Dakota in Disney World

She was lucky enough to get to go with her aunt again, except this time to Disneyworld. She is having a blast but I wanted to keep track of some of the cute things she is saying to me in our phone conversations.

"Mom!!! I saw Crush (from Nemo) and we get to aks him a question. And they say, 'No eating, no drinking, no flash photography (perfectly pronounced) and NO-OOO smoke-in!!'"

"We got Oakley some Tiggy ears and then I said to Melissa, 'How about we put Oaker-man on it' and so we did!!"

"Was Oakley walking around the house saying, 'Where's Dakota?' Awwwwee... he was lookin' for me."

"Dad, you know what's in my snack drawer? There's some in the bottom drawer, some in the middle drawer, and on top. And I can have some whenever I's hungry."

They had lunch with Pooh Bear:
Me "What did you eat for breakfast today? Did you eat with Pooh bear?"
D "NOPE! I just had cereal."
Me "Oh, did you have LUNCH with Pooh Bear?"
D "Yeeeeep."

And last night pretty much every time I started a sentence, she cut me off with "MOM!!!! And we did _______________" I couldn't get a word in to our conversation at all. She's sounding so grown up and boy she can talk your ear off!

Dakota's baby words

Dakota is too smart. She picks up on everything and she has always been good at letters and speaking. But occasionally she says something wrong and I usually think it's too cute to correct. Some of my favorites that she hasn't figured out herself yet are:

Igtar (Guitar)
Honey-birds (Humming birds)
Potaydo Soup (Tomato Soup)
Gnomeo and Julien (Gnomeo and Juliet)


(I will add to this list later)

4th of July

We went to the fireworks in Kaysville on the 4th with Grandma and Jichan. The kids loved it. Their reactions pretty much sum up their personalities right now:

After EVERY firework Oakley exclaimed, "Whoa!"

Dakota told me, "Mom, the fireworks are like pixie dust!" She also sang the Katy Perry song, "Baby You're a Firework" that was playing on the stage. With added emphasis on "Make 'em go 'UH UH UH' as they shoot across the sky." Doug and I were cracking up when she did that. We made her sing it over and over all the way home.

Ryden was in awe of the fireworks and after the first few pops when he realized all was safe and well, he jumped up and down in my lap with excitement.

Capiche

Driving in the car while visiting in Boise.

Me: "Dakota, we're going to go get our food and take it to Annette's house and eat it there, Capiche?"
Dakota: "Capiche!"
Me: "Oakley.... (do you want to go play at Annette's?)"
Before I can finish my sentence...
Oakley-the-kid-who-hardly-talks: "CAPICHE!"
He's smarter than he looks...

Also, at a family gathering recently... I mentioned to Oakley that we were getting ready to go. He ran to the door prematurely, turned, waved and said "See-YA!" LOL. He'd never said that before either.

More Dakota Funnies

"Mom, can Peter Pan come to our house and take me to Pirate Island? And then we can fight Captain Hook and help Jake build his own house with bunkbeds for Izzy and Jake like me and Oakley?" (Jake and the Neverland Pirates TV show)

"Mom, if you suck all my blood out, will I be smushed?" I can only assume she thinks you'll deflate like a balloon if you have no blood. Me: "Well first of all, I am not going to suck your blood." Dakota: "If a mosquito sucks out all my blood will I be smushed?"

She didn't want me to help her get the seatbelt buckled on her booster chair. "Mom I can do it myself." Click. "See, as a matter of fact, its perfect."

D: "Mom, I don't want to wear my jacket. It's warm outside."
Me: "No, its COLD. You have to wear your jacket."
D: "Why, Mom?"
Me: "Because otherwise the germs will get you and make you sick."
D: "Ooooh. Because the germs like the cold but they don't like the warm weather?"
Me: "Yes." Precisely.

Disneyland

Dakota was lucky enough to go to Disneyland over President's Day weekend this year with her aunt Melissa. Before she left, I told her I was going to really miss her. She proceeded to reassure me that everything would be fine and that I should be happy. About 2 days into her trip, we were talking on the phone and this was our conversation:

Me: "Dakota, I really really miss you."
Dakota: "Moooom.... remember what I told you? Don't miss me, just be happy. Ask the whole house, where is Dakoka? Oh! She is just on an adventure. She'll be back. Just be happy, Mom."
Me: "I am happy, but I still miss you."

I'm pretty sure she grew up while she was gone!

Potty Talk

While Dakota was sitting on the toilet doing her business, she blabbed my little ear off.

Dakota: "Mom, we don't eat boogers. We eat pizza, and sandwiches and grilled cheese sandwiches but not boogers.:
Me: "That's right." (as I chuckle)

And next came a little TMI...

Dakota: "Oh! My wet ones just cleaned off some of my poop. That was so nice of my wet ones, wasn't it?!"

