I've got a silly hat!

When Mommy gets out of the shower, she wraps a towel around her hair to help it dry.  I thought this was funny and started referring to it as a "silly hat".  So now, pretty much every time Mommy's drying me off after my shower, I tell her I want a "silly hat".  She did a really good job on this one tonight!

Reading "Silly Monkeys" to myself!

Mommy was reading "8 Silly Monkeys" to me today, and I was filling in the "No more monkeys jumping on the bed" parts all by myself. When she got up to take care of something else for a minute, I kept on "reading" all by myself! I kept going for so long that Daddy heard me from the other room and was able to grab the camera and get a little video. Notice that I catch Daddy videoing me but I keep right on going. I really like reading!

Playing dress-up

For Christmas, Santa brought me a big "princess" dress-up trunk.  Today I finally figured out what to do with it!  I had worn the tiara, put on the shoes, and played with the wands before, but today I was playing by myself and decided to actually put some of the clothes on. 

I think I did pretty well!

Mommy fixed me up a little.  I was having a lot of fun!

Snow play again!

The last time I got to play in the snow was on Christmas day, and it being my first time, I didn't really know what to do.  But with all the snow yesterday, I was excited to go out today!

Daddy started off by shoveling the driveway as Mommy and I got ready.  It took a long time because I had a little "accident".  Oops!  By the time we got outside, Daddy had already finished the driveway and the walkway to the door!  But now I was ready to play!

This time, I only hesitated a little before venturing off into the frozen tundra.

Mommy came out to play too!

Before they could mention it, I told Daddy he should "get the sled from the attic"!  I remembered it from last time and couldn't wait to ride it again.  Daddy towed me all over the field next to our house.

I wanted to pull Daddy!

After the sledding we both snuck up on Mommy and Daddy introduced me to the fun of snowballs!  We got Mommy good.  Then she got us back (especially Daddy).  I got both Mommy AND Daddy!  It was a lot of fun and I got a big smile each time I threw a snowball.  After a while, though, my hands were getting pretty cold through my gloves and we went inside.

Later, we went out to eat.  I was really tired by this time and was starting to fall asleep on the way there.  Mommy and Daddy were able to keep me awake for a while, but after a few bites, I laid my head down on Daddy's lap and fell right asleep  See, I was being nice and letting Mommy and Daddy have a quiet meal together!

When we got back, I took another short little nap on Daddy's shoulder, but then I was wide awake again.  Daddy went outside to try to take care of the layer of ice still on the driveway.  He wanted to show Mommy and I his progress, so Mommy wrapped me in a blanket.  When we got back inside, I didn't want to take it off.  I said it was nice and cozy, and asked Daddy to make me a hood!

What a day!  I bet I'll sleep well tonight.

Happy Anniversary Mommy and Daddy!

Today is Mommy and Daddy's 5th anniversary.  They "planned" to take the day off from work, take me in to day care, and have a big date to celebrate.  But the weather had different plans!  Yesterday it started with the rain, then the freezing rain, then the sleet, and then the snow.  It snowed almost all day today too.  So needless to say, their offices were closed and we spent the whole day at home.  Mommy and Daddy hope they get a "date" someday, but we had fun today anyway!

We did a lot of playing today.  I got to dance with Daddy, which I really like.  I tell him I "don't want to touch the ground", so he has to hold me up and swing me around a lot!  We perfected this one move where he flips me from standing to upside down to on his shoulder in one motion.  I think it's great fun!  Mommy just looks the other way!

Notice we are in matching wardrobes, as all good dance partners are!

Daddy was in his closet looking for something and saw his trumpet.  I've never seen it before, so I was very excited.  He let me play it a little!  At first I couldn't get any noise to come out, but then I found out if I hummed into it, it sounded almost like Daddy playing!

We sure had a lot of fun even though we couldn't go outside!

I made another funny!

Mommy and I were looking at pictures on her computer, which is one of my favorite things to do.  She brought up an old picture of Daddy (one taken over 7 years ago after he had been deployed to a tropical island for almost 6 months, exercised a lot, and as was very tan).  She asked "Piper, who is that?"

