Hocking Hills

On Saturday, Ryan and I decided that we needed to get out of Dodge and so we headed for the hills, Hocking Hills. I have only been once, but I've always remembered how cool it was. We hopped in the car and headed on our way. It took a little over an hour and by the time we got there, Sofia was passed out in the back seat. It was pretty crowded when we got there, and I figured it would be, but it's a big place so I wasn't too worried. We went to Old Man's Cave, because that's the only place I had visited. It was beautiful. Even with the ummm, variety of people. Sofia had a blast. We let her take off her shoes and play in the creeks. She found a big stick and used that to explore with. When it was time to move on down the trail, we literally had to drag her on with promises of more water and rocks around the next bend. It took a few times before she finally started to believe us that there was more water to play in. By the time we left, she was covered in mud and sand, we all were.

The only bad part of the day is that by the time we got home, Sofia was sick. She cried while I gave her a shower and then just laid on the couch the rest of the evening. It was kind of sad. But don't worry, she didn't have to suffer alone because Ryan and I both got sick the following day.

I know, I know, I haven't posted in a while. I've gotten kind of lazy about it, but don't expect anything anytime soon. Sofia and I are leaving for Phoenix tomorrow to see my mom. Jessica and Sydney (or "babay Sydney" as Sofia constantly refers to her.) It'll be interesting flying with two children under the age of three. Sofia's an old pro at flying, this is her third time in three years. Jessica has never flown with Sydney, so it should be fun!

Just some funny Sofia stories:

The other day I bought Sofia a new pair of pajamas. I asked her if she wanted to try them on and she said yes. When I put them on her, she turned to me and said, "Thank you so much Mommy. Thank you for the pajamas. thank you, thank you, thank you." And she was sincere when she said it too!

Sofia is starting to "tell" stories. She gets the idea of putting events together, so it's always cute to hear her tell one.

She has been the poster-child for bipolar disorder. Seriously. One day she is awesome. She listens, she does what she's told, she's happy. The next day she is a complete psycho (and I say that with as much love as possible). Ahhh, toddlers. Can't live with 'em, can't live without 'em but sometimes you want to drop kick them.

Attitude

Sofia was in her room playing very quietly. I walked in to see what she was doing and as I stood in the doorway, Sofia turned to me and said, "No Mommy, get out. Get out of my room and go sit on the couch." She said it in a very nice, quiet kind of voice. It had to be one of the funniest things I have ever heard her say.

The Easter Bunny Has Arrived

The Easter Bunny came to our house yesterday and boy did he really go overboard. It felt a little like Christmas. Most of what Sofia got were toys - Play-Doh, a Dora the Explorer gardening kit, bubbles, coloring books. The only candy were suckers, because I figured she get more candy later in the day.

When Sofia woke up, she came out of her room and at first didn't seem to notice the giant pile of stuff on the floor. But when she did spot it, she kept saying, "The Easter Bunny brought me stuff." She really got a kick out of everything and was really happy. Ryan left for work soon after (and only cooked for one customer the entire time he was at his job) but I had a bunch of stuff to do. I made scalloped potatoes to bring to Jessi's parents house for Easter lunch/dinner. Sofia got to wear her brand new Easter dress (or princess dress as she kept calling it). She loved being all dressed up and looked so pretty.

We went to Jessi's parents at 1 pm. I was worried that Sofia would be scared or overwhelmed being around people she didn't know, but she was fantastic. She pretty much took over the house as if she owned it. Ann, from the library, hid eggs in the front yard for Sofia to find. The little Easter egg hunt took literally 5 minutes, Sofia was a pro at finding all of the eggs. After we played outside for a while, Sofia got it into to her head that it was time to leave. She kept tugging my hand saying, "let's go to mommy's car. i want to go home." We had dinner with all of us sitting around the table and I was totally overwhelmed with how good Sofia was (and how good the food was!). She didn't eat anything besides Jello, but she sat in her seat and said "no thank you" and was very polite. I really thought she would crash after eating, but she didn't. When we got home, I changed her clothes and then I took a nap. All of that food wore me out. Sofia fell asleep from 5-6:30, but was still able to go to sleep at a normal time. I was sorry Ryan couldn't join us, but I brought home leftovers.

