Some Recent Events

For those of you missing pictures of Tralee (Mom and Grandma) here are a few taken recently. I have a budding artist on my hands, Tralee's really been into coloring. I have a little craft table set up in her room, and whenever she wants to color, she climbs up into the chair, grabs the box of crayons, and waits patiently for me to set up some paper for her to color on. She usually colors so vigorously that if I don't tape the paper down she scribbles it right off the table. We also have a huge cardboard box that we bring out for Tralee to climb around in and color on. She loves it when I bring it out, and can color on it for quite some time. We dealt with coloring on walls and the carpet for a while, but I think she finally understands that she's only allowed to color on paper or in her coloring books, or serious consequences will follow.

Tralee has also discovered the letter "A." Whenever she sees an A she'll point it out and say, "A! A! A!" When we go for car rides she looks out the window at all the letters around her and all I hear coming from the backseat is, "A! A! A!" She also knows that T makes a "Tuh tuh" sound and every once in a while she'll point out a T and make the sound. It's the same for S, if she see's an S she'll say "Sssss." Usually Jim and I have to start her off on T's and S's, but she does A's all by herself! Tralee also "reads" to herself from her books. She points to all the words on the page and babbles the story to herself. Jim and I watch her do this in amazement. We sure don't understand what she's saying, but Tralee sure does.

Jim said that when I left to get something out of the car yesterday Tralee waved at the door I went out of and said, "Bye. Mom. Bye." He's sure of it, but we haven't been able to get her to repeat this. I think I've walked out the door a hundred times waving like a crazy person saying "Bye Tralee. Bye Bye!" Nothing. Oh well, hopefully she'll say it again.

Tralee has been going to bed so good! Usually Jim will put her down, because she sometimes fusses with me. We get Tralee ready for bed, say a family prayer (Tralee's been doing so much better folding her arms and being reverent for most of the prayer), then Jim will take her up to bed, read her a story, sing her a song, say a personal prayer for Tralee, lay her down, give her kisses, give her a stuffy to snuggle, say "Night night," turn out the light, and she's down for the count!! I sneaked into her room the other night and took this picture of her. What a gorgeous little angel! Tralee has a cold right now, so Jim thought he should make her sleep a little upright. He put one of her baby quilts in her crib before he put her down for the night. What a smart daddy!