"I don't know!"

Mommy laughed.  Daddy didn't think it was quite so funny!

(This is the same picture that, when Mommy first saw it, she said "Wow!")

Noticing when things "match"

My big thing recently is telling Mommy and Daddy when things "match", like two pictures, or two socks, or two stickers, anything really.  I really get excited when I notice they match!

Spending a lot of time with Mommy

Since Mommy got home on Friday, we've been spending a lot of time together, making up for lost time!  (And giving Daddy a little break too.)  Yesterday we went to the library and then to the grocery store.  This was very exciting because it's the first time I've been there since I was about 6 months old.  Mommy usually stops there after work, then picks me up, but since it was Saturday, and Daddy had only bought "essentials" while she was gone, she really needed to do some shopping.  I liked to help!  I got to push the cart through most of the store, I got to help Mommy put things in the cart, and even put some things in the cart that Mommy didn't notice until later!  Important things, like Nilla Wafers and marshmallows.

Today we also spent a lot of time together while Daddy went out with some friends.  When Daddy got back we finished unpacking Mommy's suitcases.  Daddy started wheeling the big suitcase down the hall.  He noticed it was a little heavier than usual!

  

Surprise, I was hiding in it!

Later I got to help Mommy make dinner by picking the leaves off of some cilantro.  We've found out that if I help make dinner, I'm much more likely to eat it, so they've been letting me help any way I can!

I'm glad we got to spend so much time together!

She's home! She's home!

Mommy came home today!  She got in around 3 PM so Daddy picked her up from the airport (he works on the other side of the runway) and they both came and got me from day care.  I showed Mommy how much I missed her by dropping what I was doing, running right over to her and giving her a big hug.  I really really missed Mommy!

We headed home, but since it was so nice outside (especially for January) and 65 degrees, we headed to the park instead.  After I played for a while, we all went out to dinner.  It was great fun and I am so glad Mommy's back.  Daddy is too!

Flying with Daddy!

It's been a long time since I went flying with Daddy.  But since it was a beautiful day and he has the day off work, we decided to fly up to Ponca City to have lunch at the Mexican restaurant on the field there.

I was a great girl and kept my headset on the whole time.  I mostly read books and sang my favorite songs.  Sometimes REALLY loudly over the headset (Daddy had to turn me off a few times so he could talk to ATC).

I saw him looking at a map and told him I wanted to see it.  So he handed me another one he had.  I was his little navigator (with my scrunchy smile)!

I wanted to get a really good look at the map.  Where's Piper?

I ate some of my lunch, and we walked around looking at other airplanes for a while.  Then we took off to come back.  I did fine for the first half, but then got fussy, which usually means I'm getting tired and am about to fall asleep.  Sure enough, I did!  Of course it happened on final approach to our home airport!  I slept the whole time Daddy was putting things away and when I woke up, we were ready to get in the truck and go home.

Our route home takes us right by the local park, and we saw a lot of kids there, as it was about 65 degrees in January, and right after a really cold few weeks.  So we stopped and played for a while!

It was a great day!

Left Grandma and Papa's house

We left to head home this morning.  It was a pretty cloudy and dreary day, so when Daddy realized that our drive home took us right by the Omniplex, he figured we might as well stop there!  I sure didn't complain!

We were there for a couple of hours, and then went to have a late lunch. 

When we got home, Daddy said he needed my help putting together a storage shelf for my room.  I love helping!

First I carefully arranged the storage bins while Daddy started assembling the shelf.

I got to help him tighten the shelves.

I put the bins in very carefully.

All done!  Daddy told me I could put the bins in any order, but I thought they looked best nice and orderly!

I haven't yet put my toys in them, but I did take all of the bins completely off and put them all back on!

Fun with Grandma and Grandpa (and Shadow)

I knew this was going to be a fun day, so started it off bright and early at about 6 AM (much to Daddy's chagrin).  But once Grandma and Papa got up, we had a great time!  I can sum up the day in one word - BOOKS!  You know I love reading, and they've got a lot of books I haven't read.  So we got right to work!

