My Yard's Most Abundant Perennial

Dandelions. They are taking over our lawn! Yesterday I pulled the heads off hundreds of dandelions (which is pretty amazing when you consider that the lawn in our backyard is about the size of a postage stamp). I figure if I pull all the heads off the dandelions as they bloom, at least they won't spread new seeds. And when I get a chance, I use a little spade to uproot a few of them. It gets a good portion of the root, and it makes me feel like I'm doing something to turn the tide. Anyone have a tip for getting rid of dandelions without killing the lawn too?

Tuning Us out Already?

Just had to post this great photo of Natalie wearing some serious headphones. She's got her juice (or Doo, as she says), so she's happy.

More Outdoor Adventures

We've been playing outside a lot lately because the weather is beautiful! The leaves are just starting to pop out on the trees, and today we even saw some flowering cherry trees in bloom. As the dirty drool on her shirt proves, Natalie continues to insist on re-learning the first rule of the outdoors. Our neighbors keep telling me that everyone needs to eat a peck of dirt before they die. Gross!
In a couple of the photos, Natalie's fists are clenched around something. In one hand she has a rock, and in the other she has a chunk of broken pavement. She is always picking up treasures, and she's very reluctant to put them down. Last night, she was visiting with a little dog, and she couldn't pet it because her hands were full of treasures. Even the prospect of petting a dog couldn't make her let them go!
In another photo, she's walking up to our neighbor's door. She walks from door to door, and occasionally (if she can get close enough before I redirect her) she'll kind of pound/knock on the door to say hello! I think she's wanting them to open the door so she can practice stepping up to the door and back down to the stoop.

A Taste of Spring

While I was cleaning up the backyard this afternoon, Natalie learned the first rule of the outdoors: dirt doesn't taste good. She picked some out of a planter, and the rest was history. The little dirt eater next to Natalie is Dave. He's probably about the same age as Natalie in this photo. The only difference is, Dave was enjoying it.

I See a Fire Truck

Natalie has a fun new ride-on toy. It's a fire truck, and she loves it! I bought it at a WeePeats sale last weekend and because of the background noise at the sale I didn't realize how loud and Barney-esque this toy's music is. Of course, when Natalie rides the fire truck, she keeps her thumbs firmly planted on the buttons that make the music play. So it hiccups several times, then runs through a great rendition of "I See a Fire Truck." If you're not already familiar with this song, don't click this link! Save yourself!

King Kong, Eat Your Heart Out

You know you're having more fun playing with your toddler's toys than she is when....

I constructed an Empire State Building replica out of Mega Bloks, complete with blonde girl hanging off, and tried to get Natalie to pose as King Kong. I think her drool makes it more realistic, don't you? As you can see in one of the pictures, Natalie's more interested in my camera than the building. She is, first and foremost, a technophile.

Six Quiet Dogs

Last night we were going through Natalie's bedtime routine, and I picked a book to read. It's Doggies: A Counting and Barking Book, by Sandra Boynton. Natalie loves dogs (huge understatement), so this book is a favorite for obvious reasons. But it's a little intimidating to me, because 95% of the book requires the reader to bark like a dog. Actually, like many different dogs. And last night I learned that my dog barks could use some work.

Apparently, Dave has never heard me read this book before. He started snickering quietly at first, and then by the time I got to dog number 3, he was unable to control the laughter, and consequently neither was I. That's probably because at 3, you have to make the following doggie sound: "...nnn...nnn...nnn...." Dave's really good at this one. I can think of 2 reasons for this. His family's dog, Sadie, makes this sound on a regular basis. And also, he's a boy. I really think he's hard-wired to imitate noises well, be they machine guns, Yoda's voice, or a dog's bark. Sure, I know exactly how these things sound in my head, but somewhere between that and actually recreating the sound, there's a disconnect. Are there any girls out there who excel at making such noises? If so, I applaud you. Please come over and read my daughter a book. Because now I can't read Doggies without laughing at myself.

More? You want Moooorrrrre?

Hooray for sign language! Natalie has mastered one sign--More! She uses it mostly to ask for food, but has been known to also request more books with it as well. In DiBella's the other day, she tried to convince me to give her more of a sub that was sitting on someone else's table! So for Natalie, the more sign basically means "I want that!"(Napoleon Dynamite, anyone?)

In the photo, Dave's holding a juice box and Natalie is repeatedly signing more. This was her first experience with a juice box and she was thrilled with it. Usually Natalie's juice is diluted with water, and I think she finds anything with a straw extra exciting.

Dave was giving her bites of his homemade egg mcmuffin the other morning and immediately after each bite she would start signing more. Natalie knows that sometimes we're slow to respond, or to see the silent signs, so she wasn't wasting any time. Anyone know the signs for chew and swallow?

I was hoping she'd start to do some other signs, and perhaps she will get into these eventually. She'll occasionally do all done. It's just not as high up on her toddler chain-of-command as the all-important MORE! This has been such a great breakthrough on both sides of the highchair tray--we know what she wants (or at least that she wants something) and she knows how to tell us.

Jog, Interrupted

Last night was a beautiful evening for a jog. A little windy, but otherwise perfect. So I got dressed, transformed Natalie into a blueberry (see photo from another day), loaded her into the jogging stroller, and we were off! Unfortunately, once I got a mile or so away from the house, and I was starting to feel proud of myself for pushing through the wind, Natalie just couldn't take anymore. Crying, runny nose, the works. Even my keys and my water bottle wouldn't make her happy.

Normally I might just turn the stroller around and head home, but she is sick, and I felt guilty for making her sad. And then I started wondering, what was I thinking taking a child with an ear infection out for a jog? Does that jogging stroller even work right? Is it supporting her back at all? So I picked her up and walked. All the way back. While pushing the stroller with my free hand. Argh! As one friendly walker we passed pointed out to me, "This makes it a total body workout!"

Let's hear it for searing pain in my upper arms! But on the plus side, Natalie stopped crying and snuggled into my neck on the way back, which makes it all worthwhile.