EVB: 4 Years + 3 Months Old!

Miss Ellen added another stellar month to the books ... Here's what she's been up to:

• Making believe. Ellen has always been great at independent play and can easily entertain herself, but she's recently added more imagination to the mix. She no longer takes things (mostly Mom's suggestions/ideas) so literally, e.g., "No, Mom, that is not a magic wand; it is just a pencil" and instead thinks outside of the box. One of my favorites is how she pretends our front closet is an elevator. :)
• Working on the little "e" and "n" in her name. Ellen has been a master of "E-l-l" for quite some time and now we're seeing big improvements in the "e-n" portion of "Ellen."
• Spending more time in her kitchen. Ellen and June's play kitchen has evolved into a restaurant managed by a very bossy cook/server. Ellen dictates what food is available (even if you know with certainty the specific items she has stowed away in her fridge) and she allows you to order only one item from her menu.
• Dressing up. Ellen likes to model various princess dresses and shoes. She's not the most graceful thing, but she has fun feeling fancy. :)
• Continuing to blossom at preschool. I had an opportunity to volunteer in Ellen's classroom recently and I noticed that she is much more outgoing than she was when I volunteered earlier in the school year. I observed her initiating conversation with a number of friends and responding more to questions posed to the group by her teachers. She also proved to be a good listener and rule follower. (Yea!)

JEB: 22 Months Old!

Holy cow, just two more months until Junie Bug is 2! I have a hard time believing that she's as old as she is since, to me, she still looks like such a little peanut. (I think a big part of that is due to the fact she still does not have a whole lot of hair. While she did finally have her first haircut, June still has less hair than a lot of kids who are much younger. And, when Ellen was June's age, she was able to wear her hair in full-fledged pigtails ... ) Despite her appearance, June is turning into a big girl right before our eyes. As of late, she talks more like a big girl, plays like a big girl and is even staring to sass a little bit like a big girl. Here's what she's been up to this past month:

• Working on her 2-year-old vocabulary. June has given us a few previews of the challenges I'm sure are to come in the next year or so by using phrases such as, "No, that's mine," "No, I don't want to," "No, I don't like it" and  "I'm mad!" We have big sister Ellen to thank for a few of these ... Luckily, for now, they're mostly just a good source of entertainment for us.
• Mimicking Ellen. In addition to some new phrases, June copies just about everything Ellen does: the way she walks, makes silly faces, how she plays with certain toys ... Needless to say, we've been stressing with Ellen the importance of setting a good example.
• Wanting, desperately, to be included in everything. No matter what anyone says, June wants to make sure she's a part of it ... even when we recount something we did when she wasn't present. For example, if I say, "I want some more coffee," June is quick to say, "I want coffee, too!" Or, if Adam says, "I had a busy day at work," June will scream, "I had a busy day at work, too!" 
• Getting in more practice on the potty toilet. June has shown interest in sitting on the toilet here and there. Mostly, I think she just likes to page through magazines/books while she's sitting there.
• Doing things all by herself. June likes to put on her own hat and mittens and try to do most things all by herself these days. We hear a lot of "Look at me!" and "I did it!" throughout the day.
• Still loving books. June's current favorites are "Caps for Sale," "Llama, Llama Nighy-Night" and "Lady with the Alligator Purse."
• Saying "Guess how much I wuv you?" followed quickly by "Moon and back!" It's the sweetest thing ever.

In other news, June is still a great sleeper at night and has been taking extra long naps lately. (I think she must be going through a growth spurt.) I just added all of the 2T clothes to her dresser and closet (some items are still rather big on her, though) and our next diaper purchase will be size 4. (I realized the other day that June has been wearing size 3 diapers since she was 7 months old! This girl has nothing in the way of hips/buns!) True to form, June is STILL working on her four incisors. I'm hoping they pop through soon since I've been planning on using the arrival of these four teeth to phase out June's beloved paci. :)

June's First Haircut

It took almost 22 months, but June finally had her first haircut. It happened sort of on a whim ... We had an appointment for Ellen to get a little trim and while we were there, I casually asked the salon owner/stylist when she thought June would be ready for her first snip. Well, next thing I know, June's up in the chair wearing a cape like a big girl. It happened so fast I don't think she had time to realize what was going on or get upset. She didn't shed a single tear or squirm even the slightest bit. She did great! And, she looked pretty darn adorable sitting alongside her big sister at the beauty shop. JEB now has a sweet little bob to solidify her transition into a "big girl."