Since Mr. Checkers and I both work in education, September and October tend to be hectic months in the Checkers’ household.  Now with the holidays fast approaching, I am sure we will reach the year’s end before we know it!

In early October, we took Aliya to the pumpkin patch near our house where she ran up and down the rows of pumpkins before filling her hands with rocks to take home.  She clung onto this little pumpkin for some time, but in the end decided dirt clods and rocks were more worthwhile.

ADVERTISEMENT

A couple weeks later, we went with friends to a harvest festival at one of the local schools.  We dressed her up as a little owl; my main motivation for this costume was that I knew we would be trick-or-treating up in Seattle this year, and I wanted to be able to keep her warm in layers:

At the end of October, Toddler Checkers hit 28 months, and I thought it was about time for another update.

Mischievous much?

Personality & Behavior:  I must have birthed a ham; she began to smile around the seven-week mark, and has been smiling ever since.  She learned how to wink early on, and now she pulls her face in all directions, sings, and dances any time she hears music.  She will (attempt to) command the attention of an entire waiting room, say hello to all of the employees and shoppers at Target, and use her winning personality to get her out of trouble.  She is willful and determined, but is able to listen to reason a tad better than she was able to before.  She is extremely affectionate and tends to remember people’s names after meeting them.  I am surrounded by extroverts in my house.

We have noticed more and more that her meltdowns tend to be tied to 1) hunger and 2) tiredness.  I know other mommies have mentioned this before, and we have noticed that a late meal or nap/bedtime are usually the triggers for full-blown tantrums; luckily, we have not experienced too many of these (yet)!  She is the happiest when she is dry, fed, and rested, as most human beings are.

Daycare:  We recently transitioned Aliya to a new daycare facility.  It took her almost two months to adjust at her first daycare/preschool, and I was worried that she would take another two months for her to feel comfortable at the new center with the new teachers.  Luckily, she and her buddy Toddler Heels are in the same class, which has helped tremendously with the transition!

Play: When Toddler Checkers is at home, she will often pretend-play and imitate what she sees at home and at school.  She’ll often pretend to change her Pooh Bear’s diaper, put a blanket over him and pat and sing him to sleep, and she will pretend to drive and go to work.  The other day, she used the spoils from trick-or-treating and brought them to me saying, “Aliya’s making cupcakes!”  I also watched in amazement as she put on her sunglasses, threw her purse on, Pooh Bear in the stroller, and said, “Mommy, I’m going shopping!”

She loves to go the park, run, dance, swing, sing, and play.  One of the great things about where we live is there are many local neighborhood parks, and the climate in Southern California permits us to go almost every single day.  She is an active little girl, and loves to play.

Language:  I cannot remember when she started speaking in sentences, but she is trying very hard to communicate with words now and is babbling less.  Everything is still in the third person – “Aliya is hungry.  Aliya is happy!  Aliya is tired.”  And her favorite question to ask these days is, “Whatcha doin?”

Potty-Training:  We will be starting potty-training this weekend!  I have been dreading this since her birth, but I am hoping to be pleasantly surprised.  For now I just envision poop and urine all over my house.  I will share more on that later.

My growing girl!