Tag Archives: Catie

99% Big Girl

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Announcement time:
Catie has worn big-girl underpants to daycare every day for the past two weeks. And a direct quote from the source: “I keep my panties dry ALL DAY! And NO acci-nents!!”

Catie in her "two ponytails" (don't call them pigtails to her)
She is quite pleased with herself.

However, when she wants to poop, she goes into the bathroom cabinet, retrieves a Pull-Up, and demands to put it on so she can poop in it. Rather than, you know, just using the damn toilet like a normal person.

I haven’t figured out how I’m going to tackle that one. I’m tempted to wait until I know she’s about to poop, then plop her on the toilet and tell her that she can get up after she’s done. But I know how stubborn she is, and I also know how prone to constipation she is, and I’m kind of scared to force the issue. She’ll figure it out eventually, right? RIGHT?!?!! (Her daycare teacher keeps reassuring me that she will. I’m hoping that’s the truth.)

And for the record, yes I’ve offered bribes. I’ve told her that we’ll have cupcakes when she poops on the potty. I’ll buy her a train table for all of her Thomas trains if she poops on the potty. I’ll do anything. Still no dice.

I’ve also tried telling her that only babies poop in diapers and Pull-Ups, and all the big girls use the potty. She keeps saying she’s a big girl, and I’m all, “Yeah, you will be as soon as you learn to poop in the potty! That’s the only thing left that keeps you from being a big girl!”

I got nothin’.

P.S. A toddler fashion tip:
Besides big-girl panties (which, you know, are all the rage right now), Catie would also like you to know that:
1. “Two ponytails” (NOT pigtails) are the best way to keep your hair out of your face when you’re playing at daycare, and
2. When it’s chilly outside in the morning, throw on your favorite old-lady cardigan, button it up incorrectly, and off you go.

Casual pose on her way to daycare
It’s fashion, darling.

A weekend in Charlotte

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Since both of my siblings now live in Charlotte, which is a mere 150 miles away, this past weekend Catie and I decided to pack a bag and make a mini-road trip to visit them. Catie’s pretty easy to travel with, and we thought it would be fun to check out Charlotte for the first time. I mean, I’ve been to the airport a few times, and I’ve driven through Charlotte, but I’ve never really checked out the city before.

Since my sister Tracy just moved from NYC (she lived in Manhattan, and yes I’m still slightly bitter that she moved in April instead of August, because I could’ve totally had a free place to stay for BlogHer!), she thought it might help her transition to life in the South if she moved downtown, instead of out in the suburbs. I think that makes sense, and it helps that Charlotte has one of the prettiest downtown areas I’ve ever seen (with exceptions for Seattle and Portland). She found this really cool building that had been a department store in the 1920’s or 30’s, and it’s now been converted to condos. It has these amazing huge ceilings with giant windows in her living room.

Tracy & Catie in the window

Playing peekaboo in the windows

Those windowsills are just about the only place to sit too, because Tracy has no furniture, since her movers are scheduled to show up with her stuff from NYC this week. But Catie travels with her own little suitcase full of toys for entertainment purposes, we had an air mattress for Catie and I to crash on, and we had a great time.

Catie & Chris playing peekaboo

I also got to see my brother’s apartment for the first time, which I felt slightly bad about, since we’ve lived in North Carolina for a year & a half, and this was our first trip there to visit him. (Forgot my camera for that part!) It wasn’t an intentional slight at him, just the way it works out. He usually comes to our house when we visit each other.

There wasn’t anything major that happened – we hung out together, we rigged up some iPod speakers and danced to silly kids’ music around Tracy’s empty living room, we ate out at a couple of really great restaurants, and we walked around downtown Charlotte a bit to explore Tracy’s new digs.

My view on the walk to brunch

yelling to Tracy & Chris to come see the "waterfall" (fountain)

And best of all, Catie got to hang out with a couple of her favorite people. (Two of my favorite people too, actually.)
Chris, Catie & Tracy

It was a really good weekend.

This is what happens when you have a girl

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Catie has this issue with her hair. Specifically: she doesn’t want to do anything with it. Occasionally she’ll indulge me and let me put in some barrettes to hold it back out of her face, but most of the time, she wants nothing to do with it. She likes to wear her hair down, and she doesn’t want any accessories. I usually have to grab her and sit her on my lap just to brush it, then she’s off and running.

Because you aren't really a princess unless your crown has maribou feathers on it
Exhibit A: Just-brushed hair. This is about as good as it gets.

Which, you know, it’s fine. Sure, her hair usually has a slightly-messy thing going on, but she’s only three, so who cares?

One day she came home from daycare and had barrettes in her hair that weren’t ours. I knew she didn’t have anything in her hair when she left for daycare. The next day, I asked the teacher about it, she said that they have a little bowl full of ponytail holders and barrettes so they can get the hair out of the kids’ faces if it becomes a problem while they’re eating or working on an art project or what-have-you. Huh. Ok then.

