Toddler’s first time on the dance floor

23 months and 1 week old highlights: 

• Aug. 31, 2022:  Her week started off with bb discovering the wonders of toilet paper and the toilet. 🤦‍♀️ Bb discovered that she could rip apart toilet paper, smush them into little pieces, and then throw them one by one into the toilet.  Of course, I told her to stop but naturally she didn’t listen and continued to do it.  I just let her… and flushed the toilet periodically to make sure that we didn’t get a clog.  Thankfully she didn’t know how to flush the toilet just yet because I didn’t want her to waste water by continually flushing the toilet either.  At least a little bit of toilet paper waste (although not ideal) is not terribly wasteful or harmful.  I had to wait until DH got home from work (and he was close to coming home anyway) in order for him to get her away from the toilet.
• Bb continued to do this a few times throughout the week too… It’s a new activity for her.  I’m just glad she rips the toilet paper small enough that there’s not big pieces clogging the toilet. 🤷‍♀️
• She continues to wake up early in the morning (6:30 or 7 a.m.) when the sun rises.  We took advantage of that the day we were to attend a wedding at 3:30 p.m.  We let her wake up early, DH took her to the park to play.  She was so tired that she actually passed out in the stroller again on the way back.  DH successfully carried her up the stairs to her bedroom where she slept.  This meant she had a second nap earlier in the day.
• We were also able to get her into a dress finally!  Yay!  Since there’s been no work for me lately (summer lulls and the lawyers are vacationing), I’ve been playing with her more and giving her undivided attention.  She hasn’t been refusing many things anymore.  So glad since I did want her to dress up a bit for my friend’s wedding. ^_^
• Bb behaved as well as could be for a 23-month-old.  The ceremony didn’t start on time so we actually were in our seats for 15 minutes before it began.  Bb was quiet and sat in DH’s lap quietly while watching those around her.  It’s great that she’s so interested in people and can stay seated.  When the ceremony did start, bb did start to become restless.  We told her that we had to be quiet as the ceremony was starting and she thankfully behaved.
• Bb did pretty well for the rest of the night too.  She was actually the one who led us upstairs to the reception part of the night.  We didn’t even know the dining room was upstairs (before the MC announced it) since bb found out for us first.
• Bb had her own kid’s meal (steamed vegetables for the salad appetizer and then fried chicken fingers and fries for the entree and vanilla ice cream for her dessert).  So glad that my friend was so incredibly thoughtful to prepare a personalized kit for her with her favourite snacks and stickers and crayons to play with too.  Bb did get restless towards the end of the night since we were all sitting there (she gets restless at home halfway through dinner time anyway) and DH had to carry her around the venue.  At two points of the night, bb was actually writhing on the floor and on the stairs.  But again, there was nothing we could do about it.  For anyone who doesn’t have kids, you have to have some compassion and understand how incredibly hard it is for a young toddler whose brain is still developing to know how to sit still for more than three hours.  They’re made to move and don’t know how to follow instructions. (Ranting a bit because we had wandered to the elevator/dish offloading zone of the kitchen because bb wanted to walk around and one of the staff sternly said to me “Sorry, you can’t be here”.)  We weren’t really in anybody’s way and what if we had to take the elevator?
• Having a toddler who clings to you and wants to walk around with you means that you miss out on a lot of the wedding festivities.  By that, I mean I wasn’t able to fully pay attention to the bridal party speeches or the bride and groom speeches.  I love weddings and love those personal parts, but it is what it is.  We were in and out of our seats often too (mostly DH because bb was clinging to him).  Glad he eats quickly and was able to eat his dinner when he was back at the table for a few minutes.
• Bb tried the Goldfish snack for the first time at the wedding (since it was inside her personalized snack back).  She liked it and ate quite a few.
• We stayed until the end of the night at 10 p.m. (to enjoy the late night desserts and pastries and wedding cake and bubble tea station) before we headed home.  Bb was so tired and it was well beyond her bedtime.  (She usually is in her room by 10 p.m. and winding down to sleep.)
• We had to drive a friend home as well and when bb realized that there was someone else sitting beside her, she started wailing and crying and wanting DH to pick her up.  Luckily, the car ride was only 9 minutes long.  We actually didn’t know what she was crying about until my friend left the car.  The moment my friend left the car, bb stopped crying and immediately passed out asleep.
• We had to again just put her in her room to sleep without changing her diaper or out of her clothes (and without a bath that night).  She was so exhausted.  When she woke up the next day, DH gave her a proper bath.  So glad that the night went as well as could be.
