mouth. :)
Its so much fun watching them change. I miss the newborn stage a little, but then I see how much her personality is starting to emerge and its so exciting.

[josephsmom]

We were in a Mexican restaurant the other night. Joseph had his little bowl of food-from-home right in front of him, but he decided to reach into the basket of tortilla chips, grab one, and nonchalantly dip it into the salsa like everyone else. Didn't fling it, or make a mess, or anything. He just put it into his bowl, crushed it up, and ate it. We thought that was too cute for words!

Helene
mommy to Joseph 12/29/01

[mama2be]

How delightful!!!
She is just so adorable I wish I could see her blowing those kisses...I know she is precious!!!

[mamahill]

That is adorable! Ainsleigh did a similar thing a couple nights ago - I had cut up pita bread and baked them to make "chips" and she kept lunging for one. Finally I gave it to her, and she sat there happily munching on two of them. It's like they know they're people!

And Brianna - I totally know what you mean about the climbing. When Ainsleigh first climbed onto a box (it wasn't more than six inches tall, but real wide), she sat there clapping while sitting there.

It makes me so proud of them for figuring stuff out on their own - even more satisfying than when I try to teach her something!

[atlbaby]

I so agree with you Sarah, that it's oftentimes the little moments of everyday life that make you proud and so happy to be a mommy! This happened on Saturday morning, but it's left me (and especially DH) smiling ever since. Arielle has just recently started climbing up onto our dining room chairs and likes to take her sippy cup up with her and sit at the table like a "big girl." Saturday morning DH got her up, and was sitting at the table reading the paper with some tea for a few minutes before she'd want breakfast. Suddenly Arielle comes over and climbs onto the chair to sit, places her sippy on the table, reaches towards DH and pulls part of the paper towards her too. It was so cute, they sat reading the paper and drinking together--two peas in a pod!:)

It was such a little thing, but lately her mimicking us has been so fun to see!

-Rachel
Mom to Arielle Jill, 10/30/01
#2:) EDD 10/24/03

[brubeck]

My favoriite thing Amy does like this is with her tools. We got her a bunch of Little Tikes tools (hammer, screwdrivers, saw, etc.) and put them in a plastic box with a handle. Now whenever we do something even vaguely repair/building-oriented she grabs her toolbox and comes in to help us. Yesterday I was lowering Andrew's crib matterss and she can running in with her toolbox and proceeded to turn the screwdriver in the screw holes!

Of course I had to tell her how helpful she had been. :-)

[sweetbasil]

What a sweetie! It's so cute when they're motivated to do things because they see how happy it makes us! Blowing kisses is a trick that can melt about anybody's heart, and Ainsleigh's such a cutie, I'm sure she's having that affect on lots of people!

The other night, DH offered to take us out to dinner- well, to the Luby's drive through. I think he'd wanted home cooking, but I was exhausted, so that was the next best thing. He ordered the roast beef for himself, placed the rest of the order, and we pulled up to pay/get our food. Out of nowhere, DS says, "Where's the beef?!" We totally started cracking up, remembering the old woman in the Wendy's commercials in the 80's, and how he sounded just like her! I turned around, while DH and I both laughed hysterically, and said, "How old are you, honey?" He said, "I'm two, mom," and we both started laughing even harder. He couldn't figure if the "Where's the beef?!" or "I'm two" was funnier to us, so he just kept saying them. :)

[JMarie]

Well, he's not figuring out TOO much yet, but he just learned to make a long "ah" sound when you tap against his open mouth with a finger. It makes him laugh like crazy! He's also starting to turn toward anyone who calls his name. I doubt he knows what it means - he's probably just turning toward the voice - but I still think it's cute.

Jennifer
Mom to Aidan Christopher 01/28/03

[AngelaS]

Gabrielle has learned to climb stairs. She's very proud of this new trick. Her big sister encouraged her a lot and now she's getting good.

Her other trick is to stand unassisted. She will come to me when I'm sitting on the floor and pull herself up to a stand. Then she'll grin and let go. She'll teeter and fall backwards on her bum and do it all over again. Or sometimes she teeters forward, falls over my leg and then rolls away and grins at me, like that was the funnest ride ever. LOL

[Annette_C]

Sarah,
I can imagine how cute Ainsleigh is blowing kisses!!
You're right, it is rewarding to watch our little ones grow and become more independent.
Sabrina continues to amaze us with her ability to understand both English and Italian and repeating words in both languages at the appropriate times.
She also loves books so her big sis has been teaching her to find specific objects on the pages. Yesterday, mom and dad were here so Sabrina opened her Baby Einstein rhyme book and, after I asked where the bear was, she lifted the little flap to expose the bear and them proceeded to point at it with her little finger. She repeated that with the mouse, the clown and the duck! My parents were speechless! LOL:)
Annette
SAHM to Sabrina 6/24/02

[stillplayswithbarbies]

Can I brag on my big one too? My son has been playing violin since 3rd grade, he's now in 6th grade. This year the orchestra leader asked if anyone would like to learn to play the bass (the big violin looking thing that you stand up and play). Four kids wanted to learn, including my son. Well, the rest of them dropped out for one reason or another, leaving my son as the only bass player. In the concert, he was up there all alone, playing this thing taller than him and looking so suave and composed. And you could really hear him, the bass rounded out the sound of the whole orchestra. I was so proud!

Several parents were overheard commenting about how the bass really adds to the sound of the orchestra and how good it sounded. I wanted to say "that's my kid!"

:)

...Karen
Jacob Nathaniel 2/27/91
Logan Elizabeth 3/25/03

[MelissaTC]

Matthew held his leg and put his foot to his forehead. I can not believe he is so flexible! Then he took both feet and did it. I just started laughing and he kept on doing it. Amazing!