pumpkin carving and independence

We carved pumpkins on Tuesday. Adia was really excited to have her pumpkin indoors, but wasn't so sure about my sanity when I cut the top off. She just looked inside it and at me, trying to figure out what was going on. We showed her how we had to scoop the guts out, but after touching the inside, she was having none of it. She does NOT like to get dirty, especially when it's gooey too. Eventually she enjoyed using a spoon and scraper. She really liked helping us cut the faces and was overjoyed with the finished product.












Adia couldn't get enough of the finished pumpkins and was even more enthralled when we put candles inside them. She just stared and stared. One big problem though, she kept trying to pick her little pumpkin up while it was lit! We eventually convinced her it was hot so she left it alone, but every time we go on the porch, she points at each pumpkin and says who they belong to. Then she tries lifting the tops.


Earlier in the day we tried to take her outside for some Halloween pictures. She was having none of it. She wouldn't hold still and kept running off. She also didn't want to wear either costume, alligator or pumpkin. She was a real pill.






This independent thing is tough. She fights every little thing we try to do, even when it's stuff she wants to do. She fights naps and bedtime, getting in and out of her car seat, stroller or cart, what she's eating, where we're going. It's insane! It doesn't help that she's definitely too smart for her own good. She keeps trying to bolt at the play area because she wants to go see puppies and kitties and possibly pick up an Orange Julius on her own. Part of me doesn't even want to take her back. She can also be incredibly sweet, giving tons of hugs and kisses and you can honestly tell she loves you. I know she's just learning to be her own person, but it would be nice if she just listened every once in awhile.

Adia didn't want DiDi out of her sight on Sunday. I think she knew DiDi would have to leave her soon. We went to the mall and Adia played in the play area for a bit. Then we wandered. We looked for long sleeved shirts at Children's Place and actually found some. DiDi bought her 2 long sleeved shirts and a puffy vest. We checked out the pet store too. While looking for more shirts for Adia, we looked in JC Penny too. We had absolutely no luck there. We left and got back in the car. Adia wasn't happy to be back in the car, but was happy when we arrived at Borders. She was so excited to be there since she knew she'd get a book. She picked out her book and DiDi bought me a couple birthday presents. We planned on hitting up Old Navy, but Adia had a freak out outside the doors because she was hungry. We ate lunch at Chapala's instead. I swear it's DiDi and my favorite restaurant in town. I love it. Adia's a fan too. She ate all the chicken out of her quesadilla. We took some pictures with all the autumn decorations they had up too. Adia was thrilled to see so many pumpkins.


Adia headed right for Coldstone. She did it before we had lunch too and we promised we'd come back and have some. One problem, when we came back, it was packed and the line wasn't moving at all. Adia threw a tantrum when we left, even though we promised her we were headed somewhere else for ice cream. When we walked into Ben and Jerry's, Adia's whole mood changed. She wanted to look at all the flavors. Then she wanted a spoon. Adia enjoyed the mint chip she shared with me, but also was a fan of DiDi's coffee ice cream. Adia fell asleep on the way home and DiDi left while Adia was still sleeping.

When Adia woke up, she cried for DiDi. She started asking for her. That went from "DiDi?" to "DiDi soon." I felt so bad for her, but once we got some food into her, she was in a better mood. She went to bed late last night, but we had lots of fun and giggles before then.

She woke me up with tons of kisses this morning. It was great. We had a pretty lazy morning and Adia took a bath after my shower. Then we woke up Daddy and headed to Red Robin for lunch. Adia was hyper and asserting her independence. She didn't eat much of her meal, but she enjoyed sharing my birthday sundae, especially the cherry on top. We then went to the mall and let her play, until she decided she wanted to explore and took off. We rode the ice cream truck and the escalator and then she played with some kitties. She actually got clawed a few times, but went back for more. She threw another tantrum as we tried to leave. I ended up having to carry her out.

She didn't fall asleep in the car and wouldn't take a nap. She was a cranky girl until she finally fell asleep around 7. I hope she sleeps well and a little later than normal.

Technicolored Toddler

Adia played with markers for the first time yesterday. As you can guess, it wasn't one of my better decisions. She loved every minute of it, but I wasn't so happy with the mess. She had marker everywhere. On the table, on her hands, in her hair, on her forehead. She looked tie dyed. After she tried to eat them for the second time, I told her marker time was over. She was mad until she looked at her hands. She had a scrub off on the sink and I still couldn't get all the color off her hands. She wasn't happy about that. She doesn't like to be "dirty." I then had to scrub the table and her chair. At least they really are washable and it didn't take much to clean up.






Adia was getting antsy so we went outside. We bought her big pink ball with us, but once we were outside, she didn't want it. She was more interested in collecting rocks. She got excited when she heard a plane fly overhead. I discovered she can now say "Plane!" She went on the swings for awhile and she watched and played with a couple other kids. The took her ball and she got upset. She was okay with it at first, but when she wanted it back she came to me. She said, "Mommy, up. Ball?" The kids' mom got Adia's ball back, but then Adia didn't want it. I guess she thought it was getting too far away.






She never napped yesterday and she also didn't nap today. It's so frustrating, but it's obvious that she needs it, I just can't get her to sleep. Some days I just don't feel up to fighting with her either. Daddy took her to work out some of my birthday stuff so I got some time to myself. They looked for gluten free ice cream cakes and hit up the bookstore and Blockbuster. Adia got a new book, which she read on the way home. She ended up falling asleep and woke up when DiDi tried to lay her down. She wasn't happy that it wasn't Mommy, but after orienting herself again, she became all about DiDi. DiDi went to take out the recycling and Adia screamed, tears rolling down her face at the door. I've never seen her so happy when DiDi came back.

We had dinner, which was one of Adia's favorites, breakfast dinner. Adia devoured her turkey ham and toast and only ate a little bit of her eggs. I did want to play afterwards though. I gave her a bowl and spatula. She put the spatula in the bowl and started stirring. She said, "I make cake." Then she licked the spatula and said, "I like it!" She then put the bowl on her head. When she saw me taking pics, she decided she wanted to take some too. She took a few pics of DiDi and then some of me. We'll definitely have to get her a camera when she's older.




Adia didn't want a bath tonight, but that's fine with me. She took one this morning. Now she's in her pjs and watching Indiana Jones with us. We watched Tarzan earlier and she's a fan of the gorillas. She seems to like Indiana Jones quite a bit too.