As Clare is becoming more and more toddler, she’s getting really funny and verbal. there are a bunch of stories that I’ve been meaning to write down so that I don’t forget them. I figured I’d combine some of Adam’s pictures from December with a stories post.

Clare has started adding an “y” to a lot of her words. She has quite a vocabulary these days and when she gets comfortable with a word she starts to customize it. Examples include “moon-y,” “boot-y,” “nap-y,” and just about anything else that takes her fancy. It’s pretty funny but it adds another layer of deciphering to figure out exactly what she’s saying. She is starting to string words together and has said “Wow, look at the moon,” “open the door,” and “up the stairs” lately. Some of her favorite words lately are “No! Stop!” She particularly likes to yell this to the dogs, but she’s been known to say it to J and I, her toys when they aren’t doing what she wants, or anything else.

Speaking of stairs, Clare can now walk down them without holding onto anything. This scares the bejesus out of J and I so we watch her pretty closely and remind her to slide down on her tummy. She’s also really getting into climbing, and over the weekend figured out how to climb into her high chair. Yikes…

Ever since Clare saw a real elephant and the lighted elephants at Zoolights she’s been a little bit obsessed with elephants. We bought her a stuffed elephant with a baby and she carries them around everywhere. She also makes the elephant noise (which is kind of like a raspberry) and lifts her arm up over her head. She’s also a little bit obsessed with zebras, so I think a stuffed zebra may be next. I’m also looking forward to a dry weekend soon so hopefully we can go to the zoo again and see the real elephants and zebras.

It was a great Christmas for us Dion-Macs! Well, besides J’s bronchitis that is. But Terri and Randall, JP and Debbie all flew in to help us celebrate, so there was plenty of merriment in addition to some great food. Besides that Lil’ Miss C is getting to a really fun age with Christmas, and like Terri said, “Christmas is better with kids.”

Obviously, Clare much prefers Santa Daddy to Santa Claus. She really got into opening presents on Christmas Eve, especially the paper and bubble wrap.

After a late evening opening presents (at least late by toddler standards), Clare went off to bed and some elves got to work assembling furniture.

The payoff: A happy little girl on Christmas morning!! Clare approached her Santa loot very carefully, with a lot of exploring, but as you can see she loved it. I think she spent all Christmas Day climbing on and off her little chairs, setting all of the dishes on the table, opening and closing every door, turning every dial, etc.

Presents aside, we had a great Christmas with family. Mom made a prime rib on Christmas Eve night, and J made a Mexican fiesta feast on Christmas day complete with beans, rice, pork shoulder, and tortillas from scratch. All this while battling the brutal cold that I’m finally over.

Now all that’s left of our holiday is to find homes for all the toys (no small feat in our little condo), put the ornaments away and take the tree down, and settle back into the daily routine around here. J has the week off and is on antibiotics, so hopefully he’ll be up for having some fun adventures with C later on this week.

Felize Navidad!

This face makes me laugh!

As the weather gets colder and wetter, the layers become more important.

Lastly a picture of Clare and little G laughing during snack. She just loves her days with her “boys.” When we pull up in front of the house she’ll start yelling “Adee (Adam)! Gee! Adee! Gee!”

Tonight you came running up to me with a huge smile on your face, clapping your hands in pride and delight. For weeks you’ve been putting our shoes on and then struggling to walk in shoes far to big for your little feet. Tonight you were able to put your own pair of rain boots on all by yourself. You were so proud and stomped around for the rest of the evening with such a sense of accomplishment. You then grabbed your new kitty cat purse and literally strutted from room to room, showing off for Sadie and I. There will be many times in your life when a good pair of shoes and a new purse will make you strut and while I smiled and applauded you inside I cried a little bit. It has become very clear to me this weekend that you are no longer any kind of a baby. You are a full-fledged toddler-going-on-kiddo. You’re independent, interested in the world, vocal, assertive and fun. But you are no longer my tiny, dependent doll-baby who loved nothing more than to be rocked and held all day. You still let me snuggle you, but you often push me away and say “No! Stop!” while running in the other direction.

While I revel in your accomplishments, just now, just tonight, I would like to humbly ask you to stop growing.

Please Clare, stop growing and just be my sweet, sassy, cuddly, perfectly-perfectly 16-month-old forever.

OK, I’m done. Now that I’ve put that down I’ll suck it up like the grown-up Mom I’m supposed to be and celebrate that tonight Daddy is teaching you to wash your own hair(!). I’ll delight in your new words and word combinations. I will cheer as you tackle a new skill and try my darndest to steer you straight in an often tilting world. But a tiny, little bitty part of me will feel like that sentence above. However I’ll put that aside and help you grow up. Because that’s what I’m supposed to do and it’s a wonderful thing.

Your very loving Momom.

P.S. The boots are on the wrong feet. Fortunately for me I still have a few tricks of the world to teach you.

Grandma and Grandpa came with us (or, as Clare calls them Gamma and Baba). Here we are heading to the trees.

Clare was getting over a cold, but she liked tromping through the trees and playing with Grandma and Grampa.