States for K2

I think I have mentioned before that I have been referring to the little boy I am carrying around as K2 (short for Kid #2). Anyway, when I was pregnant with Penelope I kept a list of states that she had visited with me. I thought I should start out the "treating the kids equally" thing early, and be sure I keep a list for K2 too. So far here is what I have: North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, California, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and of course Virginia, DC, and Maryland. It looks like I might also be adding NJ to the list, but too early to say for sure. So the total count of states thus far is: 10. Not bad for 7 months in the womb, and I think ahead of where his big sister was at that point!

Halloween Parade

Every year, our daycare has a Halloween "Parade." Basically, everyone goes outside in their costumes and walks around the block but the kids really enjoy it. Last year Penelope was pretty young and didn't get much out of it. However this year, she really enjoyed herself.

She was also very popular. I would like to think it is because she has a great personality and she is a nice person. But I think the costume Nana got her may have had something to do with it.

- Ben

Pumpkin Patch

This weekend we we headed out to a pumpkin patch to celebrate the season! We had a grand time, and Penelope thoroughly enjoyed checking out the pumpkins. We even got to take a few home. I am sure photos of our handy work turning them into jack-o-lanterns will soon follow!

Not Bragging, Just Documenting

So for the record, Penelope can basically sing the whole alphabet song and count to ten (basically - she's definitely not perfect every time and "7" seems to be a hard # for her to remember). Also, I shouldn't say that I am bragging, because for all I know this is something she was supposed to have accomplished 3 months ago!

Penelope, the Redskins & a PomPom

Today Penelope came to her first Redskins game of the season - we weren't sure how it would go at all, especially since she didn't have her own seats and at Nationals games she gets her own seat. She did great, the worst part of the day for her was when her mom & dad made her get one of those "press-on tattoos" that you apply by holding the thing up to your face and holding a wet paper towel over it. She quickly lost patience with that process (which lasted about 30 seconds). Otherwise she was a total trooper and earned herself a small gift (a single pom pom) from the Official Team Shop. Here are the shots we took of her with her "R" tattoo and pom pom:

A Boy?!

So it's official, we are having another baby and they tell us it's a boy. Here is one of our favorite ultrasound pictures:

Penelope's Professional Shots

So Penelope and I hung out at a fall festival last weekend and there was a "professional" photographer taking photos for free as part of getting her name out (at least that's my understanding), so here are a couple of shots from that we thought were pretty darn cute

Night-time Routine

The bed time routine that Penelope and I have right now is too cute (at least from my perspective) not to comment on. After we get our PJs on and read some books, we turn out the light and sing a song together. Either I hold her and we sway a bit as I stand, or I hold her as we rock in the rocking chair in her room. Either way, there is only one song that will do these days: Baa Baa Black Sheep. It's not glamorous and not a song we taught her (she learned it at daycare), but man is she loyal to it. It is amazing how much this routine seems to mean to her right now. And I have to say, I love it too. In part because it is just a sweet thing that we share, and in part because it makes her so happy that she goes to sleep without a single cry or complaint.

Possession

Penelope is quickly mastering two word phrases, especially those involving possessions. For example, "daddy's coat" or "momma's cheerios." But her skills also extend into more complex phrases such as "gabba (gabby) bite" (don't worry, Gabby didn't bite her, just play bit her favorite toy, a monkey named Alex).

Beach Trip 2011

A few weeks ago we took a trip to the beach with a combo of various extended family members. It was quite a trip, involving some serious maneuvering and flexibility to avoid Hurricane Irene (don't ask, you don't want to know the details; but we are all fine and had a great time in the end). Here are some of our favorite pix:


Ben & I enjoy the beach, PJ is there too somewhere - credit to my sister Rachel for the artsy shot


Our nephew Gable devouring his umpteenth piece of watermelon!


Our brother-in-law Gable, my sister Rachel, and their boys Conley and Gable on the beach


Our Nephew Conley - how cute is this kid?


PJ and I checking out something down the beach


PJ's first time venturing into the ocean with Dad and Nana by her side

Her Own Name

Today Penelope started saying her own name. So far it sounds to me like "Pell-P," but that works for us. In fairness, she has been saying the names of her many of her classmates (Herbert, Emmett, Zachary) for weeks at least, but I guess when you give a kid a four syllable name, you are putting her at a disadvantage.

Welcome the Latest Granddaughter to the Champa Family

Last week the latest grandchild on Ben's side of the family arrived. The third girl in two and a half years, what a streak! On Sept. 2, Ben's sister Jenny and her husband Sabir welcomed June Apple Noor Muhammad to the world! Below are some pix:





We can't wait to meet her in person!

