I haven’t done a Caroline post in a long time so thought I would sneak a few pictures in and share a little bit about life with our 33 month old daughter.
Yes, 33 months!!! I know some of you have been reading here since before I was ever pregnant and wondered if I ever would be. My Little Miss Peanut is going to be three years old in just a few months.
We’ve noticed in the last few weeks that Caroline’s lost that toddler look and is looking more and more like a preschooler/little girl. I will admit to feeling very slight pangs of “where is my baby?” but for the most part I am totally fine with it. I am enjoying the toddler stage so much more than I thought I would. In fact, it has been almost the opposite of what I expected. I thought I would love the baby/infant stage and dreaded the toddler stage. I have enjoyed the toddler stage much more than I expected and found the baby stage less enjoyable than I would have thought. Go figure.
Caroline also recently hit a growth spurt in terms of her language. I was SO looking forward to when she would start talking enough to have conversations with us. I absolutely love it! I love not having to wonder what is going on in that little brain of hers. LOL! She is a little chatter box, has a huge vocabulary, and loves to learn. I absolutely LOVE having conversations and being able to “discuss” things with her.
Lately we have been dissecting Pride and Prejudice
So my “complaint”? I can hardly get her to wear anything but a dress. And not just any dress. She has four casual cotton dresses I bought last year on sale from Land’s End and saved for this year. She doesn’t want to wear anything but those four dresses (unless it is the jumper Grandma S. made her (which is not summery and looks awful with white sandals) or one of her nicer dresses for church. The only time she will put something else on is if she is going outside to help in the yard or going outside to play. Then she’ll put on her “outside play clothes” (denim capris and a top or something like that) without any argument. But as soon as she comes in, she wants them OFF. She wants her dress back on NOW. She couldn’t even sit down to lunch the other day until we had changed her from her outside clothes to her dress she was so distraught about it.
Now on the one hand, I’m a total girly girl. I vastly prefer dresses and skirts myself. I never thought I’d be in a situation where I would wish I could get her out of dresses and into some jeans! Oh well. I’m glad she likes her dresses. I just try to keep them washed. Hopefully they won’t be in shreds by the end of the summer from such frequent use!
The pictures of her in her blue and white checked dress are from the Frederik Meijer Gardens earlier this week. While we were there I was reminded yet again of the fact that I am a Girl Mom. I was never designed to have boys. There were so many active little boys there in the Children’s Garden that it just made me stand back and think all over again how grateful I am for my girl! God bless you moms with boys! One of you out there is raising up a godly man for Caroline to fall in love with someday and I’m so thankful you are there to do it. I’m just glad you got the boy job and I got the girl job!
Listening To What Your Child Is Really Saying
My last 3 little girls were total girly girls who ONLY liked to wear dresses. Now the 6 year old still vastly prefers them (usually), and the 9 and 11 year olds like them, but they grew up to wear pants or shorts SOMEtimes.
Susan (I LOVED my boys, but I have to admit, the girls have been SOOO much fun! Enjoy it!)
wow, wow, wow! i cannot believe she is so grown up! as you know, i’ve been reading your blog since long before you got pregnant–and that is now seeming like a Very.Long.Time! where has that time gone?! 🙂
She is absolutely darling! I grinned while imagining her dancing in the living room. Mr. Darcy… my she has good taste!
What a blessing she is! I know that you praise and thank God for her delightful presence in your life.
While I love my life with little boys — they really are wonderful — how I yearn for a little butterfly too!
So cute!
My DD is the same age as yours. She is such a fun kid. She’s definitely a girly girl, but she loves playing with balls. We have a small soccer net in the family room and she plays all sorts of games with it, and she’s got a real strong kick. Then of course, she picks the balls up and hugs them and kisses them.
My DD also got attached to a piece of clothing, a Clifford vest that came in a bag of hand-me-downs. She tries to wear it all of the time. She’s very into full accessories. Hat, shoes, socks, bow in hair at all times.
She’s beautiful! One of the desires of my heart is a girly-girl too.
My middle daughter would mainly wear dresses at Caroline’s age. Then she had a couple of years where she wore shorts or pants. But a few years ago she went back to only wearing dresses or skirts. I’ve gotten her several from Lands End, and they are holding up great so far. And since dresses are in style now, I was even able to get her a couple of inexpensive summer dresses from Target.
She’s a precious little girl! This made me realize how long I’ve been reading your blog because it was before you were expecting!
Dresses are so much fun. I miss ordering the cute little things from Lands’ End and Hanna Andersson (they have great sales). Although big girls are fun too! 🙂
Thanks for sharing —
Best wishes,
Laura
This is a sweet, sweet post. Loved it. I really enjoy your updates about Caroline and the special things that happen in your relationship.
~ Ruthanne in Alabama
I love this! What great pics. It has been a true joy to watch this miracle child grow!
This post made me smile! I am going to be a mommy to a girl at the end of the summer, and I was soo excited when I found out she was a girl! 🙂 I mean, I hope to have a son eventually, but I really really wanted a daughter!
I started reading your blog early in your pregnancy so it’s been fun to see Caroline grow! Thanks for posting pictures!
I do remember when you announced your pregnancy……..I am so happy for you and your sweet girl, she is adorable!
Such pretty long hair! I’ve been cutting our daughter’s hair at about shoulder length, because we have a hard time keeping it untangled.
Oh Sallie! She’s adorable!!!
I’m a Girl Mom too! I’m sooo glad we had a girl! Of course, if we had had a boy, I’m sure God would have given me the grace and know-how to mother a boy! 🙂
Caroline is so beautiful! Enjoy. 🙂
I sometimes miss the cuddly baby days…but I find that I am really loving the toddler stage. Little Bit is still a baby at 2…but she is just so much fun now.
Oh little girls…there’s nothing like them! I adore my boys, but I was so thankful God gave us a girl to start off. Mine loves dresses too, at 5 she will occasionally wear pants/shorts, but they have to have some sort of feminine flair. We are expecting our fourth, and she (and I, I must say!) are hoping this little one will be a sister for her. 🙂 I keep reminding her (and myself) that God knows and chooses best….but after two wonderful little boys, I’m ready for more pink! 😉
I wish we could keep clothes on our toddler, let alone dresses!