hand, hand, fingers, thumb...binky or none?

Katerina was a binky girl as a baby...still is, although binkies are only for bedtime. It was great when she was teething, or tired or cranky. Granted we still need to take it away (a project for after the holidays), but I'm glad she has had it.

Victoria on the other hand doesn't seem to be very interested in the binky. She loves to suck on her nuckles, or her thumb. Every once in awhile she will take the binky, but not like Katerina did.

So what is better? I know there are some kids that manage without either, but both girls as babies have had a strong sucking reflex, so I think Victoria needs something. Ultimately I guess it is not up to me what Victoria chooses...even at 9 weeks she has a mind of her own.

Parent/Teacher Conference

We had our annual parent/teacher conference with Katerina's teacher today. Here are the highlights:

She is outgoing

She is empathetic toward other kids

She loves doing art projects (hint hint...for those looking for x-mass gift ideas)

She loves reading stories and will often recite stories to her friends

She is considered the other "teacher" in the class, helping her friends

She understands the concept of taking turns

She knows her colors, counting, shapes etc.

Way to go Katerina! We are so proud of you.

Leaves

We spent Sunday morning raking/mowing the leaves in our yard. Katerina loved jumping in the leaves and having me "hide" her legs as I raked piles. Victoria enjoyed the fresh air as well and took a nice little nap.

Vacation in Western New York

The Christakis family took a mini-vacation in Western New York this past week. It began with me going to Alfred for a board meeting, Mike going to a Bill's game and Aunt Aileen and Uncle Bill watching the girls.

Then the next day, Katerina, Mike and I went to the Strong Museum of Play...she loved it. It is such a great place, with so much to do for kids of all ages. The only things she didn't like were the train ride and the ride on the carousel. She cried half way through both rides...oh well...roller coasters may not be in her future any time soon.

Then on Wednesday, Yiayia and Papou came back from Greece and we spent the net few days visiting with them. It was a fun relaxing week.

Victoria is 2 Months Old!

Victoria is two months old now. Here are some of her recent accomplishments:

She smiles often and almost giggles.

She can grab or swat at some toys.

She has been practically sleeping through the night for about a week.

She has decided that she doesn't like her binky (we think) and instead loves her thumb.

She does great tummy time...can stay there with her head up for 5 or more minutes.

She has a doctor's appointment in a couple of days where we will find out how much she has grown!

Sleeping Through the Night!

On Victoria's 2 month birthday she decided that she was all grown up and could sleep through the night! She went to bed at about 8:30pm and woke up at 5:15am! What a big girl. After she ate, she gave me a bunch of smiles, as if to show how proud of herself she was. Mommy's proud of her too!

The Real Halloween Story

What an adventure Halloween was this year. If you were to read Katerina's blog you would think it was all "treat" but believe me there was some "trick" as well, which makes for a more memorable experience!

At the school parade and party on Friday, Katerina was very shy--and if you know my daughter that is not typical for her. She spent the parade looking down at her feet as if by doing so no one would see her. Then it took her a good 10 minutes to warm up at the party in her classroom. I think she is just the kind of kid that is cautious in new situations and it is not until the experience is familiar that she becomes herself. After she was more comfortable, however, she wouldn't stop talking and eating the yummy treats they made (fingers, eye balls, and witches brooms).

Then the official Halloween day arrived! I picked her up from school and asked if she was excited to go trick or treating. She said she was. I told her that we were going to have an early dinner before going out. We got home, I took her out of the van, got Victoria out and then when it was time to go inside she gave me a hard time...wanting to go back into the van. I wouldn't let her. She spent a good 5 minutes on the kitchen floor crying. Then I made dinner, and by this time Mike was home. Katerina wanted no part of dinner, crying or sobbing about one thing or another. Her dinner ended up consisting of about 4 bites of peas and a half of string cheese. Oh well...

She got dressed in her costume without tears and was so adorable. She enjoyed trick or treating after she got the hang of it ...usually never saying a word just holding out her bowl and then saying "I want to go to another house." It was pretty cute.

When she got home, she delved right into the candy (apparently having already snacked on some along the way). We let her...she had a Reeses peanut butter cup, another candy bar, a tootsie roll, and a lolly-pop. She tried the sour patch kids but said they were "spicy." After all of that, Mike and I figured she had had enough candy, so he had her pick her "last" piece and then took the candy away. Well the tears came rolling down. I just had to laugh. She eventually calmed down because I let her look in the her candy bowl to see that her candy was still there and I gave in to letting her have a bag of halloween pretzels (what a great idea--just regular pretzels shaped like bats).

Victoria also was a bit fussy in the evening before bed, not wanting to be put down. But both girls ended up sleeping soundly (in fact Victoria went to bed at 8:30pm, woke up at 2:30am for a half hour, and slept again until 6:20am--that a girl!).

It was certainly a Halloween to remember!