In this book, Grover tries to hide from the "monster" at the end of the book.  I tried to hide too!

They also got me a "Dora" book.  I REALLY liked this book and wanted them to read it to me over and over.  Between Grandma, Papa, and Daddy, we probably read the book 5 or 6 times.  Eventually they just had to say we'd read it enough and I had to pick something else.

I also got to do some puzzles.  I did this 25-piece puzzle of Winnie the Pooh and friends all by myself!  I'm getting really good at puzzles.

I had been having so much fun, that on the way back from seeing the model home of one they're going to move into this summer, I fell asleep!  Daddy got me inside and I took a little nap on his shoulder.  But then it was back to playing!

We stayed overnight too, so I got to stay up extra late again.  But I had a great time.

Up to Owasso!

Daddy picked me up early from school today and we headed on up to Grandma and Papa Roslewski's house to stay overnight.  I was a pretty good girl on the way up, and I was excited to see them (and Shadow too)!

Grandma said she needed help with the icing for a cake.  I was ready to help!  I helped her mix it up, and we even got to lick the beaters.  Fun!

I like baking!

I got to read with both Grandma and Papa a LOT.  A few times, I licked my finger to turn the pages.  None of us are quite sure where I picked that up, they hadn't seen me do it before.  But Daddy thought it was pretty funny and got a good laugh.

I was a real good girl eating dinner (for me anyway).  I think I was motivated by the cake we just made for dessert.

I stayed up super late playing, and didn't get to bed until about 9:30!  I was really tired, and Daddy was sure I'd sleep in late because of it.

He was wrong!

Quite a bowl of fruit!

Daddy let me help myself to some cantaloupe and honeydew.  I was doing a good job spooning them into my bowl, so he looked away for a minute.  Look what he saw when he looked back again!  I was hungry (and ate it all too)!

We both miss Mommy very much.  We're getting into a new routine and I've been a really good girl for Daddy, which he appreciates very much.  I even slept completely through the night last night (Daddy was very happy, I've been having problems with that lately).

We love you Mommy!

New sayings

My grammar and vocabulary are really coming along!  And I've got some new sayings as well.

The other day, Daddy and I were in the bathroom brushing teeth.  Pitch the cat wanted to get in the door, so I said "I'll let Pitch in".  But when I opened the door, he changed his mind, to which I replied "or not!"  I did this a couple more times.  It seems I have picked up the "or not!" from Mommy!  It's pretty funny the sayings I pick up.

I've also started, in the last week or two, using personal pronouns, like "she" and "he".  I don't yet know "her" and "him", so I might say when picking up my Minnie doll, "I pick she up", but I'm learning!

Daddy also says I've started sounding like Yoda.  I've started coming out with phrases like "pick she up I will", which he gets a kick out of.  Silly Daddy!

Rough night last night

Last night was a rough night for Daddy and me. It started out well - I was a really good girl in the shower, getting ready for bed, and went to bed with no problems. But at about 9:30 I woke up crying, and was sitting up in my bed when Daddy came. I was pretty out of it, and he was able to lay me down on my side, curled me up with my Minnie and Panda, and I went back to sleep pretty easily.


At about 11:30 I woke up crying again. When Daddy came out of his room I was standing in the hallway crying. He picked me up, gave me a big hug as usual, and asked what was wrong. I cried, "I peed my pants!", at which point he noticed that it was now all over him, of course! Oops. So he took me in the bathroom, got my old clothes off, we went back in the bedroom, got new pajamas on, and then he noticed that I hadn't wet the bed, it was dry.  Yay!  We then headed out to sit on the couch and have some milk to calm me down. On the way there, I started crying again, and said "my feet wet!" It was then that Daddy noticed the big puddle I had left in the hallway, that he had now tracked into the bathroom, into my bedroom, and into the living room! Oh no! So he sat me down on the couch while he cleaned up (and cleaned himself up too). But I did go back to sleep after having some milk.

