dahlia is still really into jumping and saying her abc's randomly throughout the day. i will take her shopping at fred meyer or target or wherever and she will be shout/singing them throughout the store. everyone of course looks and smiles and says "how cute". this video is her latest attempt at it. she does say them all in order, but sometimes she leaves out the m or n and the r i think. at the end she only says, "now i know my abc's honk honk" and the honking part is becasue we have a little school bus with the alphabet song on it and at the end the bus honks.....anyways, it is prety adorable if you ask me (=

as for counting, she can do up to 10. then she rambles off some teens that i have never ever told her about, so i dont know where she got it. she knew one through ten a couple of months ago but couldnt say six or seven so she would just go back to three four five when it got to that part, but her speech is improving and she takes a stab at them now. i think this video gives you a little idea of her cute little personality. oh and at the end of the video she is naming all the characters on the back of one of her golden books, she says them all but it is kind of hard to understand, turn up the volume and enjoy the video (=

since we put dahlia in her big bed, she has been very excited about potty training. i dont know if it was because of that, but it seems like a big coincidence that that very day she totally got the whole potty thing. she has been going in her potty chair/ big toilet since that day. we have a gate at the bathroom door so evertime she has to go she says "mommy daddy i go pee! " so cute! except to poo. i dont know what the deal is with that. she tells us that she has to go but insists on a diaper. so we put one on her and then she runs around the corner for about 30 seconds... then "mommy mommy... poopie!"  (= then back into her elmo underwear. i will tell her "dont poop in your underwear ok" and then she replies " k mama, no pee elmo, no pee elmo" it is so cute. her little vocabulary is getting better but still rough. i love it though, makes things more cute.

well i do admit that i baked a batch of cookies that week she started to use the bathroom, and i would give her one every time she would go potty. they were the size of a quarter and made of whole wheat flour and honey with one chocolate chip per cookie, so it wasnt that exciting, but to her, they were gold! i had tried giving her treats before and she didnt care, but i really think it has something to do with the big girl bed.... she really gets excited about being a big girl. lately she doesnt ask for a cookie everytime she goes, she is just excited to go potty, we give her a lot of praise so that helps too. but we did run out of cookies a couple days ago and i have just been giving one apple cinnamon soy crisp if she remembers to ask for a cookie. she loves them too. they are definetely not as exciting, but if she thinks they are then that is fine with me.

speaking of the big bed, she is so funny! things change around here often, but basically we leave her in her room after books and such and a few minutes later she peeks out of her door and says "mommy daddy mommy daddy" in this adorable tiny voice. we try to keep from laughing. so when i come down the hall she runs and jumps into her bed giggling. i tuck her in and tell her not to get out again. of course a few minutes later she is back at her door, just opens it a crack and says "mommy daddy mommy daddy" and then runs away. oh it is so cute! so we have threatened her with the crib, and actually put her in it one night. i think she was tired of the crib because she was so confined, but now she can do whatever she wants to. she has definitely hit that supposedly "terrible two stage" well i dont know what it is, but she is different lately and is so strong willed and doesnt care if you punish her, she keeps doing whatever it is she is doing. and she has been really clingy to me lately. whenever she gets hurt or upset or whatever, " mama mama mama" and snuggles me for a long time. such an emotional girl! but i do admit i really love her needing me. it used to be "no mama no mama" when i would come in her room during the day while her and valen were playing, now it is " mommy pay mommy pay toy" all day long!