Sippy Cup Wars

Abby eating like a big girl
Rory making her "ugly" face

Rory still making her "ugly" face

The girls are feeding themselves "big" people food. What big girls we have!!

This has been an interesting week at our house. When we took the girls in for their one year check-up, the doctor told us that it was time to start giving them whole milk instead of formula, a sippy cup instead of a bottle and "big" people food instead of baby food. She told us that we needed to have them switched completely within a month of their first birthday. At first, I thought, "no problem, we'll have that done in no time." I have realized very quickly, however, that having two strong-willed children decide that they are not ready to switch to anything new can be a bit of a blow to my best-laid plans. So, we have been trying all sorts of new techniques to get the girls used to switching over. Actually, Abby has taken very well to "big" people food. She just keeps eating as long as we keep giving it to her. Rory is very particular about her food. She will eat what she wants and the rest must then go to the floor... immediately. Today, she finished eating and had about 1/4 of her sandwich left. I thought that I would just finish it off instead of throwing it away. I waited until Rory was out of her high chair and playing. She looked up and saw me take a bite of her sandwich, walked over to me, put her hands on her hips and started yelling "NO MAMA, NO" over and over. She took the sandwich out of my hand, toddled over to her daddy and gave him a bite. Then she sat down at his feet and finished it off. She didn't really want the sandwich, but she didn't want me to have it either. She's very opinionated!! Both girls love to drink juice and water from a sippy cup, but milk is a different story. Milk is supposed to come from a bottle and that's where they will drink it from. So, after having several complete melt-d0wns (both mommy and children), we have finally reached an understanding. They will take milk from a sippy cup as long as mommy or daddy holds it for them like a bottle (before this, they were feeding themselves from a bottle). I can take the exact same sippy cup, wash it out and put juice in it and both girls will drink from the cup all by themself just fine. Somehow, I think that we are going to have many interesting battles over the next... oh say.... 17 years or so.

We are having so much fun watching all of the new things that the girls are learning. Rory has started making funny faces at us. Michael will say "Rory, make your ugly face" and she will scrunch her whole face up. It's too cute!! She also talks to us constantly. Sometimes we don't catch everything that she is saying, but she definitely gets her point across. When she gets frustrated, she will put her hands on her hips and say "mama" or "dada" in an exasperated tone. Rory is also doing so well with her walking/running. She doesn't stay in one place at all anymore. When she really starts going fast, she swings her arms as if that will make her go even faster. Abby is doing so much, as well. She has started talking more and more. Sometimes, she will get tired of listening to Rory talk and talk, so she will just stand up in front of Rory and start talking over her. It's too funny!! Abby will be heard!! Michael and I get so tickled at her when she gets frustrated. She will start saying every word that she knows as fast as her little mouth will allow her, then she will just start growling. Abby is also doing so well with her walking. She doesn't go quite as fast as Rory, but she gets where she wants to go with absolutely no problems. She has also started trying to do summer-saults like Braxton. Braxton is taking gymnastics this semester and so he is constantly flipping and standing on his head. Abby thinks that looks like too much fun, so she puts her head on the floor and tries to push up with her legs. She's got the idea, but she just doesn't quite have the momentum to get all the way over. When daddy and I help her, she just lays on her back after her flip and smiles and laughs. She is so pleased with herself. Both of the girls are getting so big and doing so many things. It's hard to keep up at times!!