Stats and dragons

Anja smiled for this picture, but then had to check to make sure that she was really smiling:

Maija had her four-month checkup and vaccinations. She is doing great, and is at 95th percentile for height and 42nd percentile for weight - tall and thin just like her sister. She still eats ALL the time, giving me little more than 1.5 to 2 hours between feedings during the day.

Her daytime naps have been intermittent lately, and even nighttime sleeping lately hasn't been as great. She goes to bed pretty reliably at 9pm, but then sleeps anywhere from 3 to 8 hours before needing to eat again. Often she eats for hours, drifting off then waking up to eat again and refusing to be put back in her crib. Then sometime around 5am she usually starts making funny cooing noises and blowing bubbles, which is incredibly cute but also means that my night of sleep is done.

We've been pretty tired around here lately. Anja was sick last week, fighting a fever for several days. Then Maija had her vaccinations which made her sad for a couple of days too. Now Jay is sick with what Anja had. And we're also getting the first rains of the season, so it's been dreary - we just had four inches over the weekend!

Anja is good at making Maija laugh. And she loves to hold her hand. Before bedtime she makes sure to give Maija a hug and a kiss. Although tonight she also said goodnight to the crickets, and I don't think she loves them.

Anja's Halloween costume is finished. This is the first year she's into it, so it's been really fun putting it together. Maija unfortunately will be wearing Anja's old flower costume, but I don't think she will mind. Anja remembers about trick or treating from last year and keeps talking about how she will say "trick or treat" and people will give her candy!!!

Potty training is finally moving forward again, from the apparent stalemate we had been in for several months (consisting of Anja wearing underwear all the time, but with many minor accidents every day). Now Anja goes entirely by herself sometimes, including getting up and down off the stool, which is really helpful. Although sometimes she comes out of the bathroom with no pants or underwear on afterward.

Our special weekend movie this week was How to Train Your Dragon, which was a pretty good movie for Anja. There are only a handful of kids movies that are well made and interesting for adults, but also not too scary for little kids. So now she pretends to be a dragon in addition to a dinosaur. Dinosaurs are still her main focus right now, though. And she can name them: "Mommy, this is a brachiosaurus, not a brontosaurus, a BRACHiosaurus!" She also knows ankylosaurus, t-rex, iguanodon and spinosaurus and I'm sure some others that she could tell you about.

Conversations:

Me: Anja, I'm really proud of what a great big sister you are. You must really like being a big sister.

Anja: I pooped in my underwear once.

Me: Oh, well that's okay. Anyway, you are really helpful taking care of Maija and getting her toys, and making her smile.

Anja: Look, a cupcake! (shows me her apple piece where she inserted the apple stem like a candle)

Anja : (while looking at a picture on the computer of a friend's new baby who is wearing one sock) But who is that guy?!!

Me: That's Jasper.

Anja: He's like our baby. Except he has a sock there. And no sock there!

Me: So he's not like our baby?

Anja: No. But where is his sock? Is it lost?

Anja: Who is that guy?

Me: That's Jasper. That is Toby's brother. When you have a baby in the house who is a boy, that's your brother, and if the baby is a girl, that's your sister.

Anja: Where's MY brother?

Me: You have to put some pants on to go play in the sandbox.

Anja: Aw, man!

Me: Okay, fine, go outside in your underwear. (Anja runs out the door)

Anja: This raspberry has something on it!

Me: Those are little hairs, they are part of the raspberry.

Anja: It has little hairs? Like me! I have little hairs!

Jay: Up in the air, it's Super Maija!

Anja: Maija is a Super Drooler!