We've been treated to a couple weeks of health (all 4 of us), and a generally pleasant toddler. What a difference from the previous 4 weeks. Liz is a different kid when she is healthy and rested. I am sure we are different parents when we are healthy and rested. Liz's teacher Jane even pulled me aside at pickup last week and asked if we had seen a difference in her behavior at home. I said something like "night and day," and Jane quickly affirmed the same at school.
One note, perhaps poor timing, is that Liz had gotten a little wild after the annual influx of family from the north. So we decided to enforce a few basic rules. Unfortunately this happened just as the 4 weeks if sickness was beginning, so the poor little kid had a lot of pressure on her to behave at the same time that she was not feeling well. Once mom and dad wised up that we needed to be more supportive, she responded very quickly. Including her in some daily routines has proven very helpful. She loves to cook, and it is clear that she really wants to contribute to the household and needs to feel that she is a productive member of the household. Anyway, I think we've turned the corner. Lets hope we all stay healthy for a while. Tired kid + tired parents equals ornery kid and frustrated parents.
Liz had a treat last weekend, a trip to a local farm with a few classmates. There were lots of animals, but unfortunately no cows or horses. But we did see ducks, geese, sheep and lambs, chickens, rabbits, dogs and pigs. The kids were even permitted to reach into the ducks and chickens roosts and collect some eggs (which had been and continue to be a favorite food). Liz was her shy self. As the other kids chased the ducks, she stood cautiously for a few minutes before engaging the animals. It is safe to say that her favorite were the pigs, although she didn't get to pet them. I'll try to get some pictures posted soon, it there are any good ones.
Tonight we tried out a "big girl bed," in the form of a mattress on the floor. We had been discussing this for a while, and I decided to give it a shot tonight. There are a couple reasons...1) I think she really wants to be treated like an adult, and she was really happy to have her "big girl bed." 2) her diapers have been leaking during the night with remarkable frequency, and I don't like getting up at 2 in the morning to change sheets and pajamas. Our hope is that we can get her to get up and go potty during the night on her own or with some help. Sooo, she did a bit more chatting this evening than usual and we had to go up and settle her down a couple times -- but she was in/on her bed each time. Emily tells me that Liz ended up sleeping on the floor (child's pose), with her head on the mattress. When Emily offered her help onto the bed, she said "I do it."
Since she's growing up so fast, she now needs two Coco's for comfort. One day she found one of the spares in the clean laundry and quickly noted that it was slightly different than her current Coco. She had been suspicious of this difference in the past, but this time it was clear that she knows there is more than one Coco. So now she has 2...sometimes they are referred to as Coco and other Coco...
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