As she grows...

  Another two weeks off to spend more time with Samantha has me noticing changes again. Can she please slow down the growing and changing? Her little childhood is going so fast it's hard to keep up and soak it all in - but I'm trying my hardest.
  She has definitely matured into a three year old now. She is no longer a toddling two year old with many baby qualties apparent. She is more independent, opinionated, and of course verbal! I need to write down some of the funny, cute, and just interesting observations I've made lately. So here we go.
  Samantha has begun complimenting people. She'll say, "I love your shirt!" or "I love your pretty green necklace." It's really cute and so grown up!
  She has more energy than she did as a toddler. I've noticed that she definitely needs exercise everyday. When let loose outside she will just run and run and run, for the joy of running. I love it! Even if it does tire me out. Sometimes the weather doesn't permit outside play here in Texas. Then her and Reggie will run laps through the living room and kitchen, chasing eachother. It's so funny!

 

  We took her to her first movie theatre experience. Joe was off for a week at Christmas along with myself and we were looking for fun family things to do. We were pretty confident that Samantha would do well. She will sit still and watch an entire movie at home so a movie in a theatre should keep her attention even better. Monsters Inc was back in the theatres so we went to see that. She did great! She was so excited to sit in her seat like a big girl and eat popcorn. She even had a few sips of Daddy's soda! It was a fun afternoon as a family.

 

 

  As my sweet girl grows older, she has also changed up our normal routine. The good thing is that she can stay up later and have fun, so we can socialize a little longer with friends and she will in turn sleep later in the morning. Unfortunately, naps have gone by the way side. She apparently doesn't need them like she used to. She is still such a good girl though. If she can't fall asleep she will read books and play in her room for at least an hour so we all get a little break.
  She still holds on to some cute "babyish" qualities. She still asks me to "Hold you!" and will say, "My tummy hurts. Some juice will feel me better."
  I took Samantha to the library for her first time. I was so excited to show her such a wonderful place. I remember visiting the library with my mom and checking books out to read at home. It's a fond memory. With e-readers and the ease of ordering books off of Amazon, the library isn't used as much as it used to be, but it still is a great place to introduce your child to. A wealth of stories to choose from! It was a fun experience. We pulled into the parking lot and I tried to explain to her what a library was. She was excited as we walked inside. The first thing she saw as we made our way to the childrens section was a huge stuffed alligator. "Look at dat alligator mom! And a Nemo, a Nemo mom! Dats da biggest Nemo I ever saw!" Of course at the top of her little voice for all to hear. We introduced ourselves to the children's librarian and explained that it was our first visit. "What's your name sweetie? I'm so glad you came." The librarian asked Samantha to which Sam replied, "My name is Nemo!" A little embarrassed but laughing so hard, I led my daughter, "Nemo" over to the bookshelves. I searched for books while she played with puzzles and introduced herself to other children there with their moms.

 

  These are the treasures we left with. The Buggliest Bug is one of my new favorites! So cute and Sam loves bugs. Cat A Cupcake is another good one from a favorite author and Big Dog Little Dog is a classic from my childhood. I think we did pretty good for our first trip.

   As you can tell from my library story, Samantha is now obsessed with Nemo. I'm not quite sure how it happened but she does love to watch the movie. Anyways, now everything is Nemo and fish and sea creatures. She pretends she is Nemo, wants to go fishing to catch a Nemo, and wants to swim in the lake with Nemo. Every morning when I get her out of bed I ask her what she dreamt about and she answers, "Nemo! I went swimming with Nemo!" She got a stuffed Nemo for Christmas and about a week later I found a bath Nemo at Walmart, they are her new favorite toys that go everywhere. She even claims that Baba belongs to Nemo now! Whoa, she gave her Baba to Nemo!
   Another new obsession is babies. She loves babies! If she sees one in a store or at school or wherever she wants to run over to it and touch it. She wants to "help" the mommy change it's diaper or give it a bottle. She is full of curiosity and questions and tries to smother it with love. She has become a little mommy to her stuffed animals and toys. She snuggles and kisses them, feeds them and changes their diapers, and she puts them night night. One of her new favorite games is for her to pretend to be a mommy and Joe or I have to play the "child" (her word). She puts us to bed and gives us Baba and a blankie. She sings us a song and then instructs us not to jump on the bed or turn on the light. (bet she's heard that before a time or two!) Then she closes the door and we get to "sleep" for 20 seconds before she bursts back in, "Wake up! Wake up! It's time for schooool!"

   She still loves music and loves to sing. She has so many songs memorized completely. Of course when you pull the video camera out, the silliness takes over...

   Joe and I are having so much fun with her. We are loving her age now. She is full of energy, has a funny sense of humor, is a fun playmate, and is for the most part an obedient and happy child. We love her so much and we are thoroughly enjoying our sweet 3 year old!