Songs

Penelope has begun in the last few weeks to sing songs to herself, and with us. The playlist thus far includes: "Twinkle Twinkle," "Baa, Baa, Black Sheep," "Itsy Bitsy Spider," and the "ABCs". You definitely have to know what you are listening for to be able to make them out, but again, this is a big step for us, last month she didn't do any singing at all!

Adventures in Potty Land

I know some of our blog followers will be mortified by any posts related to the world of potty training, so I will keep them to a minimum and also try to be sure the title makes it clear what you are in for. That being said, yesterday Penelope said to us "I pooped", and she was right! This was a breakthrough for several reasons. The biggest things were that she doesn't often use two word sentences and she hasn't used words much to tell us how she is feeling or something that is happening with her, so this was a big deal! Add to it that she was right and that it related to potty training stuff, which we aren't looking forward to much and seems to depend in good part on her awareness of what's going on with herself and her ability to tell us about it, and we were particularly excited.

Full Sentence

Penelope has officially uttered her first sentence. Her first three word sentence at least. I am not sure if her previous "more please"s or "thank you"s counted as sentences. But this weekend she undeniably gave us a full formulation of a sentence: "I want it." Well, if it was unclear before that declaration that "the twos" had arrived a bit early, they certainly have been officially inaugurated now! Of course the rising popularity of "no!" and "mine!" certainly suggested they were just around the corner either way. So there you have it. Penelope can speak in full sentences (at least one full sentence), and is now demonstrating many of the behaviors of a normal pre-two toddler. You have been warned!

Our Little Swimmer

Growing up, my sisters and I all swam competitively so I am often asked if I am going to get Penelope into swimming. While I would like her to be interested in sports (due to all of the benefits sports has for kids) I would like to think I would be as open to being a softball or lacrosse dad as I would to being a swim dad, although there would be a learning curve for the other two sports.

We introduced Penelope to the pool last year. She was a little nervous at first but warmed up near the end. This summer, she has really taken to the water. From enjoying the blow up pool in front of our house, to visiting a friend from school's neighborhood wading pool, she really likes being in the water.



We try to be responsible parents and limit Penelope's tv watching. The few exceptions to this rule usually occur during sporting events (Braves games, the Indy 500, Women's World Cup, etc). The past few weekends, the Swimming World Championships have been on TV. To say she was a fan would be an understatement.

During the first weekend, she worked on her butterfly technique as seen in the video below.



During the second weekend of the meet, she decided to focus on the entire body.




Needless to say we have started to research swim programs in the area. :) - Ben

Even More Words

As soon as I finished the post last night, I realized that I had forgotten some more words. So, while acknowledging that I will never be able to list them all, (which means I will probably stop trying), here is yet another list of words Penelope is currently using: uh-oh, stop, no, back (as in "put the books back"). With the exception of back it seems there is a theme here, and it may not be a good one.

More Words

Before I forget, I need to document a few more of Penelope's latest words: water, boo, more, up, socks, Clay (one of her classmates' name), nana (for Banana), and last but not least GO, as in LET'S GO NATS!

Pool Time in the City

This weekend we tried out a "pop up" pool that one of our neighbors passed down to us. Having a tiny backyard and front yard, the logical place to enjoy the pool was right on the sidewalk. Too bad I didn't capture Penelope's dad in the camping chair sitting beside the pool, occasionally "making waves" in the pool by pushing on the sides with his feet, the image is not really complete without that!

Great Grandpa's 90th Birthday

Last weekend we were in Atlanta for Ben's Grandpa Nevius' 90th birthday. It was a really nice trip, all of Grandpa's children, grand-children, and great-grandchildren were in one place for the first time in a long time, so we made sure to get a few photos. Below are some:

Words, Songs, & Other Tricks

So Penelope is really in mimicking mode these days. Practically every day we hear her say some new word that we just used. The latest list includes a phrase in addition to single words (although in fairness to her it is probably just one word). Here's the list: apple, all done, closed, & outside. In addition she is working on a couple of songs. So far we have "Row Row Row" from "Row Row Row Your Boat," and "Babies, Babies" from a very special Yo Gabba Gabba episode all about, you guessed it, Babies! (For the record, that's right, she watches some TV. I'm not going to say any more for fear of sounding even more defensive.) Last, she continues to add to the list of "tricks" she likes to do. Right now she will put her shoes away with the other ones at the end of the day and she is also adamant about helping put the groceries away (including trying to carry the cantaloupe all by herself). It turns out she may really be a girl after her mom's heart after all.

