That's What Solana Said - December

12-2

Solana came into the room while Dave was watching Sports Center or something. As she sat down she saw Tim Tebow sitting on the bench with his elbows on his knees and facing the ground. When I saw him I thought, "Huh. He kind of looks like Dave from that angle." When Solana saw him she said, "Oh, he's handsome!" Then she quickly looked over to Dave and said, "But not as handsome as you, Daddy." Good catch :-)

12-10

I took Solana out to run some errands after dark this weekend. The moon was out and we were wondering whether or not it was full. Solana said, "You know, Mommy, the sun is way hotter than the moon. Because the sun is like a big ball of gassy fire and the moon is...well...it's not exactly cheese....but it's sort of like cheese. Well, I don't know exactly why they say it's cheese...."

That's What Chloe Said - December

Chloe has taken to answering her own questions.

"More hnack? Ok! More snack."

"Up pease. Ok! Up pease."

"Boots on? Ok! Boots on."

I think maybe we don't tell her "no" enough...

CoeWe = Chloe (Whew!)

Current Favorite Book = The Going To Bed Book by Sandra Boynton

First Ever Favorite TV Show = Dora The Explorer

"More Dora? Ok! More Dora." We can't even walk through the living room without her asking for it...

Leg Warmers

Regarding the leg warmers Chloe is wearing in the previous post, those things are AWESOME!!! I loved them when Chloe was crawling because they protected her knees and stayed in place. I loved them in the Fall when it was just a little too cool for shorts. Now I love them in the Winter! I put them on under her pants and they make a cozy extra layer of warmth when we head out into the freezing cold. Then when we come home we strip off the pants and they're perfect for hanging out in our 68degree house. And Solana's even taken a liking to them. She wears them to school with short sleeved T-Shirts as arm warmers. LOVE THOSE THINGS!

Chloe's Shoes

Her new thing. She's totally obsessed with wearing our shoes. None of these pictures are staged. I just kept the camera handy for a couple of days...

Solana's rain boot. The other one still seems to be missing...

Solana's glitter shoes.

Mommy's black boots.

Solana's tennis shoes.

Mommy's running shoes.

Daddy's boots. She just made her way through the gate, stepping over the rail at the bottom, when I took this picture.

Frosty The Snowman

Solana and I went on a date to see Frosty at the local Towne Hall Theatre. This is our third trip to the theater and we really like it. Our date started with dinner at Panera Bread. We both had tomato soup and a sandwich. Solana was so excited. If it's possible to walk with your pinky toes up she was doing it. I suggested she pick a table. She picked one close to the fire so we could be warm. She was acting proper but it seemed shy. Her demure smile, tucked chin, and quiet politeness made me feel like I was dining with someone else's child. I'm not used to leading the conversation with Solana. It usually flows (from her) so effortlessly. But it was adorable.

After dinner we walked to the theater for an interesting rendition of Frosty. These productions have primarily kid casts and are usually fairly cheesy. The little ones go crazy over them, though, so we parents endure and enjoy our kid's happiness more than anything. This one was actually pretty good, though. I found myself chuckling on more than a few occasions. After the show we went downstairs for the required autograph session.

She made sure to get autographs from every single cast member. One of them even autographed her program twice! We almost closed the place but I finally coerced her out of there.

On the way back upstairs she ran into the theater and wanted a picture in front of the stage. Just a couple of crew members were in there breaking down. I clicked the picture and immediately heard "poof" and the stage lights went off. Whew! Good timing.

We headed out and Solana skipped to the van. Right as we got there she ran up a ramp (away from the van) and then leapt off the ramp and into my arms - giggling the whole time. It was one of those moments that could have been choreographed for a movie. I was pretty happy.

Solana said, "Mommy, do you wish you were a kid right now?"

"Nope. I'm actually really enjoying being a Mommy right now."

Climber

I left Chloe in the living room for a few minutes while I got dressed. She was supposed to be watching her new favorite show, Dora. I guess it got boring.

Solana was so easy. She NEVER climbed on furniture. I'm still amazed at how much Chloe loves to climb. Go figure. The one born with bones so brittle that she had three rib fractures from being gently handled in the NICU. The one with chronic lung disease. The one who can't figure out how to scoop a bite of food into her mouth. The one with two cataracts, strabismus, and nystagmus. THAT'S the one who races through the house squealing and playing soccer and THAT'S the one who scales furniture. Ay ay ay! (I secretly love it!)

Cocoon

I always check on the girls before I go to bed. Over the past year I've found Solana in many interesting positions. There was a good two months where Dave had to pick her up and put her back in bed at least twice a week. She'd either rolled off of created a pallet to sleep on the floor.

I call this one "Legs."

I call this one "Ears"

Last night might be her most interesting yet. I call this one "Cocoon." She was literally hanging from her own little cocoon. Thank goodness the wooden rails under the top bunk were strong enough to hold her weight. Can you see her weight on the right side of the cocoon? Her feet are pressed into the comforter and facing the camera.

Here's a side view. That dark spot inside the comforter is her hair.

A better shot of her inside her cocoon. It wasn't easy getting her out and I wasn't thrilled about the added chore when I was ready to go to bed. But I was impressed with her ingenuity and persistence. She'd been wanting to create a cocoon for quite a while...