And then about 2:00 I woke up again, walking down the hallway. Daddy got smart and made a point of "checking" before he picked me up this time! But everything was okay, so he rocked me a little and I went back to bed.

I woke up happily when he came to get me in the morning, and he told me to get dressed while he showered (which I'm getting very good at doing by myself). While he was in there I decided I had to go potty, but when he got done with his shower and heard me calling for him, he found me on my potty chair, legs spread wide, feet hovering a few inches off the ground, and a big puddle next to the potty chair. I missed! He's not sure how. Needless to say, he cleaned that up as I finished getting dressed.

So like I said, it was a rough night and morning. And Mommy's only been gone a few hours!

Bye-bye Mommy...

Mommy left today for two whole weeks! She's going to Mesa, AZ for a training course. The nice thing is that she'll be able to see lots of her friends and family while she's there. The bad thing, of course, is that she'll be away from Daddy and me!

On the way to the airport, we stopped by Target. Okay, it's in completely the opposite direction from the airport, but we had plenty of time. Now, I'm not exactly sure what happened there, since I fell asleep in the truck on the way there, and when I woke up Daddy was strapping me back into the car seat before we left! What I don't know yet is that Mommy and Daddy went in (Daddy carrying me), bought a storage shelf for my room, and then had ice cream at the Cold Stone in the store, all without me waking up! I missed some good ice cream!

We headed to the airport and got there with plenty of time to spare.  From our other trips, I know that an airport (especially one like ours that's not so busy) is a great place to play around.  I got to go up and down escalators, stairs, duck under the ropes, see an airplane, and generally run around squealing!

Running around with Mommy is fun.  She and Daddy noticed I sure am faster than last time!

Daddy picked me up so I could see really well!  I did this a couple of times, each time getting scared after a minute or so.  But then I wanted to do it again!

I had a great time "escaping" from Mommy and Daddy under the barriers (this was at a closed security checkpoint).  I was careful to duck super low each time!

But of course, all this fun had to end eventually, and Mommy had to go through security to get on the plane.  We gave each other lots of hugs and kisses.  We'll sure miss you Mommy!

First time sleeping without a diaper!

I've been doing so well having dry diapers in the morning that Mommy and Daddy decided it was finally time to try wearing big girl panties to bed. And I did great, no accidents! They were very proud of me, and so was I!

The OMNIPLEX again!

Since we have annual passes, we decided to go to the Omniplex again today. I was just as excited as last time. We did see some of the same exhibits, but that's okay, I really like them! I got to ride a Segway again, and I got to go super fast this time! They also had a neat paper airplane "launcher". Daddy and I liked this! I wanted to run and go get the airplanes - he didn't mind. Then I told him I wanted a "tiny" one, so he made one and it flew great! We were at the Omniplex for a few hours. We went out to eat, and then went to the library.

But even after all this excitement, and having woken up at 6:30 this morning, I still didn't act tired all day and didn't take a nap. Poor Mommy and Daddy!

I'm still waking up in the middle of the night, and then waking up pretty early in the morning, but we're working on that.

If I'm a turkey, what are Mommy and Daddy?

Daddy always calls me a little turkey.  And he used to call me a pumpkin.  But I decided that if I am the turkey, HE must be a pumpkin!  Of course that left Mommy.  So one day I decided that she's a cantaloupe!  I make sure that they don't get this all mixed up and remind them all the time.  Daddy tries to tease me by calling me a pumpkin, but I make sure to correct him!

Daddy's home!

Daddy got home today while I was at school.  Mommy and I were very happy!  We missed him very much.

Mommy tried to give me a shower

Daddy usually gives me a shower, and then Mommy dries me off and gets me ready for night-night.  But since Daddy is gone today, Mommy had to give me a shower.  She didn't realize that I sometimes grab the shower head and accidentally aim it around the bathroom!  Messy!

But I'm actually doing really well taking showers.  I can hold the shower head and wet down my own hair with only a little help, and I can rinse myself off pretty well too.  I even try to use the washcloth.  I'm a big girl!

