Callie Will Do It

"Callie will do it" is a very common phrase in our house right now.  This means anything from Callie will climb into the car and into her car seat, Callie will climb up onto the changing table, Callie will put her own shoes on, Callie will try to put her socks on, Callie will take a dish to the kitchen sink, Callie will walk down the stairs without holding any ones hand, and many other things.  And if Callie says "Callie WILL do it" with a very strong emphasis on the will part, she fully expects to be allowed to do it all on her own.  And she is adamant about this.  We are working on learning that if Callie will do it, then Callie needs to do it in a timely manner.  We don't care if it takes her a while to do something, but you have to actually do it.  She likes to say Callie will do it while climbing into the car or onto her changing table and then stop midway and play.  So she now has from 10 to 0 to make it happen.  Today when I told her Callie needs to do it, she replied "Mama count." And I did and she happily climbed in.

Callie also has a new obsession with washing dishes after dinner.  She takes a plate out to the kitchen, and climbs up on her stool and starts washing.  She would stay there all night if we let her.

"Reading"

Callie continues to love books.  One of her current favorites is "Duck and Goose: A Book of Feelings."  There is one word, a feeling, on each page along with a picture that illustrates it.  Callie has started "reading" this book to us.  You can watch her here.

Two Eyebrows

My "conversation" with Callie while she was eating a snack before dinner.

Callie: Mama help.
Me:  Okay, Mama will help.  ( I lean in as I reach for her fork)
Callie: Mama eye. (She reaches out and touches my eye)
Me:  Yes Callie.  That is Mama's eye.
Callie:  Mama's eyebrow.  (She reaches and touches my eyebrow)
Me:  Yes Callie.  That is Mama's eyebrow.  (I think, when did you learn this?  Most kids know body parts like eyes, ears, arms, and you know rib cage and eyebrows)
Callie: Two eyebrows.  (She touches both of my eyebrows)
Me:  Yes Callie, Mama has two eyebrows.  (I'm thinking really? Where does this stuff come from?  We have said two eyes before, but apparently that wasn't good enough)

Leaves

This year, Callie loves the leaves.  Picking them up off the ground, raking them into piles, walking through the pile, and throwing them up in the air.  She was devastated when Papa cleaned up all the leaves and there were not any to play with.  Fortunately, the next day there were many more.

Who knew how much fun the big rake could be.  She no longer will settle for her little rake.

How can you not love that face? And we tried to get rid of the water bottle, but she has fallen in love with it and wouldn't put it down.

Pure joy.

Just can't get enough.

Pumpkins!

 Over the last two weekends, we have taken Callie to several farms, mostly looking at pumpkins.
Last weekend was a beautiful, sunny day. This weekend was a typical, rainy, cool fall day. Just like last year, she loved the pumpkins. 

As she was petting one (yes, she pets pumpkins) that was still growing, she hit the vine and got poked.  Then she was crying "nice, nice" as she reached out to pet the pumpkin again.  I am not sure if she was telling the pumpkin to be nice, or telling it that she is nice.


Callie loved all the animals and was mesmerized by them.

 She loved to kiss the pumpkins...and kissed lots of them.

 Getting ready to kiss the pumpkin...

 Leaning in closer.

And a big kiss for this pumpkin.

We discovered that she does not like fork lifts.  Like freezes and says "No tool" over and over again.  Yes, I am the idiot that told her a fork lift is a tool.  Not sure where that one came from.


Rocks are still very interesting, and she picked up many along the way.

Having fun running by the pumpkins.

Callie adores her family

We have always known that there is not a shortage of people that love and adore Callie. This week it has become very evident that she also loves and adores these people.

While driving home, we passed the entrance we usually take the Grandma Mary and Grandpa Stu's neighborhood. All the sudden I hear "Mary's house! Grandma Mary's house!" followed by some upset sounds when we did not turn to go to Grandma Mary's house.

Callie went to Drenda and Lonnie's house for the day today. As soon as she got there, she started saying "Drenda fun," and "Drenda happy." Last week before going, she kept saying "Drenda's house."

It fills my heart with joy to know she is building relationships with so many wonderful people, and to know that she appreciates them as much as we do.

Camping in the Rain

 We went on our last camping trip of the summer...and it rained, and rained, and rained. Fortunately, we went with some friends who have a trailer with an awning that provided us shelter, and we were able to seek refuge inside their trailer. Callie LOVED the rain boots our friends were kind enough to buy for her. So much so that she insists on wearing them around the house as well and wanted to take them to bed. I had to tell her the boots needed to go night night to get her to leave them alone.

Splashing in the puddle.

At home helping unload the cooler in the rain boots and tutu dress she insisted on wearing.

Although it was fun to splash in the puddles and try and take a shower in the drip from the corner of the awning, I think she was ready to go home by Sunday. The rain had slowed down, so we figured we would pack up our stuff. Every time we opened the car door, Callie said "car seat?" So we ended up leaving a little earlier than planned. And she was tired because she slept for almost 2 hours in the car, which is unheard of.

After our last long car ride, we decided to buy her an MP3 player in hopes that we could sing just a little less. We love singing to her, but one can only sing "The Wheels on the Bus," "Ring Around the Rosie," and "Elmo's Song" so many times. It was a huge success. We didn't have to sing once!

Enjoying the MP3 player.

Cuddling her MP3 player as she sleeps.