ABC's and other new tricks

"A, B, C, D, E, D, B...." Anna is now singing the alphabet song all day long. This is what we get for using that song to soothe her when she was really little; now it's her favorite. Every day she gains a couple new letters. Three days ago, it was just, "A, B, C, B, C, B, C", but now she's worked her way up to E. The funny thing is, aside from the singing just being too darn cute, she actually has a strong grasp of the music, too. You can tell she's singing along to the tune of the ABC song, she just doesn't know all the letters yet.

Kurt and I have also been blown away lately with how quickly she's learning to walk. She hasn't been in therapy for months, but all under her own steam, she's now practicing free-standing, without holding on to anything or pulling up on anything, and she's walking more and more steadily while still holding furniture or my hands. She still loves to scoot around, it's the fastest thing for her, but she's also now crawling, too, about a third of the time. The next few weeks will be very interesting as she takes her first steps by herself!

One strange new skill she's developed is a penchant for headstands. She'll stand up, then bend at the waist, putting her forehead on the ground. Upside down, she's just stay there, using her hands to play with a toy, balanced between her forehead and feet like a teepee. I'm not sure why she enjoys that position, but as soon as she does it when I've got a camera close at hand, I'll post photographic evidence.

Anna is also learning to talk in sentences, mostly comprehensibly. For instance, she'll say, "Where are you?" and then, "There he is!", but it doesn't matter if she's looking for a boy or a girl. She puts together words she knows seperately to make sentences herself, which is really cool. She is also picking up new words SO quickly, we only have to tell her once or twice, and next thing you know, she's using it all over the place as if she's always known it.

Really, all these new tricks are standard fare for toddlers growing up. I'm just constantly surprised and SUPER proud at each new step, skill and development. Go Anna!

Bye-bye, cats

We were very lucky to find a family for Dora and Finn this weekend, together. They left us on Friday for their new home, and their new owner has been kind enough to let me know that they are settling in just fine. I really, really miss them, but I know that they're better off where they can get more attention than we were giving them.

Anna, strangely enough, hasn't really seemed to notice that they're gone. She still says "meow" when she's playing with her cat doll, but other than that she hasn't had any reaction or tried to find them. She seems to be more into dogs right now, seeing "pup-pups" every where she goes.

So, everyone tip a toast back to Finn and Dora. Two beautiful cats who gave me seven lovely years and are now moving on to charm a whole new group of people. Bye-bye, cats, we miss you.

Cats

Anyone in the viewing public have a home for two cats? It's been a topic of discussion in the Schwartz family for three years or so now, what to do with the cats.

The sad truth is, though Anna adores them, the cats are just getting to be more and more in the way and they are definitely not getting the attention they deserve and crave. There's no point in denying, either, that they are not Kurt's favorite household accessory.

So, cousins? Aunts? Uncles? Friends? Anyone know anyone whose looking for two very sweet cats to join their family? They'd be perfect lap animals for someone. They love laps.

"No!"

Sorry it's been so long... we were in Italy! Heheeee... Our trip was wonderful, relaxing, beautiful and ideal, but we both missed Anna SO much. By about day 10, I was ready to come back and see my girl, but I struggled through by lounging on the beach all day and reading novels and eating gelato. Poor me, right? Oh, brave soul...

Anna did wonderfully with Mom and Terry. According to their reports, she was a sweet and happy child the whole time, slept well, ate well, and played in the back yard with rocks. Kurt and I just can't thank them enough, they literally made our honeymoon trip possible. We could have taken Anna with us, but it would have been a VERY different trip. Thanks again! We love you so much!

Another benefit of the trip was that Anna is no longer timid around her maternal family. She really got to spend time with them, and now is excited when we go over there! She knows the house well, she has a basic idea where the cat may be hiding, ("Sappho...? Saaaaappho!"), knows that they keep a box of tops in the corner for her, and loves her Terry and her Grem. Even though we missed her like crazycakes, it was worth it for her to finally make this connection.

So, returning to the headline, Anna has delivered her very first, "No!'. Of course, she was saying it to herself, but still, it was a momentous occasion, promising much usage in the future. It all came about Sunday, as she was scooting around playing with her truck in the living room. Kurt and I had both told her that, NO, she couldn't go upstairs to the playroom right now, we'd go a little later. She kept testing the water, though, scooting closer and closer to the short steps off the living room that lead to the playroom. Just as I was about to tell her, "NO", again, she said it to herself! She looked over at us, looked at the stairs, and said, "No!", and then turned back to her truck and left the stairs behind.

Then we had several, "No's" at dinner, but more sung than said. She's still playing with the word and has yet to use it defensively. Soon, though... so soon. :)