Nana's Family

This weekend we traveled to Indiana to say good-bye to my Nana who passed away the week before. Nana was what I called my mother's mother, and what we are hoping Penelope will call my mom someday. It was one of those bittersweet weekends that gathered together in one place a lot of family that rarely come together these days. Below is a picture from the weekend of five of my Nana's seven great grandchildren (the five whose parents grew up in Indiana), held by four of her granddaughters and one grandson-in-law. The oldest is my nephew Gable, who is 21 months old, and the youngest is my nephew Conley ,who is 4 months old -- we've had a prolific couple of years in the family, adding 5 children in a mere 17 months!



Also below is a picture of my Nana, my sister Rachel, and me from when Rachel was just a baby that I like. She was an incredibly unique person, and we will miss her.

Penelope & Her Sidewalk Chalk

Today Penelope embarked upon her first sidewalk chalk drawing session. It was relatively successful, as evidenced in these photos. In addition to sitting still for a few minutes, she also decided to mark the trail to the park (where her dad and Gabby were) Hansel & Gretel style, by stopping every few yards to bend down and christen the sidewalk with her own personal style. The best part, though was that when we came back in the house and I asked for the chalk back, explaining that it is an outside toy, she actually handed it over without argument, fit, crying, throwing, swiping/hitting, limp noodle move, whining, or any other negative behavior. I am pretty sure this will never happen again.

Words, words, words!

Penelope is mimicking words left and right these days. So many that I can barely keep up. But I am trying! Here's a list that will almost certainly be outdated the moment it it posted: shoes, socks, book, frog, cup, bird, baby. For the record, I am not saying she is actually using these words the proper way yet, but she is definitely trying to learn them and has some, like dog and bird, down. Also in the category of showing us she knows way more than we realize, when looking through a picture book, we can ask her to point to a number of things (ball, brush, hat, boots, socks) and she does quite easily and happily. It is seriously mind boggling to watch her at work and realize that she comprehends so much more then she can tell us.

DJ Names

I wish I could say that we hadn't already once considered what Penelope's name would be if she were ever to take up DJing as a career or hobby. When initially considering it we came up with "DJ PJ" - not particularly original, but neither are her parents, and let's be honest, her chances of becoming a professional DJ are slim, so the game didn't matter much. Then this week on the sheet of paper we get everyday from her daycare that tells us how her day was (aptly named a My Day sheet), the note said that "P-nel" had a great day. Well there it was, Penelope's obvious DJ name. So 18 years from now when DJ P-nel is gaining fame for pumping out the greatest club mixes, you'll be able to say I knew her when she was just lame old DJ PJ.

Pool Time

Penelope had her first pool outing of the season this past holiday weekend. We have her Aunt Sarah and Cousin Gracie to thank for hosting us. We had a great time visiting with them and of course splashing in the pool as an escape from the completely insane weather we have been experiencing (95 degrees for days straight and it is not even June yet!). In fairness, at the beginning Penelope was extremely unhappy and concerned about experiencing the pool, but once her cousin and aunt were in and she had a little more time to adjust, she really started to enjoy herself. Here are a couple of photos of the event:

New Words

I can feel it, I am calling the shot: Penelope's vocabulary is about to explode, I just know it...in the last few days we have had such revelations as dog, door, and towel; her own name can't be far behind!

Second Official School Photo

Well, it is that time of year again: School Picture Time! Penelope's Second Official School Photo was apparently serious business. See for yourself:

Family Visits

Penelope's Nana was in town this weekend, and so was her Great Aunt Letha, her Nana's sister and Gracie's Nonnie. So a Mason women gathering was definitely called for. Here are some pictures. It turns out that getting two children under the age of 18 months to look at the camera at the same time and not make weird faces is sort of hard, so we did the best we could:

It's Official: It's Baseball Season

Penelope made it to her first Washington Nationals baseball game of the season this past weekend. She was a natural, (all of the games she went to last year must have really worn off on her), she clapped when she was supposed to, paid attention to the action, and generally enjoyed herself without any fussing. Here are some photos of the day:

Bag Lady

This past weekend Penelope grabbed a couple of bags from around the house and a number of other random items (for example a football and water bottle) and started dragging them around the house. The coup de gras, however, was when she put a tupperware lid up to her ear and started treating it like a cell phone, suddenly a light went off and it was clear that she was emulating me as I drag a purse, day care bag, and cell phone around on daily basis. Here's the photographic evidence:

Easter Part II

On the afternoon of Easter, we had brunch with our fabulous family who live in the area (my cousin Sarah and her family), including Penelope's second cousin Gracie, here are some shots of us: