Rylie's Turn

A few days ago I posted Sophisms, dedicated to Sophie’s often endearing and sometimes maddening quirks and habits. Naturally, Rylie’s list must follow. She is perhaps the quirkiest, craziest, funniest and wildest toddler I know (but we all believe this of our children). There is no end to the list I could compile, so I will pick just a few that come to mind. Rylie turned two last November and her vocabulary continues to increase, much to our amusement. Looking at her now I can still catch a few vestiges of the baby she used to be, but I mostly see glimpses of the child she will become. Within a single day she typically runs the gambit of every possible toddler emotion. She is leaving behind the simple comforts of babyhood in favor of that imaginative and magical place known as childhood. And I can only walk with her some of the way. Ultimately, it is her journey to make. Parenthood is bittersweet, isn't it? So without further ado, here is Rylie’s list.

• Randomly telling me “I love you so very much, Mommy” in her precocious, little sing-song voice.

• Referring to herself in the third person. Something like this, “Rydie wants a snack” or “Rydie loves ponies, Mommy.” Our little egomaniac.

• Saying, “Tank You Welcome,” instead of “thank you,” or “you’re welcome.”

• Reminding me “Sophie just a baby, Mommy” when I am frustrated. Out of the mouths of babes, right?

• Bouncing. Constantly.

• Theatrically extending her arm, pointing to me, narrowing her eyes, and saying, “No, Mommy” when she hears me say something she doesn’t like. This usually earns her a time out.

• The pep talk she gives to herself when confronted with something she fears, “Not scary, not scary. Rydie not scared.”

• Concerning herself with the comfort and happiness of those around her. I am most proud of her compassion for others, be they big or small, young or old, furry or feathered, real or make believe. If you affect sadness, look out. Rylie will make it her mission to comfort you.

• Sitting alone with a book in her lap, reading aloud to herself.

• Making me scrambled eggs or soup in her play kitchen and then admonishing me when I forget to blow on the soup, which of course is very hot, how silly of me to forget.
  

• Loving her toy babies; rocking them to sleep, feeding them, and putting them in the occasional time out spot. “Dat not nice to Rydie,” she scolds.

• Helping me with housework. She will load the dryer with wet clothes or hand me the clean plates out of the dishwasher. And when finished she will say, “Thank you, Mommy for helping Rydie. Good job, Mommy.”

• Her typical morning attire: tutu, rain boots, and tiara with pajamas.

• Peeling the paper from her crayons. This is her particular obsession.

• Pouting, the newest drama in the Webb house and she is quite a pro. She will loudly sigh, cross her arms over her chest, and flounce down on the floor. We believe she may have received her inspiration from the Tinkerbell movies, if you are familiar with that fairy’s exaggerated sulk.

Sophisms

Our second child, my sweet Sophie Rose, will turn one in a couple of months. Her first year is nearly complete, as hard as that is for me to believe. She may well be my last baby, and it is difficult to accept that these precious baby days are almost over for me. I want to remember all of her little habits and characteristics forever. Sometimes the insignificant things are the sweetest. The following is a list of traits that are uniquely Sophie.

• Squeezing my finger in her chubby little fist while I rock her to sleep.
  

• Finding a sharp edge and making sure to injure herself upon it in some way. And the inevitable result: a very visible bruise, bump, or scrape. See scabbed eyebrow and scratched nose below.
  

• Quickly eating crumbs off the floor before she is caught and/or crumbs are cleaned up.
  

• Fierce independence and general fearlessness, like crawling down the hall to a dark room without any hesitation or sneaking off to a bathroom to discover toilet paper on her own.

• Brazenly dumping out Rylie’s toy bins, sweeping out the contents of her play kitchen, and pulling the clothing from her drawers. Note that she only exhibits this behavior in Rylie’s room with Rylie’s things. She is quite delighted with herself, as seen below.
  

• Proudly exclaiming “uh-oh” when anything falls (including herself).

• Reclining and propping her feet up anytime she is confined to a high chair or stroller. She's typically very laid back.
  

• Singing to Rylie while they are both strapped in their car seats.

• Clinging to my leg, lifting her face to me, and cooing "Mama" in her sweet husky baby voice.
  

• Saying or waving “Bye-Bye” about five minutes too late, after goodbyes have been said and the person has left.

• Wiggling free of every diaper change and, with remarkable speed, hauling her little naked bottom as far and as fast as she can crawl. Happens every time.

• Excited breathy giggles at bath time.

• Pulling hair, particularly Rylie’s, particularly while snuggling in bed in the morning.

• Being able to escape her clothing as you are dressing her. Repeating this maneuver three more times before clothing is securely in place.

• Stealthily stalking Rylie while Rylie is eating a snack and managing to get a piece of the snack eaten before anyone realizes she has it, including Rylie.

• Burrowing her face in a soft blanket or stuffed animal (a clue that sleepy time will come soon).

Ode to My Bathtub

Valentine’s Day, the dreaded holiday. I used to abhor it, but I have grown to appreciate it. Parenthood helps. I am able to do away with ridiculous expectations and make it a simple and festive celebration for my kids, all paper hearts and cupid’s bows. This year was a great one. Greg bought fun gifts for the girls and thoughtful ones for me. Saturday we were able to escape for a lovely and rare date night. But perhaps the best gift of all came late Sunday morning, as I was allowed the indulgence of a very long, leisurely soak in our giant bathtub. Alone. No interruptions. Plenty of hot water. Do I need to tell you how fabulous this was? No, you probably get it. But I am going to tell you anyway. In verse.

I must preface this with a warning. I am not a poet and I think I can safely promise to never post another poem, but I hope the moms out there can enjoy this one.

Ode to My Bathtub

You give me such joy, with your help I relax
And escape all the noise to simply soak
And untax.
I may stay here hours as toes become pruney
For without you I am desolate, I am stressed.
I am loony.
The sound of the jets rushing the basin
The steam and the suds, a good novel,
Amazing.
I may hear a baby crying, a tantrum or two.
The sound is quite distant.
All thanks to you.
Besides, I am confident that husband can handle
What mischief may arise.
Let us light another candle!
You are my solace, my refuge, the haven I seek.
Indeed, you may be all the “me” time I have
In a week.
So in honor of you, my companion, dear friend,
In said tub I shall steep and
Read this book till the end.

Our Book List

Yesterday as I was reading Rylie the requisite three books before nap time, I started thinking about all of the many, many picture books I have read (and read and read) over the last twenty-seven months. We started reading to Rylie almost from day one. She was mostly oblivious at that time, but we were awash in the bliss of new parenthood and did not care. We love books and were so eager to share this love with our precious baby. I expect we will continue the tradition with Sophie but it has yet to happen on a regular basis. I chalk it up to the curse of the often overlooked second child. I know, shame on us, but we will soon correct this slight negligence. We still read to Rylie (and occasionally Sophie) before every nap time and bedtime, three books at least. And of all our special moments, I might cherish these the most.

In keeping with the spirit of this post, I wanted to list just a few of our current favorite story time books. These are especially beloved by one or all members of the Webb family. They are well thumbed, always read aloud, and often memorized.

Goodnight Moon, The Runaway Bunny, My World
Classics from Margaret Wise Brown. We must have read Goodnight Moon to Rylie every night for at least the first year of her life and Greg and I can still recite it word for word. To this day, Rylie’s eyelids begin to droop when she hears those first few lines. For Christmas this year, Sophie received the two companion books, My World and The Runaway Bunny (my personal favorite) and they are already in high demand in the Webb house. I can’t exactly define it, but something in these books really resonates with babies. Maybe the black/white and primary color scheme? I especially love the last lines of The Runaway Bunny. “Have a carrot,” said the Mother Bunny.”

Someday by Alison Meghee
Rylie is not nearly as enamored with this one as I am. It’s really intended more for mommies and grand mommies, I think.

Bear Snores On, Bear’s New Friend, Bear Feels Scared, Bear Stays Up for Christmas, Bear Wants More by Jane Chapman and Karma Wilson
WE LOVE BEAR! These books had to grow on me but they are really cute books. Rylie loved them long before I did. The rhyming story is fun to read aloud.

I Love You, Stinky Face by Lisa McCourt
Also a Christmas gift. Sweet and funny, it’s about a mother’s unconditional love.

Owl Babies by Martin Waddell
Stumbled on this book at Barnes and Noble and fell in love. I knew Rylie would relate to the little owls’ separation anxiety and it really has helped reassure her that Mommy always comes back.

The Napping House by Audrey Wood
During those difficult sleep resisting days, I always looked for books about napping. Rylie loves to find the mouse in each picture.


Books Are for Reading, Not Eating by Suzy Becker
Sophie’s favorite. A simple book for small babies, complete with chewable teething corners.

Who Is Coming to Our House? by Joseph Slate
I especially love this book for Christmas time, but we read it all year. The nativity animals prepare for a visit from Mary, Joseph, and a soon to be born baby Jesus. We taught Rylie her animals and animal sounds using this book.

The Hungry Caterpillar and Brown Bear, Brown Bear What Do You See?
Eric Carle. Enough said, right? Like millions of kids before her, Brown Bear taught Rylie colors and animals. We are just now getting into The Hungry Caterpillar, but Rylie is learning to count with him. She gets a greedy look in her eye when we see the smorgasbord of junk food he eats in one day.

Sisters by David M. McPhail
I picked this out after I knew Sophie would be a girl. Rylie loves it, I love it, and one day Sophie will love it. It is all about how two very different sisters can still “love each other very much.” The first time we read it, Rylie pointed to the picture of the little girls hugging and said “Mommy, that is Rylie and that is Sophie.” She totally got it.

Biscuit the Little Yellow Puppy by Alyssa Satin Capucilli
Simple books, but we like them. I read Rylie and Sophie the Biscuit Touch and Feel books. We have Biscuit’s First Easter, Biscuits Halloween, and Biscuits Christmas. A fun and tactile way of learning about holidays.

Hello Sun by Dayle Ann Dodds
This book consistently stays in heavy rotation. Rylie is obsessed with it, and has actually begun to sight read some of the words. Also has given her a pretty firm grasp of precipitation and weather appropriate clothing, strangely enough.

All Fall Down and Clap Hands by Helen Oxenbury
Features chubby, rosy cheeked babies learning motor skills. One of Rylie’s first favorites, and now one of Sophie’s. Plus it’s very short and quick to read for those kinds of days. You know the ones I’m talking about.

The Potty Book for Girls by Alyssa Satin Capucilli
Rylie is fascinated with Hannah and her bare booty. Good potty incentives within these pages.


I love to talk books, so please share. What’s on your child’s book shelf?

Welcome

I have debated creating a blog long before this day. I haven't been sure I wanted to join the rank and file of mommy bloggers, but as you can plainly see, I caved. I am not really sure who will read it and I don't fully know what I will write about, so I feel a little bit silly as I type this. I am sure followers will get lots of family updates, pictures, lists, and random bits of my own musings, among other things. Mostly, I just need a creative outlet, even if it is a top ten list or sharing a cute baby pic. Reading other blogs has made my life as a SAHM just a little bit brighter, if only to find someone I can relate to and laugh with. In keeping with that spirit, I hope you enjoy my blog. For more about me and mine, see my profile.