Who are you?

CHLOE!  Today Chloe said her name for the first time!!  She has been saying other people's names for a while, but never said her own.  We've been asking her periodically and she usually just smiles and shrugs her shoulders but today when we asked her "Who are you?" she said, "I'm Chloe!"

Monkey See, Monkey Do

This little girl wants to be just like Daddy.

She likes to do everything he does, like watch the NBA Finals and answer emails on the laptop.

I want go play.

Thats what Chloe says when she wants to go play with her toys. 

Here she is with her new easle that she got from Mommy and Daddy for her 2nd birthday.  It is a chalkboard, white dry erase board and has paper attached for coloring.

She also loves to play with play doh.  She mostly takes it all of of the containers, breaks it into smaller pieces and then puts it in different containers.

She also likes to play with her little brother on his play mat.

Here is Chloe playing with her lego blocks with Granddad Darling.

And smiling big playing with her baskets and purse.

Backyard Summertime Fun!

Chloe loves:

Splashing in her pool.

Spinning round and round.

being just the cutest thing around.

Laughing and trying to grab the camera.

We all scream for ice cream!

Welcome "Terrific" Twos!

Chloe is now 2 years old and celebrated with a big Elmo party with her friends and family.  She also proved to be a big girl at her 2 year check up with the doctor.  Chloe is still below average on height and weight but growing up her curve at the right pace.  She is almost 22 pounds which puts her in the 3rd percentile and she is almost 33 inches tall which puts her in the 26th percentile.  She is very healthy and we are very happy that we have made it 2 years with no ear infections, illness, or need for medication other than the occassional fever reducer (knock on wood).  Chloe did have to get one shot at her 2 month visit and she was a trooper. She cried a little bit, but when she found out she got a sticker afterward, she was good to go.  We are also glad that all of Chloe's traits are completely normal.  Here is a summary:

She

• is constantly in motion
• tires easily
• walks up and down stairs alone
• walks on her tiptoes
• can build a tower with blocks
• has gone from scribbling to somewhat controlled movements
• likes to imitate others
• does NOT share
• claims everything is "MINE"
• uses child grammar
• uses 3 word phrases
• likes to "do-it-myself"
• gets upset and impatient easily
• shows anger by crying and striking out
• gets frustrated when not understood
• asserts herself by saying "NO"
• has sharp mood changes
• is upset when daily routine changes.

We are also working on discipline for bad behavior such as throwing toys, hitting, and tantrums and have created a "Time Out".  She had a pretty bad habit about standing on chairs which is much better now.  Don't know if it is because of the time outs or because she fell 3 times after standing on chairs or benches.  She likes most foods, but is still picky about what she wants to eat and would probably choose to live off goldfish crackers and milk if we let her.  The other day we were in the grocery store and she saw the fresh raw broccoli and kept pointing and saying "brocky, brocky." It wasn't on my list but had to buy some to appease her and she wanted a piece then and there, I didn't think she would like the raw broccoli, but she chewed on it for the rest of the grocery trip and then ate 2 bowl fulls of frozen steamed broccoli that night for dinner.  She loves french fries (but who doesn't right?).  She also prefers ice cream over cake and lately loves yogurt. 

She has learned so much in school over the past year and loves to do art projects, sing, and dance.  She knows the words and sings along to Wheels on the Bus, Itsy Bitsy Spider, Twinkle Twinkle, Ring Around the Rosie, Head Shoulders Knees & Toes, the Hokey Pokey and her favorite song, the ABC's.  She can also count to 10 and will repeat just about anything at this point.  She still has long conversations while in her car seat that only she can understand. She also loves busses and trucks and playing with puzzles and play doh.  She has also started to like to pay dress up and loves to put on Mommy's shoes, necklaces and hats.

Elmo Wishes Chloe a Happy 2nd Birthday!

Chloe had a fun time setting up the chairs before the party started.

An Elmo Cake-of course!

Dorothy's Goldfish Bar.  Who knew there were so many flavors to choose from, the neon colors and smore's flavors were the most popular.

Elmo cake and Elmo cake pops.

Entertainment for the little ones--a puzzle table and ball tent and tunnel.

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Build your own Elmo Table.

Chloe and Nana playing with puzzles.

Gavin having fun in the ball tent.

Time to sing "Happy Birthday"

We were so surprised that Chloe knew how to blow out the candles.

She enjoyed the ice cream and cake pops better than the actual cake.

Now time for BUBBLES, all of Chloe's friends from school loved taking turns. She had 6 friends from school, Adina and her sister Tova, Lexi, Camdyn, Eli, and Danielle.

We opened about 1/2 the presents during her party and the rest the week of her birthday.

Chloe loves busses and trucks.  Thanks to Uncle Kfir and Melissa for this pink bus.

Chloe loved her little brother dressed up in his Elmo Onesie.