Now that the holidays are over, Elsa and I are happy to be back to our usual schedule. I didn't realize how much I enjoy her various classes and activities until we had a break from them for several weeks. We're now taking our second session of swimming classes, our fourth session of Music Together, and we have our usual playgroup through the Mequon Moms' club. I've also been trying to go to the gym at least twice a week, since Elsa seems to love going to the daycare there (no more excuses for Mommy!).
Overall, Elsa continues to be a happy, laid-back little girl. While she's somewhat shy in certain situations, she also can be very independent. Her shyness seems to surface when we join a group of adults who focus mainly on Elsa, such as larger family gatherings. But in situations such as our playgroup or the gym daycare, it's always full speed ahead—she charges right in and starts playing, without so much as a second glance at Mommy. At playgroup, I've noticed some of the other kids really cling to their moms, but Elsa roams the entire room and pays no attention to me whatsoever. So, I guess I've concluded that she doesn't especially like being the center of attention (at least when it comes to people she doesn't know well), but she definitely
does want to do her own thing.
At home, one of her favorite things to do lately is to run in a loop around our first floor, either chasing or being chased. She also likes to throw a ball, run to get it, throw it again, etc. She has shown interest in throwing the ball to Belle as well, but of course Belle then refuses to give it back to her, so the game ends quickly. Another current favorite is blocks—building towers of anything is great fun. Opa and Grandma got Elsa a big bucket of jumbo Legos, and she was kind of obsessed with those for a while. She even had the coordination to put some of them together, but whenever she did have any difficulty, she got
extremely frustrated, so I decided to put the Legos away for a while. (They are still the only toy that has had that effect on her.)
After spending so much time with her Daddy over the holidays, I think she's turning into quite a Daddy's girl. : ) About two or three times a day, she'll start repeating "Daddy, Daddy, Daddy," over and over again until I call Bob at work and let her "talk" to him on the phone. Every night when Bob arrives home from work, both Elsa and Belle run to the front window to watch him pull in, Elsa yelling "Daddy! Daddy!" at the top of her lungs while Belle barks her head off. Then once his car pulls into the garage, they both head straight for the back door to greet him after his long day.
Naps are still sometimes a struggle. Some days she goes right to sleep, while other days she'll stand up in her crib and babble to herself for a half an hour or even longer before she'll sleep, and I have to keep going in there to lay her back down. She hardly ever naps for longer than an hour and a half or so, and she's an extremely light sleeper during the day. But bedtime, on the other hand, is a breeze—she usually conks right out as soon as I put her down for the night, and she never
ever wakes up until morning. And, believe it or not, she doesn't even usually get cranky when she's tired. She plays happily and seems wide awake right up until bedtime, and then she's asleep 5 seconds after I turn off the light. So while it's hard to know exactly when to put her to bed, I'm very thankful she's so even-keel.
Now that the holidays are over, Elsa and I are happy to be back to our usual schedule. I didn't realize how much I enjoy her various classes and activities until we had a break from them for several weeks. We're now taking our second session of swimming classes, our fourth session of Music Together, and we have our usual playgroup through the Mequon Moms' club. I've also been trying to go to the gym at least twice a week, since Elsa seems to love going to the daycare there (no more excuses for Mommy!).
Overall, Elsa continues to be a happy, laid-back little girl. While she's somewhat shy in certain situations, she also can be very independent. Her shyness seems to surface when we join a group of adults who focus mainly on Elsa, such as larger family gatherings. But in situations such as our playgroup or the gym daycare, it's always full speed ahead—she charges right in and starts playing, without so much as a second glance at Mommy. At playgroup, I've noticed some of the other kids really cling to their moms, but Elsa roams the entire room and pays no attention to me whatsoever. So, I guess I've concluded that she doesn't especially like being the center of attention (at least when it comes to people she doesn't know well), but she definitely does want to do her own thing.
At home, one of her favorite things to do lately is to run in a loop around our first floor, either chasing or being chased. She also likes to throw a ball, run to get it, throw it again, etc. She has shown interest in throwing the ball to Belle as well, but of course Belle then refuses to give it back to her, so the game ends quickly. Another current favorite is blocks—building towers of anything is great fun. Opa and Grandma got Elsa a big bucket of jumbo Legos, and she was kind of obsessed with those for a while. She even had the coordination to put some of them together, but whenever she did have any difficulty, she got extremely frustrated, so I decided to put the Legos away for a while. (They are still the only toy that has had that effect on her.)
After spending so much time with her Daddy over the holidays, I think she's turning into quite a Daddy's girl. : ) About two or three times a day, she'll start repeating "Daddy, Daddy, Daddy," over and over again until I call Bob at work and let her "talk" to him on the phone. Every night when Bob arrives home from work, both Elsa and Belle run to the front window to watch him pull in, Elsa yelling "Daddy! Daddy!" at the top of her lungs while Belle barks her head off. Then once his car pulls into the garage, they both head straight for the back door to greet him after his long day.
Naps are still sometimes a struggle. Some days she goes right to sleep, while other days she'll stand up in her crib and babble to herself for a half an hour or even longer before she'll sleep, and I have to keep going in there to lay her back down. She hardly ever naps for longer than an hour and a half or so, and she's an extremely light sleeper during the day. But bedtime, on the other hand, is a breeze—she usually conks right out as soon as I put her down for the night, and she never ever wakes up until morning. And, believe it or not, she doesn't even usually get cranky when she's tired. She plays happily and seems wide awake right up until bedtime, and then she's asleep 5 seconds after I turn off the light. So while it's hard to know exactly when to put her to bed, I'm very thankful she's so even-keel.
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