Baby Cate Update

At 15 months, Cate is built more like a Weeble Wobble and less like a toddler -- she's 30-1/2" tall (50th percentile) and weighs 23 lbs, 8 oz. (60th percentile). She has finally cut the fourth upper tooth, one on bottom (making it 3 in front) and 3 molars - 2 upper, 1 bottom. She's still cutting teeth, either that or we're not feeding her enough so she is constantly drooling and putting her hands in her mouth hoping they will turn to food.

She loves, loves, loves bananas -- probably her favorite food. Other favorite foods include applesauce, grapes, pears, strawberries (sometimes), bread (any flavor - wheat, garlic toast, banana bread...), Cheerios, yogurt, chicken, salmon, cheese, eggs (hard boiled and scrambled), hamburgers/meatloaf, stuffing (see bread reference)...she isn't too big on veggies yet, which is perplexing to me as Elizabeth gobbled them up as quickly as we could put them on the tray... She insists on feeding herself.

She has THE BEST belly laugh (doesn't hurt that she has the belly to accompany said laugh)! Practically anything Elizabeth does can bring on this laugh. Reid can get it out of her, too...as can Uncle Sean, and Chuck Scatterday... When she is really ticked with something she will wrinkle up her little nose -- it's too cute!

She loves the freedom of trotting around of the floor after West Lib games. John Wolosinczuk taught her how to give high 5. She loves to wave hi and bye-bye (mostly well after the fact...or on Skype). She can blow kisses (when she feels like it). She can identify her nose. She loves shoes (and sort-of says shoe as she walks around with them saying 'sh sh sh'.) She loves to "read" -- taking books and turning the pages. She can identify her belly button (will flash you her shirt like a co-ed at Mardi Gras collecting beads) -- sticks her finger in her belly button (it's quite the crevice) and says, "Ticka ticka ticka." That is super cute!!! She cannot stand to have her face or hands wiped. She loves bath time, especially with Elizabeth. She still cries a bit - especially when she is being wrestled down for Sleepy Time Down South (a familiar theme in this house, I know...) She's a climber (another theme around here)...and dancing. (If she is eating something that she loves, she also dances in her seat.) She also likes to pretend cook in the kitchen, get pulled in the wagon Santa brought her, and drop food from her tray for Kennedy. She would climb the stairs all day if we'd let her. She loves to blow the whistle on my key chain, and I swear she might be a better ref than a handful of the stripes West Lib has had this season! She still doesn't sleep through the night, much to my demise...

He hair is looking like it's going to curl, at least in the back. Like her big sister, she's a 'sweat head' - I can feel the heat rising from her head when she is tired...and when she goes to sleep, her hair gets soaking wet (along with my arm as I'm holding her.)

She brings us all so much joy (when she's not screaming...)

Elizabeth's Cool School Project

Elizabeth had a cool school project: craft a plastic egg to look like a character from literature. 

She loves crafts.  She doesn't love books (yet, we hope).  So, I wanted to make this really fun for her -- and to get her at least a little excited to read a bit more about her character.  I wanted her to do the egg by herself (although the instructions said parents could help).  So I only helped (aka: did) the background for her egg.

So, unlike every project that I have ever had to do that involved reading a fictional book -- I actually bought the book rather than having E pick up my bad, let's just watch the movie habits.  The Lorax. 

She did so well in working with the yellow fuzzy stuff I bought for making the eyebrows and mustache.  She even did a nose and mouth out of her Play-Dough -- the mouth is especially difficult to see thanks to the fuzzy mustache, but it is there!

Here is the school's link to the Egg'Citing Fashion Show.  As you will see, several of the eggs are awesomely cute, but I'm not sure what book (other than perhaps an NFL stat book) features Troy Polamalu as a character.  E's egg is at the 1:15 mark of the video. 

It (should be fun to play hoop) at the YMCA

Yes, it should be fun to play hoop at the YMCA, but there is an annoying little ball hog on Elizabeth's team...and his dad is their "coach" (if you can call the guy who's only coaching tip all freaking season -- no exaggeration here -- came AFTER his son, who's actually a year older than all of the Kindergarteners, mind you, fouled one of his own teammates to take the ball so he could shoot it...the "coach" told his kid to move closer to shoot. Not, "Hey, son. Don't freaking foul your own teammate. Pass the ball every once in a while. You might want to learn how to dribble..." Nada.)

We endured 5 weeks of YMCA hoops. Would have enjoyed it much, much more if E didn't ask why the kid, who will remain nameless to protect his innocence, never had to come out of the game (when they had 9 players show up on more than one week), why the kid, who will remain nameless, never passed the ball -- especially when she wanted to be like the Toppers and pass to her teammates (I know, this will serve her well in the years to come! Makes her former point guard Mama proud!)... Yes, there were 6 weeks in the season. Yes, I was sooooo annoyed, I had no remorse in blowing off the last week of the YMCA Winter League to take Elizabeth to Charleston for the WVIAC Tournament - where she was fortunate enough to participate in the Youth Basketball Clinic that the coaches put on...and where she learned more in a 2-hour clinic than she did in 5 weeks of basketball at the Y.

She's becoming a rather proficient dribbler and a very good passer. Her shot has good form for a kid her age. Most importantly, she likes to play! :-)