19 months

I'm a little late getting this post out! Addy is nearly 20 months now, but here is a list of some of the funny little things she's been doing this month.
* Addy has become quite a little nurturer. We try to encourage her to take notice when someone is sad or hurt, but I think it comes naturally for the most part. The other day she had a little friend over and he was sad when his mom left for her doctors appointment. Addy took notice right away and pulled a book off of the bookshelf and offered it to him and said "read book...car?" and patted his little head. I was so proud of her and it was such a sweet thing to see! She is going to be such a good big sister and helper...maybe a little too helpful ha ha. I have had to stop her a couple of times from trying to offer babies her sippy cup or food. She means well! She also like to pretend to feed her doll or stuffed animals.
* A couple of weeks ago we decided to put her in a big girl bed. The first night was a little sad, and I had to move her from her little spot on the floor in front of the door, to the bed a few times, but she is doing great now. She never really cared for her crib, so I'm assuming that is why she transitioned so well.
* Addy is talking more and more every day and I am always a little surprised at how much she understands and how much she can say. She was talking to Matt on the phone the other day while we were at the store and she said "Hi, what's up? A store." I guess I didn't expect her to think to share that information with him.
* She is really into putting clothes on by herself. Here is a little picture of her efforts.
* She can count to 6...sort of. She tends to skip 4. She knows the star shape and circle.
* One of my favorite things that she has started doing lately is "whistling" to my moms dog Grizz. She says "heehooo Gizz" and pats her leg. It just cracks me up.
* Addy has been in nursery for nearly two months now and hasn't enjoyed it much until last week. They learned the song "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" and she LOVED it. I wasn't aware of this until we got home from church and she plopped herself down on the floor and started singing. I haven't really taught her the song, so I was really surprised and thrilled to hear her singing it in that sweet little voice. She sang it all day long for two or three days straight!

5 1/2 months

I posted my first pregnancy belly pic when I was this far along with Addy, so I thought I would do the same with little Brayden. I don't have any good pics of him because he was so wiggly during the ultrasound! No picture of his profile! I was disappointed, but what can you do? So here we are!

Sensory Table

This is Addy's new favorite toy and it only cost about $20 to make! You can put so many different things in the table to play with and experiment with. In this picture, the table has just a little water, colored with a couple of drops of blue food coloring. I added some water toys and put a towel underneath the table to prevent and huge mess. I also had a little apron for her to wear to keep her clothes dry. She stayed entertained for a long time! If you make one yourself, be sure to get a lid with your container so you can cover it when it's not being used. Here is just a small list of some of the things I plan to put in the sensory table in the future:
* sand
* play dough
* shaving cream
* colored rice or pasta
* corn starch and water
It's going to be so much fun!



Materials needed for table:
28 qt container (23" x 16 1/4" x 6")
20 ft 3/4" PVC pipe (you may not use all of the pipe, but it's good to have just a little extra)
8 corner fittings
PVC pipe saw

Most containers have a little ridge half way up and that is where you want the top of your PVC frame to rest. You will need to measure around that ridge and cut the pipe according to those measurements. Use the rest of the pipe to cut 4 legs. I made mine about 16" tall. You may want to make them taller or shorter depending on how tall your child is. After you cut the pipe, just hook it all together with the corner fittings, to make a box. Set your container in the top and make sure it's a little snug, and you have a sensory table!