Updates & Happy Holidays 2012

a little blurry, but I love these boots & this vest

part of our weekend routine involves big breakfast on saturday: helping mommy make vegan banana pancakes (taste-checking is necessary)

watching the game with her uncle

cheesing after a fresh bath

weekend lounging: playing in her toy box

holiday photo...for the announcements I needed to send out yesterday

Hi everyone, it's been a while. Life is so interesting, it has its peaks and valleys, its lulls and highs, its busy and quiet moments. This year has been filled with momentum, surprises, and changes...more on these things later, as some things are still materializing. To all of you - I wish you happy holidays, may the season bring you peace, joy and love. I am so incredibly thankful for the good friends and family in my life, I hope to share my sentiments with them this season.

I have quite a few updates, and pictures, so I'm going to split this update post with one post focused on Naja, and another focused on me, so to speak. I will begin with the little lady first, who is now 17 months old - where does the time go?

Naja is able to run now, and her break-off speed is quite impressive - she continues to keep me busy. Naja is also talking more now, and is very friendly to strangers. She said a sentence last Saturday morning while we were playing with her Brobee stuffed animal. In a high-pitched voiced she said, "Hi Brobee," I was so proud! But didn't freak out with excitement because that sometimes upsets her - my extremely loud moments upset her when they happen by surprise, lol. Every week she's talking more and more. She says some words very clearly, and others that those close to her understand. She recently started this new thing where her talking is something like baby blibber blabber, and I really don't know what she's saying.

Definition
Baby Blibber Blabber: a series of noises with varied voice inflection followed by a pause that assuredly garners a response.

I'm confident that she thinks I understand her, and I'm sure I'll understand her soon enough, we'll just keep trying and chugging away with the baby talk for now.

Naja is also approaching the age of defiance. She has temper tantrums around those she knows well (I.e. my mom and me). Just in case you guys want a few examples: she has thrown items on the floor, bit my mom, and head-butted both of us to name a few. She knows exactly what she's doing, because these reactions only come after she doesn't get her way. She's stubborn, feisty  and quite a drama queen.  Those who know me well that are reading may be thinking, "...that's what you get," but I can promise you, I was nothing compared to Naja.

She's been getting a lot of timeouts, stern looks, and firm reprimands, and I don't know if it's "working." I'm finding it difficult to figure out the right way to discipline Naja since I'm not a fan of spankings. Everyone has different parenting styles, and each child is different. I'm just trying this out to see how things go -- I surely don't want a snobby-bratty child. For now, I'm praying for patience while I discipline her, consistency, grace and fairness.

Recent things Naja's been loving: a ride on shopper I got her, clementines, her princess snow boots, Princess Tiana, dinosaurs, and my pots & pans

Ok, that's little miss thing. Updates from me are next...

On Naja: one & three: top - h&m; vest - nordstrom; jeggings - target; boots - baby zara | two & five: onesie -  children's place | six: top - target; sweater - h&m