• We took bb on another trip to the mall where I wanted to find a better outfit to wear for an upcoming wedding.  Bb was well-behaved during the mall trip.  Afterwards, we went to the grocery store where she was so ecstatic and happy to be sitting in the grocery cart.  She just loves it.
• We were supposed to go to Centre Island on Tuesday, but it was pouring rain the whole day so we changed plans and went to the Science Centre for the second time.  We had actually been there with bb in June.  We had already packed a lunch though and the Science Centre was the next best option since it was indoors, DH already took the day off, and there wasn’t anywhere else to go to that was rain-friendly.
• We spent a little time in the Kidspark section and bb liked playing in the pretend garden and grocery store again.  There were SO many more kids there this time because it’s the last week of summer and it was a rainy day too.  The maintenance going on at the SC currently was a bit of a hassle since we had to use a shuttle bus to get to the main section of the SC.  (If you are planning to go to the SC this year, make sure to schedule in extra time!)
• There are a few “rude” children who just take things away from other kids without asking.  There was a little boy to came up to bb and just swiped away the large pitchfork and spoon that bb was holding.  I stopped him and asked him “Did you ask her if you could take that?” He immediately asked “Could I take it?” Of course, bb doesn’t know what he said in English but I gave her the translation and a few seconds to decide.  I’m too nice of a parent too and responded “Okay, you can have it” (because he actually did ask), but I could have said, “No, she’s still playing with it.”
• Another instance was when bb was picking up the plush vegetables and putting them into the wheelbarrow.  An older boy came by and took the wheelbarrow away from her.  The boy’s dad saw this and actually scolded his son, “Look, you took away the wheelbarrow from the little girl and now she doesn’t have anything to play with.” Poor bb actually paralyzed on the spot and stood near the wall without doing anything for a while.  Bb doesn’t know how to retaliate or fight back for her age.  She is also still “shy” in public know how to express herself.  I watched as the other boy listened to his dad, not looking at him, but seeming to understand what had happened and what he had done.  Thank goodness in this case that at least the parent was there watching and was able to teach his son about sharing and manners.  The previous boy who took the pitchfork didn’t even have a parent nearby to watch.
• A third instance when was we were about to leave the Kidspark area and bb’s shopping cart got swiped again by another boy (I think it was the same boy from the first instance).  Bb looked bewildered and later she repeated a few times that her cart was stolen away by another boy.  She certainly knows what’s going on and unfortunately we couldn’t do much about it in that case.  The boy was too fast and who am I to steal back the cart when I also understand that the boy doesn’t know any better (and there was no parent nearby to teach their own son about manners).
• After lunch, the Kidspark was actually at capacity so we explored the other exhibits of the SC.  Bb enjoyed the hands-on activities in the innovation section.  She liked turning the eyes, nose, and mouth parts of the face to see different expressions and would exhibit signs of “surprise”, “sadness”, and “happiness”.
• We actually spent from noon until 4:30 p.m. there this time.  Bb didn’t pass out in the stroller like last time before we got to the door.  However, once we did get in the car, she passed out without even the car starting.  She usually passes out once the car is moving but she was tired enough that she passed out in the car seat.
• When we go out to eat these days, we don’t bother bringing in her booster seat anymore.  She’s refused it enough times now that we know she doesn’t want to sit in it.  She just sits in the adult chair or on our laps or we tried to ask the restaurant for a booster and she actually sits in that.  I guess the booster chair at the restaurant is new to her so she’s willing to sit in it.
• It’s a rare scene at home these days for her to sit in her high chair or even the high booster seat.
•  Bb has been reading less this week.  I think it’s due to me pushing back on her reading requests a few weeks ago and now bb doesn’t ask to read as much anymore.  I pushed back on her when I was still eating at the dinner table and bb would bring a book to me to read.  But I had to tell her that I was finishing up dinner first before I could read to her.  But I’m not worried.  I’m slowly going to bring her back to enjoy reading just as much as before again gradually.  I’m not saying that she doesn’t like reading anymore.  But she has more other things she likes to do and play with too.
• We do a countdown from 20 with her when she’s in her bath tub to get her to prep for getting out of the water.  This past week, she’s been willing to get out of the tub herself and doesn’t even need to wait until the “one” to get out.  She also likes saying “one” with me when I count down to it.