LOL.

I was dying laughing by the time she was off the toilet.

Dakota's Prayer

We were having family dinner at Jichan's one evening for a birthday. We picked up pizzas from Little Caesars and Dakota was asked to say the prayer. It went something like this:

"Dear Heavenly Father, Thank you for this food. Please bless the pizza and bless the broccoli. And to the Republic for which it stands, with liberty and justice for all. Amen."

We were all laughing tears by the end! And there was no broccoli...

Green=Grouchy

Dakota has somehow mixed Oscar the Grouch from Sesame Street, with the Grinch Who Stole Christmas.

They now have one name... Oscar the Grinch. :)

She's also combined Snoopy and Scooby Doo... Snoopy Doo

Rock Salt

We were headed into church the other day for a family baby blessing and had our first frost the night before. So, the parking lot and sidewalk had been sprinkled with salt.

On our way into the building, Dakota exclaims with an adoring tone to her voice, "Awe, look Mom... it's snow crumbs!"

I didn't have the heart to correct her. I thought it was too cute.

Hope we have a full winter of 'snow crumbs' before she grows up too quickly!

A few of my favorite fings...

Dakota is pretty darn smart and talks a lot and has a huge vocabulary. However, there a few things she still doesn't pronounce just right that I just adore. So I don't even try to correct her. They grow up too fast!

Anything that has a soft "th" sound she replaces with "f" ie:
fings, fank you, anyfing, norf pole, fink... etc.

theatre=feeter

Theodore (Alvin and Chipmunks)=Fidiore... LOVE that one! So cute!

Alvin=Alavan

Muppets=Muffets

Caterpillar=Calla-pitter

Will add to this later...

Santa

Well Dakota was super excited to see Santa this year and had her list of toys to ask for that keeps changing daily.

Oakley was scared of Santa at first and screamed but finally relented when we gave him a rice krispie treat.

Ryden loved being held.

After pictures were taken, we headed to the car to leave.

Dakota started panicking...

"Uh-oh. We forgot our stuff. Our Barbie car and Repunzel..." (what she requested from Santa moments before)

I had to explain Santa doesn't just hand over the presents. We have to wait till Christmas morning.

The next morn we had the opportunity to see Santa again. This time no kids cried. But Dakota walked up to Santa and exclaimed, "Santa, you forgot our fings!"

I had to explain things to her all over again.

Calm Down

My first day out running errands after the baby was a long one. I took Dakota with me and promised if she was good for the few hours we were out, she could pick out a redbox movie.

She was good and picked out a Barbie movie.

When we arrived home, she popped it in immediately. I sat down next to her to feed Ryden and this conversation ensued:

Dakota: "Maybe we should watch the Shrek movie."
Me: "You want to watch Shrek? Why did we rent the Barbie movie if you wanted to watch Shrek? We already have Shrek."
Dakota: "Calm down, calm down, calm down, Mom. I mean, AFTER we watch the Barbie movie, we should watch Shrek."
Me: "O... K... then." :)

Welcoming Baby Ryden

Ryden was born on Monday in the early afternoon. The kids came to see him that evening for the first time. They reacted pretty much exactly as I expected. Dakota first entered with Betty and came bounding in the room with a huge grin on her face. I watched her eyes scan the room, looking for the new baby. She climbed up on the bed to see me and then I pointed to Ryden laying in the hospital bassinet. She stood up on the bed to look at him. She exclaimed, "He's out! Your baby came out! He's got red cheeks!" I explained that his name was Ryden and she repeated him name perfectly and asked to hold him.

She sat down on the bed next to me and Betty place him in her lap. She held him so gently and just stared at him quietly for a full 3 or 4 minutes. She kissed him and stroked his head and after those minutes of silence, she looked at me and quietly asked, "Can I keep him?"

It was so cute! She continues to be a good big sister. She sings to him, gives him binky and tells him stories. She likes to hold him and talk to him and mimic everything I do with her baby doll.

Oakley is a different story... He hasn't shown an interest in babies ever. Period. We tried to prepare him for the birth and he just did not care. His reaction to seeing the baby for the first time was pretty much the same. He did not care. He didn't want to be at the hospital and was being difficult to start. When he came in, he didn't want to say hi or see the baby. He just ran around and grumbled, and was being destructive.

Finally, Dakota wanted Daddy to see the baby and tried to carry Ryden over to him. Doug took Ryden and finally Oakley was curious. He walked up to where Doug was sitting and got on his tippy toes and checked him out. He pointed at first (a little rough) and then got frustrated and starting swatting at him. He lost interest and walked away. Ryden was returned to me in bed and after about a half hour, Oakley again showed interest in who was taking my attention. He climbed up on my bed and and looked at the baby. Finally, he pointed again. He showed me his eyes and his cheeks and his mouth. Then when I tried to get him to say "baby", he got mad and jumped down. That was about the end of his interaction that night.