Color Me Bad

Today we tried to dye Easter eggs for the first time. It was, um, interesting and very colorful. Literally. All of our hands are stained with that dye and I don't think it will ever come out. I feel like Lady Macbeth (out damn spot!). Anyway, Sofia kind of got the gist of what we were doing, but was more interested in taking all the eggs and putting them into as many colors as possible (while getting as much of the liquid on the table as possible.) Surpisingly, her multi-dipped eggs were quite pretty. I'm sure we'll have better eggs as she gets older. I can remember coloring eggs with my sisters and doing all of the multi-layered effects with the colors and things like that. This year it was more of a dunk and run. But it was still a lot of fun!

The finished product. Yum!

Skater Chick

Sofia came running out of her room tonight wearing this hat. I must say, she looks pretty cool. Cooler than I ever did at age 2. And boy can she accessorize.

She's such a silly girl lately. I feel bad for being cooped up in the house because of (pick a reason, or pick two): I'm doing homework, I'm sick, Ryan's sick, I have to go to work, Ryan has to go to work, it's snowing. I keep telling myself that after my final projects are done on next Monday, I will start playing with Sofia and do crafts and go outside. Until then, good old Max and Ruby and Dragontales will have to keep her occupied. Until then, I'll let her jump on the furniture and go crazy. Then we'll all be one crazy, hot mess.

Sofia is just like most two-year-olds when it comes to food. Sometimes she likes things, other times she doesn't. Like broccoli and green beans - she used to love them and now won't touch them. Or cheeseburgers. Or she'll take a couple of bites and then be done.

However, my child is not like most. Ryan made mussels for himself one night (eww) and I guess Sofia ate a whole bowl of them. She was even slurping them out of the shell like a pro.

She also likes steak (which isn't all that stranger). Ryan had grilled out the other night and I made chicken, he had steak. Sofia tried some of his steak and absolutely loved it. When I offered her some of my chicken she said, "No, I want some of daddy's chicken." Mmmm, steak flavored chicken.

While she doesn't like some veggies, she'll eat ones most kids won't touch. Asparagus, baby portabello mushrooms (or any mushrooms), black olives.

Weird kid.

Today was an absolutely perfect day for the Zoo, so Sofia and I went. We left the house by 10, bot Subway sandwiches for lunch, and were on our way. Sofia isn't into watching a lot of the animals, instead she's just go, "Let's keep going Mommy. Keep going." So we breezed by the flamingoes, most of the reptiles (except the turtles. for those Sofia had to lay on her stomach on the floor in front of the glass), and the kangaroos. Her favorites are the bonobos, acquarium, and the manitees. Oh, and the carousel. I even decided to splurge and buy myself a sea turtle and Sofia picked out a baby penguin. She picked it up and started to squeeze it, so I let her get it. I got Ryan a packet full of fake insects. Ahhh, nothing says I love you like a plastic fly.

Warmer weather has finally started to arrive in Ohio. We have a small back yard behind our apartment, with a thick "wall" of trees and bushes. Sofia has become fearless with the bushes and intentionally kicks her ball in, only to have to go after it and retrieve it. She's my little queen of the jungle.

The Haircut

Sofia got her haircut on Thursday. Ryan was going anyway, so we all walked down to the salon together - Sofia even got to ride in her wagon. When we got in, it was empty so it wasn't a big deal to fit Sofia in. Check out the before and the after:

In the first picture, Sofia looks like Britney Spears's little hillbilly kids, but in the second picture she actually looks like a cute little girl. I think we'll be keeping this look for a while. I always wanted a little girl with long hair, probably because I always had short hair growing up, but when Sofia's hair gets long it gets all straggly and whispy. Not a good look, even on a cute toddler!

Artist

Sofia definitely must get her love of art from Ryan. Yesterday, she found her watercolor paints (that were hidden in the pantry) and brought them out to me. I wasn't sure if I really wanted her to use them, make a big mess, and then I'd have to clean it up -OR- let her use them and say "to hell with it." Well, I chose the latter and I was blown out of the water (no pun intended). I put newspaper down on the table, filled a little cup with water, set out paper, and let Sofia go to town. She stood and painted for (and this is not an exageration) 2 HOURS STRAIGHT. Can you believe it? She even ate her lunch while painting. Plus, she didn't even make a big mess. I knew she would probably knock over the water at some point, so I put it in a plastic bin. That way, if it was knocked over, it would fall in the bin and not on the carpet. Smart, huh? When I would go over to look at her work, I told her, "What a great job! You're doing such a good job painting those pictures." To which she would reply, "I painting mommy. Now go sit on the couch." Uh - gladly.