Earlier this week, Dave picked Catie up from daycare, and when they walked in the door, her hair was in pigtails. This was amazing because she never lets me put her hair up in a ponytail or pigtails at all. And is there anything cuter than a little girl in pigtails?

studying constellations on the iPad
Exhibit B: I rest my case. Also: it totally freaks me out that she figured out her way around the iPad’s interface in two days, but we’ll leave that topic for another time.

I know that the only reason Catie allowed the pigtails is because the daycare teacher suggested it, not me. And that’s fine. But the next day, I asked her, “Hey, do you want Mommy to put your hair up like Ms. Sandy did yesterday?” She said, “Yeah!” So I did.

showing me the game she was playing on Dave's iPhone
Exhibit C: More cuteness. And yeah, she knows how to work the iPhone too. My Microsoft-y heart weeps, but she is a pretty devoted Mac girl already.

She let me put her hair up in pigtails again today. It’s weird how this is making all of my “someday I’ll have a little girl and I’ll play with her hair all day” fantasies surface. I freaking love putting her hair up for her. It’s kind of strange.

Also: exposed toddler neck. Cannot stop kissing. Don’t judge me.

Photo Essay: Mornings at Chez PooBou

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Catie: "Mommy, take my pitcha wif Beaumont." Beaumont: "Is she touching me?"
Catie: “Mommy, take my pitcha wif Beaumont!”

Beaumont: “Is she touching me? Why is she touching me? Make her stop!”

Catie: "Beaumont, say cheese!" Beaumont: "MOW! Now make her let go of me!"
Catie: “Beaumont, say cheese!”

Beaumont: “MOW! Now make her let go of me!”

Catie: "C'mon, Beaumont, we take a pitcha!" Beaumont: "Get this kid away from me, I just want my kibble."
Catie: “C’mon, Beaumont! We take a pitcha! Smile!”

Beaumont: “Get this kid away from me. I just want mah damn kibble. Can’t a guy eat breakfast in peace around here?”

Catie: "Mommy, why Beaumont not smile for the pitcha?" Beaumont: "I will have my vengeance."
Catie: “Mommy, why Beaumont not smile for the pitcha?”

Beaumont: “I will have my vengeance on you, woman.”

Easter weekend wrap-up

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Our weekend:

Catie & Tracy
We got to spend some time with my sister. (Clearly, Catie was not in the mood for my camera. At all.) Tracy’s friend Renee was also here, helping her move, which was fun because I haven’t seen Renee in probably six years, and she’d never met either Dave or Catie. It didn’t take Catie very long to warm up to Renee. I’m pretty sure she was in Renee’s lap within a minute or so.

My sister’s cats were also here, which was definitely a high point of the weekend for Catie. Probably not so much for the cats. They spent the night cooped up in a guest room, totally freaked out.

Saturday night, the Easter bunny came to visit. I think Catie is a fan.

Catie likes her new bunny a lot.

On Sunday morning, we got all dressed up and went to church.

Catie & Mommy before church on Easter Sunday
My new favorite picture of us.

After church, we went to the playground and a local lake (with the intent of seeing the ducks and geese, but alas, there were none at the lake yesterday). Then we picked up lunch, came home, and took a nap.

Teenie finds this particular lap insufficient, but you know, any port in a storm

After naptime, we had a little impromptu Easter egg hunt in our backyard.

Reaching for a pink egg under a bush

After the Easter egg hunt, Catie heard some neighborhood kids playing outside and wanted to go join in. I walked her across the street so she could play for a while. It was very bizarre to me that she ran up and started talking to these girls who are about 8 or 9 years old, and they totally understood her. Apparently my toddler-to-English translation services are no longer needed. That’s new.

Easter egg hunts are fun

Hope everyone else had a nice Easter (or, you know, just a nice weekend, if that’s more your thing).

her favorite aunt

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When we were kids, my sister Tracy and I didn’t always get along. She’s 5 1/2 years older than me, so she always treated me like a baby (which I suppose I was, to her). I went back and forth between desperately wanting to be included in all of the cool stuff she got to do with her friends, and being mad at her because she treated me like a baby.

Of course, we grew up, and things changed. I’m not sure exactly when, probably when we were both in our 20s. Now we’re pretty close and have an easy relationship with each other. Sure, sometimes we get pissy with each other, but it’s usually mild stuff that blows over within a minute or two (literally). I honestly can’t remember the last real fight that we had. I mean, I remember the time that I called her a bitch and it made her cry, but I think I was about 17 years old at the time. I can’t think of anything in the past decade.

And it particularly strikes me as odd, after spending the past weekend with my mom and her sisters. There are 7 kids in her family: 4 boys and 3 girls. And the brothers all seem to get along well with everyone; they’re the peacemakers in the family. But my mom and her two sisters… man. They have this competitive thing, this need to one-up the other and prove that I AM RIGHT AND YOU ARE WRONG WRONG WRONGITY-WRONG. They love each other, of course, but there’s a lot of sniping and eye-rolling going on too. And they’re all in their 60s now, so it’s not like that dynamic is ever going to change. So it’s strange to look at those relationships, and then see the relative ease that Tracy and I have with each other. It makes me grateful, to be honest.

