Ainsley 2.5 Years

*** Warning - I've been writing this post over the course of two weeks so it is LONG! I just don't want to forget anything about the way Ainsley is at 2.5 because I know it won't last. It is more for me to remember so feel free to skim. And I'm a proud mommy so there is gushing. Be warned. :) ***

Ainsley is two and a half years old and we just adore the little person she is becoming! Her personality is developing more and more and she is constantly surprising us with how kind-hearted, smart, energetic, friendly, and whiny she can be. On a daily basis she makes my heart melt with the things she does, makes me laugh with the things she says, and tries my patience with her toddler antics.


She still sleeps in her crib and isn't showing signs that she wants that to change, which I'm pretty thankful for. We only need one kiddo walking us up at night at a time! I think she technically knows how to get out because she climbed out/fell out one evening when she was upset but I think it scared her too much to try again. After nap some times she'll say "I get out all by myself" but we've told her that only mommies and daddies get her out... and she seems to accept that. Although she goes through phases, she is still taking a 2ish hour afternoon nap (which is my saving grace most days) and goes down for the night at ~7:45 pm and wakes up between 7 and 8 in the morning. She sleeps with a thousand stuffed animals in her crib but did miraculously and painlessly stop using her pacis mid-fall with only a little nudge from us, but I'll do another post on that. :)



She plays with her dollhouse daily where her imagination just goes crazy. I always hear fake crying and calling for mommy coming from the playroom and it took me a while to realize that she is just playing pretend. I love to watch her pretend and that type of pretend play is reaffirming to me. Kids pretend what they see and all her pretend play is sweet (someone lost their mommy and she helps them, or brother and sister are playing games, or mommy and daddy are saying that they love their kids very much) and value-based (sharing toys, or someone is having to sit in time-out for not listening and obeying). Seeing her play like this and repeat things that we tell her makes me feel like we have created a positive environment for her and are doing something right as parents. I need that! Although it does make me sad to see her pretending about my hurt back... I just wish that wasn't a part of her reality. Other pretend games she plays is that there is a tiger chasing her and she has to hide. Or that she is cooking in her kitchen or making 'soup' with water at the bathroom sink. She also does a LOT of pretending that she is a mommy feeding her babies (usually in the high chair or with a bottle - not nursing her babies very often anymore), putting her babies to sleep, taking them to the store, and changing their poopy diapers. She could spend 20 minutes changing her babies' poopy diapers over and over and over. It is kind of hilarious to watch because she does the same exaggerated faces and noises that we do with her stinky poopy diapers. Her imagination is just amazing!


On the topic of diapers, Ainsley is not potty trained and isn't showing many signs that she's ready. I'm trying to be patient because it seems like that is when it is most successful.... but I sure could be done changing her poopy diapers which have the tendency to stink up the whole room for 30 or so minutes after she's been changed.


Another thing that amazes us all the time is Ainsley's memory, both how she remembers things we do and say or past things that happened, and how quickly she picks up new skills. She knows all her colors, can recognize most of the letters in the alphabet, and can count to ~17 although that's not completely consistent with everything. She also is very good at remembering things such as me mentioning I bought M&Ms/Jellybeans at the store and is sure to ask if she can have some. She also annoyingly remembers the placement of certain things and gets finicky if they aren't in their correct spot. Of course she isn't particular about the placement of anything helpful like keeping her shoes in the shoe basket or her coat hung on the hook, or her toys where they go. It is more random things like the foam roller for my physical therapy, the humidifier in her room, or George's ear plugs. Weird girl.


She loves to go to school ('school-today' she calls it), the library ('I be really quiet'), swim lessons ('OHHH, I get in a floaty and wear a swim diaper!!!!), the park ('Maybe see peoples? And go down big slide?'), and loves to have friends over to her house ('You come to my house later?') but also really likes her down time. She often says that she doesn't want to do additional errands or activities because she needs to play ('I need to play a little bit. Baby not want to bother me'). She is always super social when she's around us and will often walk up to people and start a conversation but her teachers tell us that she can be reserved and slightly timid in class around her peers.


Ainsley loves music and often request to listen to it. She knows the words to several songs and I'm always surprised that she is able to remember verses and hand motions to songs that we learned in music when she was less than a year old. She loves to have music parades around the house or playroom where she marches and plays instruments.


She still loves stickers but is much more particular about them. She likes certain ones more than others, although I'm not able to see a pattern, and is picky about where she wants to put them whether on paper, her sticker house, or in her sticker books. She also loves reading books! She asks us to read her several books a day but typically before we finish she asks to "read" the book to us. Over the course of the day she probably spends about an hour lining up her animals and "reading" to them. It is pretty sweet to watch and she is surprisingly accurate with the words and details of the stories. And she loves her Daddy! I know that she loves me too but most of the time Daddy wins out - she is just a Daddy's girl at heart! :)


Ainsley of course has trying moments of non-stop whining but for the most part is a sweet, well-behaved, easy-going little girl. She has a natural desire to want to obey and most of the time accepts the things we ask of her and doesn't push the limits. She gets plenty of time-outs (time-ups as she calls it) but often just us being stern with her is enough to bring her to tears for disobeying. I'm trying to enjoy all of her rule acceptance because I think our sweet Bailey-boy is going to be a whole other story!

We just love this little girl so much!!