Sofia absolutely loves our friend Russ. He's the father of Genevieve, who is close to Sofia's age. Anyway, he came over last night because he and Ryan were going out. Sofia started showing off right away. "Hi Russ! Hi Russ!" "Watch me Russ!" She had to show off her princess dress, her new twirling ribbon. She tried to get him to do a puzzle with her, but as it was close to bedtime and Russ was really here to hang out with Ryan, I told him he could say no. The icing on the cake was Sofia asking Russ to read her a bedtime story. She curled up right next to him and listened to the whole story. It was sweet. (Russ-you can come over anytime and babysit since Sofia likes hanging out with you so much!)

Sofia and I had the cutest conversation tonight:

(Sofia had just had a bath and I had her wrapped up in a towel on the changing table.)

Me: You look just like a sausage.

Sofia: No Mommy. I not a sausage. I Sobia. (that's how she pronounces her name)

Me: Are you sure you're not a sausage?

Sofia: No! I Sobia Woopee. (Sofia Lupi)


I just thought it was a funny conversation because I love to hear her say her name, now that she knows it.

Princess of Style

Sofia has had the same pink princess dress since September. She alternates between it and a blue princess skirt everyday. We're talking morning and night. Her pink dress was originally last year's Halloween outfit and was all shiny and new, but now it's literally in tatters. Cinderella went from the ball back to her rags. So, tonight we finally decided to get her a new dress. I figure it's totally worth the $18 since she wears it all the time. Plus, it's big on her, so it'll last a long time (I hope). The new dress is really cute and even has wings (and it's purple, and purple rocks). Sofia was so excited to get the new dress that she had to put it on as soon as she got home.

Sofia had her 2 1/2 year checkup today - even though we were at the doctor twice last week. She weighed in at a whopping 26 lbs. and is 36 inches tall. Because of her skinny little butt, all of her pants look like highwaters. Oh well, it can be quite fashionable - we'll just call them capris pants. She also seems to either be sick or has a reaction to her new antibiotics (WARNING! this could be gross) that seem to effect her pooh. The doctor warned us that is could turn her sh*t red, but he didn't mention that she would have exploding diapers. She hasn't had these since she was really little. And we're not talkinf once a day here people, oh no. We're talking 3 times just today. Three. The only plus side (if there is one) is that these diapers don't smell. I know, there had to be a silver lining. I'm hoping these exploding poohs don't continue much longer, but at least Ryan gets to hang out with her all day tomorrow while I'm at work and then class.

On a different, and much less disgusting note, Ryan and I had the whole weekend off together. I think this is the first one in probably 6-8 months. Sunday we took advantage of the free admission and went to the Museum of Art. Well, first we went out for breakfast, which we never do. I had been out the night before with a bunch of my college friends (I had a blast Mandy, Emily, Jenn, and Jessi!) so mommy was a little hungover Sunday morning. I had crashed the night before at Mandy's on her couch and even though I wasn't home, I still woke up earlier than usual - not fair. Anyway, I got back to the house around 10 am, we all got ready, and hit the road. Even though the Museum is free on Sunday's, I wanted to check out their Egypt exhibit, and that cost regular price. I went in knowing that we wouldn't get to sit and really look at things because Sofia would be all over the place, and I was right. She had fun and was actually pretty good. She was more into jumping and stomping her feet on the wood floors than looking at art, but that's okay. We got her cultured a little bit. Plus, she got lots of comments on her outfit - which was her silver sparkly pants, Dora Snow Princess t-shirt, and her blue princess skirt. She was stylin'.

Date Night

My friend Jessi is awesome. She offered to watch Sofia so that Ryan and I can go see the Watchmen tonight! Ryan and I have both been looking forward to this movie for months. We both have read the graphic novel (it's awesome, check it out) and have watched the trailers over and over. We plan on going to Easton and getting dinner first. I've had a couple of gift cards burning a hole in my pocket. Then Ryan has an AMC gift card that we can use. A virtually free date night - you can't beat that. Since the movie is almost three hours long, we're going to get dinner first. We have it narrowed down between a Japanese sushi restaurant or a Turkish cafe. I've been to the turkish cafe, but have never had sushi. I think I'll let Ryan decide, even though I know he'll want the sushi. He likes all of the crazy seafood like eel, squid, octopus, etc. I don't do seafood, but I will eat fish, so maybe we'll live on the edge and try something completely new. Thanks Jessi!