Tracy doesn’t have any kids, and I’m pretty sure that if you asked her, she’d say that she’s happy that way. But when Catie was born, I think it made her second-guess that decision, even if it was just for a minute.

with her Aunt Tracy

It was hard when we lived in Seattle and we’d only see our family a couple of times a year, but Catie never went through a “stranger danger” fear with Tracy. It’s like she has always known that Tracy belongs to her.

bouncing in the bjorn

post-Christmas poop-out

When we moved from Seattle to North Carolina, my sister flew from NYC to Seattle, so that I wouldn’t have to attempt a cross-country flight by myself with an 18 month-old. That pretty much cemented her position as The Most Awesome Aunt Ever. (She even got to experience Catie’s motion sickness firsthand; and as a result of Catie’s epic backseat milk barf right as we were pulling in to the airport, I’m pretty sure Tracy’s name has been blacklisted from all Dollar Rental Car locations in the U.S.)

Catie practicing her "trust falls" with Tracy (whee!)

For us, moving to North Carolina was a little bit of a double-edged sword with our families. Sure, it meant that we got to see them more often, and that was great. Tracy was only a short 90-minute flight away in NYC. But it also meant that Catie’s tears were increasingly dramatic every time Tracy had to leave and go back home. It went from a few tears and sniffles and woeful moans of, “my Twaaacy!” from the backseat, to (at this last visit) a full-on screaming meltdown of “I GO WIF’ YOUUUUU!!!!” in which she tried to extricate herself from her carseat and almost made herself vomit from sobbing so much. It wasn’t a fun goodbye, to say the least.

SO happy to see her aunt Tracy

A few months ago, Tracy started talking about maybe moving to be even closer. The company she works for is international and has offices all over the place; after a little research, she found out that they have a branch office in Charlotte, which is only 150 miles from here (also, coincidentally, where my brother Chris lives). She asked about possibly relocating, and they said yes.

(Of course, in a perfect world, I’d prefer that she relocate to Raleigh. But her company doesn’t have an office here, and she doesn’t want to leave her job, which I understand. It’ll still be nice to be able to visit each other via car instead of airplane!)

I’ve been scared to blog about this for fear that it would fall through, but right now, as I type this, movers are loading up my sister’s NYC apartment. She is moving to Charlotte. Today.

I think Catie might like Tracy just a little bit

And I know one little girl who can’t wait to see her favorite aunt.

in which the Internet will judge me for listening to the pop radio station with my toddler

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This morning started off like most of our weekdays. Out of bed, get Catie a sippy cup of milk, start to get dressed, pause for a toddler tantrum over some tiny injustice (in this case, it was because she wanted a piece of the candy that my mom sent home from New Orleans with her, and I told her she couldn’t have it until after breakfast, because I am a cruel & horrible tyrant), try to finish getting dressed, get Catie’s daycare bag together, out the door and off to daycare in a reasonable time frame. It’s like a daily marathon.

Today, before we left, we talked about how tomorrow, her daycare will be closed (for Good Friday), but Mommy and Daddy still need to work, so would she like to go to drop-in daycare instead? Her response: “Yeah, that’d be awesome!” Note to self: need to watch the valley girl slang in front of the toddler. I don’t know if her daycare teachers are amused or annoyed when she calls them “Dude.”

We finally set off for daycare, and listened to the radio in the car and talked; she was confused by the lyrics to “Telephone” by Lady Gaga.
Catie: “Why she can’t* want to talk anymore?”
Me: “Because she just wants to dance, sweetie, she doesn’t want to talk on the phone.”
Catie: “Yeah, I can’t want to talk on the phone while I dancing.”
Me: “Nope, me neither.”

* Random: Catie’s been doing this for a while now, but I don’t know if I’ve ever mentioned it. She never says, “I don’t want X,” it’s always “can’t.” Like, “I can’t want to take a bath,” “I can’t like eggs,” etc. I don’t know where that comes from, but it always cracks me up.

So, you know, pretty much a typical morning for us. Then we turned onto the street where her daycare is located.

Catie: “I can’t want to go to daycare class.”
Me: (stomach sinking and thinking I confused her by mentioning drop-in daycare earlier and oh lord, she’s going to have a meltdown and this is going to suuuuck) “What do you mean, babe?”
Catie: “I can’t want to go to daycare class anymore. I go to preschool class with da big kids.”
Me: “Oh. Um. Well, let’s ask and see, ok?”

We walked in, and I spotted the director of the center. I asked her if it was ok for Catie to go into the preschool class today. She said, “Oh yeah, she spent most of the day in there yesterday, I think she’s ready to transition over to that class now.”

We headed into the new classroom, and all the kids were like, “Hey, Catie is here!” It was like the 3 year-old equivalent of Cheers. (“NORM!!!”) She gave me a kiss good-bye, and bounced off to play with her new “big kid” friends.

Catie on the stairs

And so it goes. Another milestone, another tiny piece of my heart. I am so, so proud of my girl.