Bye-bye Daddy!

Daddy left on a business trip to Sacramento today.  I'm glad he'll only be gone for two days.  He left while I was at school.  Mommy and I already miss him!

Sleepwalking?

After they put me to bed tonight, Mommy and Daddy went in to their bedroom.  Daddy needed to pack for his business trip tomorrow (it's only a 2-day trip).  About an hour after they put me to bed, Daddy came out in the kitchen looking for something, and heard deep breathing from the living room that was way too loud to be the cats.  He came over, and there I was, fast asleep on the couch, tightly holding onto my Minnie Mouse, Panda Bear, and Little Boo!  Apparently I walked out and crawled up on the couch without making a noise.

Daddy picked me up, carried me back into my bedroom and laid me down on my bed, all without me waking up one bit!

I can pronounce my last name!

This afternoon I surprised Daddy by asking him to write my name - "Piper Roslewski".  That's right, I said my first AND last name.  Mommy and Daddy haven't practiced this with me, so it surprised them!  Of course, they just had to have me say it a few more times for good measure.  And what's more, I may not have pronounced it perfectly, but I did just as well as anybody else on their first try!

Daddy's first "tea party"

I was playing with Daddy with some Play-doh today when I asked him to make me a hamburger out of it.  When he did, I said I was going to go eat it at the table, so I went over to my little table and sat down.  I invited him over and then got two plates so we could have a little snack.  Daddy then even made my one big hamburger into two little hamburgers so we could share!  We had a fun time laughing and pretending to eat our hamburgers, but I had to keep reminding him to not REALLY eat it in case he forgot and took a real bite!  Mommy even joined us after a little bit.  It was a great time!

Indoor playground

Mommy and Daddy liked that I took a nap yesterday, even if it wasn't very long.  So they plotted to wear me out again today.  And they sure did!  Since I woke up at about 6:30 this morning, they didn't think it would take much.  And it didn't - I fell asleep on the drive to our local Mexican restaurant for lunch (it's only about 5 minutes away).  But I woke up and we ate lunch.  Then we stopped by the local McDonald's with a big playground and I played, played, played (Mommy did buy a dessert there).  The whole thing looked kind of like a big hamster cage, with big plastic tubes to crawl through, and slides and giant stairs to climb.  I had to climb up super high, and did it over and over again.  I went down one of the slides at first, but then decided it was too scary.  I was so worn out at the end that I laid down on one of the "stairs" and Daddy had to climb a little into the playground to come get me.  But even though I was tired, I didn't want to leave!  I fussed and fussed.  But once we got home, guess what?

I slept for a good hour and a half!  Pitch and Little Girl decided they needed naps too.  Cozy!

Omniplex

Today Mommy and Daddy had a BIG surprise for me.  They told me we were going to go back to the Omniplex (Science Museum Oklahoma)!  I loved this place when we were there earlier this year, and I couldn't wait to go back!  I've even suggested it a few times since then.  But today we finally went back, and we even got to see some parts of it that we missed last time.

I did a little bit of building with some blocks.  I like to build towers.  Super-tall towers!

I also like to pretend that just about everything is a camera.  I'll say "say cheese!" to Mommy and Daddy.  I thnk it's great fun!

They also had a little play area with water and boats and some other things.  Since it's winter and about 25 degrees outside, I haven't had any "water play" in quite a while.  So this was lots of fun.

I even got to ride a Segway!  I was too scared at first, but Mommy went ahead and did it so I'd feel braver.  At the end of the "tour" I didn't want to get off.  Daddy rode it too, and of course was fascinated by the technology of it.

I got to fly an airplane too!  It's actually a "Link" instrument trainer that they used to use to train pilots to fly on instruments only. 

I was having so much fun and there was so much more to do that I didn't want to leave!  But once Mommy and Daddy got me in the car, I propped my stuffed polar bear up on my shoulder and fell asleep.  I was asleep before we got out of the parking lot!

Daddy and Mommy said we can go back again really soon.  And they even bought annual passes so we can go lots more!