These days Alexa is curios abot EVERYTHING! This means she will go to great measres to find out what she can about everything and anything. She's quite a dare devil! This week I found her here...

We continue to keep busy with lots of toys and the ocassional art project. We bought these plaster fish figurines several months ago. I found them in the closet and decided that it would make a great Sunday afternoon activity. Alexa had a terrific time coloring them all. I worked primarilly on one, the octopus.

Eva came over to visit one afternoon after school! It's so much fun to listen to them play. Today they spent some time playing hide n' seek. Alexa rode around on her bike yelling, "Eba, where are you?" while Eva found some really good hiding spots, including my shower!

On Thanksgiving morning, Alexa watched some of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade on tv before playing for the better part of the day. We made a small turkey and some potatoes and veggies for just the three of us.

The day after Thanksgiving, we went to Church Street to watch the Santa parade. There were reindeer as well, and a lot of kids eager to get their first glimpse of Santa. Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer and even our local weatherman, Tom Messner were on hand for the festivities. We didn't do much shopping on this Black Friday, bt it was fn to be out and about for a bit in the crowds! The weather was miserable so we did not stick around for the tree lighting that evening.

Lately, Alexa enjoys being a "puppy." She and Minna made a leash last week and Alexa was thrilled to be taken for a walk and receive a treat when she was a "good boy!" Her puppy name is Grommet! Here she is "sitting like a good boy" waiting patiently for her treat!

On Monday afternoon, we picked up Jailee from daycare while her mom went to some doctor appointments. The girls played with playdoh for a while. Alexa said she was making a tree and Jailee told me she was making a tree house! It's so fun to watch them play together! Unfortunately, as the playdate wore on, Alexa was slightly less happy to share her belongings. Perhaps she was tired, but nonethe less, she responded, "Yes" when I asked her if she needed a time out. Not an easy thing to do, but sometimes it's necessary.

So about 3 weeks ago, the potty training thing just seemed to kick into high gear. Alexa really gets it now and we make several trips to the potty each day. As a mom, this gets exhausting, but without a doubt, this is a major milestone to be celebrated. Alexa really is becoming an independent little girl and I am there to cheer her on with each trip to the potty! On some days she even takes the initiative to pull her step stool to the toilet and climb up onto it all by herself. She knows the routine, pee pee, wipe and wash hands...all culminating with the ever coveted "treat." Yes, the reinforcement part seemed to be the hardest thing. Stickers and high fives only went so far. Then it was an M & M, or M's M's, as Alexa calls them. Then it was, "I want hollipop." All that sugar does not do a toddler well. This week Minna bought Alexa a really cute, Fur Real duck (an electronic duck that quacks and drinks from a bottle). This followed a trip to the potty in a department store. Last week, while traveling to CT, Alexa used the potty at Applebee's and upon exiting the bathroom, she announced to one of the wait staff, "I went pee pee on the potty." She is really proud and others are proud of her as well! Today, Alexa wore her first pair of big girl underpants. She picked them out herelf...Dora! She was so pleased when we put them on...

In addition to the time we spend in the bathroom, we have been busy in other parts of the house as well! I had a major painting project to complete this week. Always the helper, Alexa was quick to grab a roller and get her hands dirty. I was willing to take all the help I could get and as it turned out, Alexa was the only volunteer! She did a great job, but found it less fun then she must have thought it would be because after a few rolls, she was eager to get back to her Thomas train movie!

We also managed to have some fun this week, including a favorite activity...riding the bike in the house! Now that the painting is done and the house is clean and ready to be shown, Alexa and I can concentrate on finding activities outside of the house and getting back to what's really important!