I've felt twinges of guilt after posting about how I've found there are times you can like one child more....even though it's true. So what's been especially nice about our two weeks of family vacation is how I'm seeing that a change in routine/environment/pace can really reacquaint you with your children.
So here's the first of two posts of what I've gotten to know/see about my kids.
Cora's been a handful lately. Jacob and I can both attest to this. Add to that the understandable concerns about a toddler in a carseat for 29 hours of driving and I was a little worried how Cora might do on our big road trip to Wyoming...
Well I was wrong. As Cora's seatmate, I got to spend a ridiculous amount of quality time with her over four days and it was great! She had the best seat in the car. She was in the middle of the second row of our rented Suburban in a front-facing, cushiony carseat. It was like having a picture window view from a padded armchair. I was jealous!
She loved her seat and she was way more interested in her surroundings than Jack was. She was close enough to Big Papa and Grammy in the front seat to interact and she kept up a steady steam of talk with them and me. She had many snuggly moments when she'd pull my arm across her, wrap her arms around it, and cuddle my hand to her cheek. :)
Sure she got antsy by the last hour of each day's driving, she had some difficulty falling asleep for naps, and she kept me very busy with lots of requests, but overall we all (me, Big Papa, and Grammy) really enjoyed this time to "hang out" with Cora.
From a child that put her first sentence together two months ago, she is talking non-stop now.
She is insistent that you answer her when she talks to you and she just talks louder and repeats what she's saying until you acknowledge her. (This was also funny in the captive audience arena of the car.)
What she most loves to do is run through checklists. Every day in the car she'd remind us all of where we were seated. (And she had me move the one time I thought of sitting in a different spot.) Amusingly, as we entered a barren stretch of New Mexico, Cora piped up: "Mama wawa? May-may wawa? Papa wawa? Jack wawa? Me wawa?" Thanks for thinking of our safety Cora.
I've had a lot of opportunity to listen to her talk, so I've figured out she can say all her vowel sounds +"b", "d", "h", "j", "m", "n", "w", and "y" consonant sounds. She has a big vocabulary but most words need interpretation since she's missing half her consonant sounds. Think of her saying "Cora" and you get the picture.
She's at the fun age where she constantly is saying things we didn't know she could say/conceptualize. My favorite Cora-talk story comes from when we were eating dinner at the end of the final day of driving. Cora had a bagel with peanut butter along with fruit. She wasn't eating much and announced she was "All done!" I assumed she was just too tired to eat, so I took her bagel and ate it instead of putting peanut butter on another bagel for myself. Well Cora reached back later and grabbed her plate and ate some of her fruit. My dad made a joke about how he was sorry she couldn't have her bagel but I'd eaten it. A few more minutes passed and Cora asked for a cookie. My mom said she was sorry, but Cora hadn't eaten much dinner. Cora then gives everyone at the table a serious look and says "Mama ate my bread." From a child who just started making sentences, this was hilariously surreal.
She still is keeping us on our toes with a few difficult behaviors. She is very attached to me and often cries when I leave. (Ask my mom how she cried for me all the way down the mountain...) When I'm around she's always saying "Mama hold!" but it's not enough for me to pull her into my lap. She says "Stand up mama" or "get up mama." And she'll say it over and over well past the point I've said no.
The 9-hour drive to catch our return flight from Denver didn't go as smoothly as the drive to Wyoming. As I tried to nap, Cora squealed (FOR TWENTY SOLID MINUTES) "No mama sleep!" "Mama wake up!" "Mama no close eyes!"
And when we were stranded overnight in Denver, she held us all hostage in the hotel with her "Mama hold!" screams. This child has a STRONG will and she will drive you to the point of near insanity without backing down.
BUT, overall, this special time together has really brought out all that is precious and beautiful about this little girl. She has so much joy and spirit in such a cute little package. And she can be so very loving. It's been fun having all this extra time to hang out with her!
So here's the first of two posts of what I've gotten to know/see about my kids.
First up: Cora: Age 2
Road Trip Cora
Cora's been a handful lately. Jacob and I can both attest to this. Add to that the understandable concerns about a toddler in a carseat for 29 hours of driving and I was a little worried how Cora might do on our big road trip to Wyoming...
Well I was wrong. As Cora's seatmate, I got to spend a ridiculous amount of quality time with her over four days and it was great! She had the best seat in the car. She was in the middle of the second row of our rented Suburban in a front-facing, cushiony carseat. It was like having a picture window view from a padded armchair. I was jealous!
She loved her seat and she was way more interested in her surroundings than Jack was. She was close enough to Big Papa and Grammy in the front seat to interact and she kept up a steady steam of talk with them and me. She had many snuggly moments when she'd pull my arm across her, wrap her arms around it, and cuddle my hand to her cheek. :)
Sure she got antsy by the last hour of each day's driving, she had some difficulty falling asleep for naps, and she kept me very busy with lots of requests, but overall we all (me, Big Papa, and Grammy) really enjoyed this time to "hang out" with Cora.
Verbal Cora
From a child that put her first sentence together two months ago, she is talking non-stop now.
She is insistent that you answer her when she talks to you and she just talks louder and repeats what she's saying until you acknowledge her. (This was also funny in the captive audience arena of the car.)
What she most loves to do is run through checklists. Every day in the car she'd remind us all of where we were seated. (And she had me move the one time I thought of sitting in a different spot.) Amusingly, as we entered a barren stretch of New Mexico, Cora piped up: "Mama wawa? May-may wawa? Papa wawa? Jack wawa? Me wawa?" Thanks for thinking of our safety Cora.
I've had a lot of opportunity to listen to her talk, so I've figured out she can say all her vowel sounds +
She's at the fun age where she constantly is saying things we didn't know she could say/conceptualize. My favorite Cora-talk story comes from when we were eating dinner at the end of the final day of driving. Cora had a bagel with peanut butter along with fruit. She wasn't eating much and announced she was "All done!" I assumed she was just too tired to eat, so I took her bagel and ate it instead of putting peanut butter on another bagel for myself. Well Cora reached back later and grabbed her plate and ate some of her fruit. My dad made a joke about how he was sorry she couldn't have her bagel but I'd eaten it. A few more minutes passed and Cora asked for a cookie. My mom said she was sorry, but Cora hadn't eaten much dinner. Cora then gives everyone at the table a serious look and says "Mama ate my bread." From a child who just started making sentences, this was hilariously surreal.
Stinker Cora
She still is keeping us on our toes with a few difficult behaviors. She is very attached to me and often cries when I leave. (Ask my mom how she cried for me all the way down the mountain...) When I'm around she's always saying "Mama hold!" but it's not enough for me to pull her into my lap. She says "Stand up mama" or "get up mama." And she'll say it over and over well past the point I've said no.
The 9-hour drive to catch our return flight from Denver didn't go as smoothly as the drive to Wyoming. As I tried to nap, Cora squealed (FOR TWENTY SOLID MINUTES) "No mama sleep!" "Mama wake up!" "Mama no close eyes!"
And when we were stranded overnight in Denver, she held us all hostage in the hotel with her "Mama hold!" screams. This child has a STRONG will and she will drive you to the point of near insanity without backing down.
1 comment:
Granny Ida: I enjoy reading your posts Courtney. Cora Beth sounds like a very strong willed child. I love reading about her. She sound like a real little 'stinker', referred to by we cajuns, meaning very amusing child. I laugh when I read your posts about her.
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