• She willingly goes upstairs to take her bath and knows it’s bathtime too.  I love that.
• She has been enjoying sitting in my lap at the dinner table or while on the floor.  She fits so snuggly against me and I always use it as an excuse to hug her.  When I ask for a hug outright though, she almost always rejects me lol.
• She continues to develop in her speech and be able to talk back to us sensibly.  She is still a parrot sometimes.
• She continues to play with her musical teapot toy this week.  She even brought it out on a few of our stroller strolls.  It’s getting dark earlier now.  The sun used to set at 9 p.m., then 8:30, and now by 8 p.m., it’s dark.  We have to make sure we finish dinner earlier so we can get out by 7:30 to get a good walk in.
• When bb cries at night, she sometimes cries for grandma and likes to go in her room to sleep in her bed.  This is not feasible though and a bad habit to form.
• Bb has said a few times that she “lie liu” (peed in her pants) and I think it’s when her diaper is really full.  It’s a sign that she’s more aware of her body and when she has to go.  Hopefully we can potty train her soon.  However, I’m not pushing it and I’ll do it when she shows more signs that she’s ready.
• She has repeated a few things that the teapot toy says in English.  It’s not perfect but she’s learning and it’s just so cute when she does it.  I still don’t take enough videos of her to capture these moments.
• She can get up and down on the chairs and learning tower easily now.  She can even go up and down the stairs to the main floor to the second floor and back and then to the basement too.  Oh, and she learned how to open the door as of two weeks ago!  She can turn the doorknob.
• When her cousin visited earlier this week, she was more comfortable with him around and actually able to eat with everybody at the table for lunch.  Without her cousin there, she tends to cling to one parent and not want to interact with her paternal grandparents at all. 🤷‍♀️
• She loves being independent and fetching things on her own.  When wanting to eat yogurt, she goes to the fridge by herself and I think actually succeeded in opening the fridge door by herself too.
• She also likes to eat on the couch these days with me.  That’s where I usually snack on apples or pears or yogurts and she likes to sit there too.
• She likes running through the hallway quickly.  She also likes pushing the training potty or plastic chairs throughout the hallway too.
• She likes to ask the stuffed monster toy to play the magnetic tiles with her.  She always asks to make a big box with the magnetic tiles.
• She has a tendency to like playing with water by dumping it from container to container.  Same thing with food.  She likes to put blueberries and transfer them from one container to another.
• She doesn’t like drinking water from her purple straw cup anymore.  She prefers using a big cup and holding it with both hands.
• We have a new-ish plastic plate for her to eat with.  It’s easier for her to see her food than the plastic bowls.
• She’s taken hostage of grandma’s lavender pillow and “tube pillow” too and has claimed it as her own lol.
• We have to wean her off of her bottle soon… but how?
• When I ask her to recite her name these days, she likes to play and say somebody else’s name like her grandfather’s instead.  She knows what her name is but I guess she’s tired of just saying the correct answer and wants to respond with something different to see my reaction.
• When we ask her to wave to someone, her immediate thing to do these days is to put her hands behind her back and say “sou my jet shou” (hide my hands).  She doesn’t want to wave on command to a stranger so she’ll hide her hands on purpose lol.  Who does this?! 😂😂
• She’s not a big fan of eating rice during every meal.  I wondered if this was because I barely ate rice with her during my pregnancy because I had GD.  She is more of a meat and bread eater with a few select vegetables.  She loves blueberries though.
• She will also eat whatever the adult is eating.  So whenever I am eating a snack, I have to be prepared to share it with her once she sees it.  Sometimes, I purposely eat on the couch where I am out of sight so that she doesn’t see what I’m eating so I don’t have to share lol.  No wonder other parents do this too.  Now I get it!  Some days, you just don’t want to share whatever it is you’re eating with the toddler lol.
• Been meaning to include this in the weekly blogs but haven’t remembered to do it.  We actually barely “baby-proofed” our house.  We don’t have any gates to our stairs.  We don’t have corner protectors.  We do have a few outlet protectors, but it’s not like bb plays with the outlets (okay, maybe once).  This child so far as been quite obedient and not a troublemaker (knock on wood) and so we don’t have to worry so much about her hitting or bumping into obvious things.  I think things will change once we have the second child and seeing what their temperament will be like.  Maybe girls are just more obedient and less risk-prone?  We also don’t have any of our drawers or cupboards locked.  I know other parents with toddlers most likely have those child-proof things in their house.  We haven’t needed them yet.