Gabby Highlights

People with kids know this already but the changes that Gabby has made in just the last couple of months is amazing. I see pictures of her from last year and can't believe she was once a little baby. Some of the highlights since I last blogged include...

1. An EXPLODING vocabulary. She says the funniest things... After she was done getting her blood taken she said- "Gabby did it!" She came to me today and said, "Gabby wants love." That one melted my heart. She also says, "No, mine!" That one isn't so funny. She talks about herself in third person... is that normal? "Gabby eat," "Gabby- Go! Go! Go!" I'm going to start blogging all these comments so I don't forget.

2. She's counting to ten, but once in awhile forgets a number but she pretty much has it down.

3. Pooping and peeing on the toilet. Not consistently but it's getting better. Of course, we make a huge fuss over this and she gets so proud of herself- which is understandable. Being potty-trained is a big leap into becoming a little girl- which makes me happy but a little sad. I don't want her to grow up too fast but having to deal with diapers is a big plus. She watched her cousin Stuart peeing on the potty today, which was a funny site. She was just STARING at him. I sometimes wonder what is going on in her head...

4. She loves the song, "Poker Face," by Lady Ga-Ga and sings it in the car. Speaking of singing she loves, "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star," "Wheels on the Bus," and the infamous Tebo love song which we've been singing to her since she was born. The lyrics are to the Barney song. A tad cheesy, but super cute to me.
I love you, you love me
we're a happy family
with mommy, daddy, and baby Gabby
we're the Tebo family
She sits in her crib when she's done taking a nap or putting herself to sleep and she'll sing any one of these songs.

5. She's a lot like me in the way that she loves to dress-up, or as she says, "wear pretty dress," but she also likes to get dirty and play in the mud. She loves climbing, running, and rolling around in the grass.

6. Temper tantrums are a daily occurence. We give her time-outs and explain why she gets them, etc. Those aren't fun but the best thing (and worst, sometimes) is that toddlers get easily distracted, so we're using that trick as long as we can.

7. She loves Elmo, Sesame Street, and Dora the Explorer. She pronounces Dora as "Doriah." Not sure why. As of right now, I would say she's borderline obsessed with the movie "Finding Nemo." She LOVES that movie. Whenever she sees a fish she'll call it Nemo.

Gabby's Second Birthday

We had Gabby's second birthday party today and it went well. Her actual birthday in June 28th, but we'll be on a road trip to Yellowstone and will do a little one for her on that trip but wanted to do a family one this time. It was a Sesame Street theme, with an emphasis on Elmo because she adores him. It was originally going to be at a park, but not many people could make it and the weather wasn't that great so we had it at my parent's house. My parents, Marty, Grammy LaNita *Trav's mom), Aunt Tahnee (tav's sister), cousin Langston, Uncle Toby (Trav's brother), and cousins Stuart and Wesley were there to make it a fun party. We all wore Elmo hats and sand "Happy Birthday" to her and she loved it. In fact, later that night she was saying "Happy Birthday Gabby!" I got a regular cake made from Fred Meyer and baked her some gluten free cupcakes. It was never clear if the store-bought frosting was gluten free so I didn't get it. She's also not supposed to eat dairy so I didn't make homemade frosting- hopfully next year. She got some really cool stuff. I think Travis and I are going to shell out some moola in China and buy her a Little Tikes kitchen. I know she would love it and get a lot of use out of it. Plus, we have the space since we moved.

Back in the States!

We're back in America, baby! China blocked blogspot.com so I've been out-of-service but I'm here again for the two people who actually read this. No pictures for awhile because my mom's computer sucks and I can't download them. The very best part of coming home is opening up all the stuff I ordered online... okay, and the friends and family are good too... but it feels like Christmas when I get back that I can hardly sleep because I'm so excited about everything I get to do. I went shopping for gluten free food and found a TON of stuff, including pizza. There are also restaurants that cater to gluten free diets, like Red Robin, The Old Spaghetti factory, and Outback Steakhouse. Travis is in Las Vegas for a bachelor party and Gabby is NOT sleeping. I'm such a nice wife.