Today, we brought Ryden home from the hospital. Dakota showed immediate interest again. But again, Oakley was distracted and irritated. But after about an hour of running around, he finally walked over to where I was sitting and checked him out again, pointing and looking at me with a curious face. I tried to get him to say "baby" and he just jibbered at me, but it was a positive response.

After taking a nap, Oakley came into my room where I was feeding the baby. He climbed up on my bed and gently approached him again. He pointed to his face again and then he said "Bayba". I smiled and encouraged him and he said it a few more times. Since then, he has tried to push the baby in his swing and has shown a little more interest. I think it will get better with time. The first time he heard Ryden cry around dinner time, he stopped eating, turned and just stared at him in amazement. Aunt Melissa came by to visit and was holding the baby for a bit. When Oakley entered the room and saw me without the baby for the first time, he came running over and jumped into my lap. He was so happy to have his own mommy time. I think I will just need to carve out special time for him every day.

We love having a new baby brother in the house and I look forward to all the cute ways my kids will bond over the next few weeks and for the rest of our lives!

Big Sister and Sibling Rivalry

Dakota has always been a good helper and a pretty good big sister. She wakes up before any of us, and so we are in the habit now of leaving the TV on her favorite cartoon channel. When she wakes up, she usually sneaks out of the bedroom and comes in to say good morning, then goes downstairs, turns on the TV and helps herself to some breakfast while the rest of us are trying to get as much shut-eye as possible.

As soon as she hears Oakley wake up, she comes back up and lets him out of the room. The other morning, she let him out and then proceeded to open a package of pop tarts and gave one of them to him. Such a nice big sister! Always taking care of her baby brother.

For the most part, they play really well together and are pretty great friends. However, lately Oakley has started to learn how to get a reaction out of Dakota.

The other day, Dakota had some toy animals all lined up, playing. Oakley ran in, grabbed two animals out of the line-up and dashed out of the room. After she cried for him to return them, he finally brought them back, dropped them on the floor near her and as she reached to pick them up, he grabbed two more out of the line and took off again! What a stinker!

He also has been pulling her hair just to get a reaction.

Let the rivalry begin!

Disclaimer: I do have to admit that often he does just go up to her and give her big hugs and loves her so so much.

More Dakota

A few sayings and conversations as of yet:

Dakota to baby brother in my tummy:
"Whatcha doin' baby brother? Oh? You're just kicking in Mamma's tummy? Okay, you can just kick in Mamma's tummy!" Then she kissed the belly and ran off. And he started kicking afterward ;)

I ran back in church one day to drop something off and when I returned to the car, Dakota was unbuckled and standing by Doug up front. I asked her what she was doing out of her carseat. Her reply, "I'm just telling Daddy what to do. That's my job!"

When Dakota starts to freak out about anything, I usually say something like, "What's your deal?" Lately she is always telling me what she is doing and feeling and follows it up with, "... that's my deal." Even if I haven't asked :)

She is also very into favorites. What's your favorite food? What's your favorite color? And also how old you are, what color eyes and hair you have and if you are her friend, cousin, aunt or uncle.

Not a Great Listener

This is the monologue I got from Dakota on the way home from gymnastics today:

"I am not a great listener. I got up and ran away and my teacher said, 'Don't run away, Dakota. You are not a great listener.' and I said, 'Sorry teacher.' And she said, 'It's okay miss Dakota-bee.' And I got up and ranned away because I was getting a bumble bee on my paper."

So there you have it.

I told her she needed to listen to her teacher. :)

Don't Talk to Me

Doug thinks that Dakota is always partial to me, which is not always true. But nonetheless, the other evening, we were sitting down to dinner. Doug was pushing Dakota's buttons, teasing her and there was a lot of squealing and whining going on. I finally reached my limit with the noise and announced, "OK! Everybody stop talking! Let's just eat dinner, please!"

Dakota's response:

"No, Mamma! Don't talk to me, because I am talking to Daddy..."

(Doug, secretly is sighing a sigh of victory.)

"Daddy, don't talk to me, because I am eating dinner!"

(Doug rolling his eyes in defeat.)

And then both of us giggling under our breath. Trying to keep things serious. LOL

Dakota-isms lately

"I did it awready."

"OH! I diditt know it."

"Nope. I don't seeee it..."

"I like some milk, please"

"I am hungry wif a chocolate milk." (or insert other food item)

"I'm a big gool!"

"And you do it like this..."

"Polka-dot Pizza" = Pepperoni Pizza

If You're Happy...

(Dakota singing...)

If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands!
If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands!!
If you're happy and you know it, then your face will smile
If you're happy and you know it, clap your HANDS!