We Offer Fluff and Fold

I got the dreaded call at work on Tuesday. The one that always makes my stomach clench. Ryan calling to say something is wrong with Sofia. In this case, I guess she woke up after ten minutes of nap and started crying and wouldn't stop for over 20 minutes. She kept saying "I hurt, I hurt" but couldn't be more specific. I had noticed that the right outer corner of her eye was red and bloodshot a few days ago, and thought maybe this was what hurt. So, I called the doctor and Ryan brought her right in. Yup, it's pinkeye. On top of that, she also has an inner ear infection in her left ear, poor thing. The doctor prescribed anitbiotics (the awesome tasting pink bubblegum stuff) and we're supposed to give it to her for ten days. That's it. No drops, no other instructions. I did tell Ryan to wash all of Sofia's bedding and for us to make sure she's washing her hands all the time, just to be safe. But after that little crying episode, you'd have no idea she is sick. Go figure.

Sunny Days Are Here Again

It finally feels like spring really is just around the corner. Today it got up to 60 degrees. I know, break out the swimsuits. But seriously, after all of the below zero temperature and the nasty weather the past couple of weeks, I am happy to have anything that feels slightly warm. Sofia and took adventure of the weather and headed to the Zoo. We had a blast. Seriously, it was one of the best days I have had in a long time.

Rather than pull Sofia along, I let her lead the show. We checked out the North American animals, and when she was ready to move on, she would let me know. She'd say, "Mommy, let's go. Let's go." She was scared of some of the animals, even ones that never bothered her before. On the other hand, she was terrified of the aquarium for a while, and today she had an absolute blast. She was running up to the window of the tank and her favorite fish were the sharks. Everytime she saw one she would run up to me and point them out. We were probably in there at least 20 or 30 minutes. I had a slight celebrity moment while in there as well. I was sitting looking at the tank when a little girl points to me and goes, "it's the library lady." Her mom said that yes, it is and then asked my name. It's always weird when I see people from my storytimes or from the library outside the library.

Anyway, just to brag, but I couldn't have asked for a bettter behaved child today. I brought out the older stroller, and Sofia was all for riding in it, pulling down the visor, climbing in and out. For once, I didn't have to yell at her to sit down, stop bending over, etc. Wow, I really need more days like today!

Pasta Pasta

Ryan makes the best homemade pasta (being Italian really helps) and tonight he and Sofia made pasta for our dinner. I came home from work and Sofia was helping make the dough and she was also helping roll out the dough. It was so cute and I can tell she will be like Ryan when she grows up.

(By the way, I finally uploaded my camera to my new computer. This computer is awesome, I can finally upload video as well!!)

Now that I don't feel so lazy, I promise to blog more.

Name Game

I took this idea from another blog. Sometimes it gets a little dull writing about Sofia.


Name Game.

Your Real Name: Carissa

Witness Protection Name:(mother and fathers middle names) Marie Riley.

Secret Spy Name: (your first name spelled backwards) Assirac. (that's right, ASSirac.)

Nascar Name: (first name of your mother's dad, father's dad) Ronald Charles.

Detective Name:(favorite color, favorite animal) Purple Dolphin.

Soap Opera Name:(middle name, county where you were born) Anne Hamilton.

Super Hero Name: (2nd fav color, fav drink, add "THE" to the beginning) The Green Guinness.

Fly Name:(first 2 letters of 1st name, last 2 letters of your last name) Cate.

Street Name:(fav ice cream flavor, fav cookie) Mint Chocolate Chip Thin Mint.

Rock Star: (current pet, current street) Kitty Turnstone. (since I don't have a current pet, I'm using my last one.)

PORN NAME: (1st pet, street you grew up on) Thumper Bursal.

YOUR GANGSTA NAME:(first 3 letters of real name plus izzle) Carizzle

YOUR GOTH NAME:(black, and the name of one of your pets)Black Kitty

STRIPPER NAME: (name of your fav perfume/cologne, fav. candy) Om Rolos