Locks and a new anxiety...

There was a time in my life when it didn't matter that I did not have a key to the bottom lock of my front door. That all changed this morning with a call from my husband, on my neighbors' cell phone, announcing the need for me to get home because Lili had locked herself in the house.

Matt took Jr (my sister's dog) out front for a quick constitutional, and in that amount of time, Lili locked the screen door. Top lock, thank God! This is a feat in of itself. That lock is a bit of a hassle. You must pull the door knob, jiggle it as you turn, etc. But Lili managed to get it locked with little effort.

And what is amazing is that this is the one day in 4 years Matt has not had a house key on his key ring. Kyla took his last night so she could let Jr in this morning on her way to work (her roommate is moving in today and the four-legged love sponge needed to be out of the way). He had his keys with him, but no house key. And no phone.

I was in Downtown Phoenix when I got the call. I raced home, paniced. I knew Matt was there, but what can he do with a locked security door between him and her? Thoughts of every horrible nature popped into my head. We currently have 2 couches in our house, so I envisioned her climbing the one that is replacing our old on, getting on the table, the freezer or the island and falling, stabbing herself, or just plain getting hurt.

I don't know how I got home so fast, or how I managed to do it without killing myself or anyone else. I hope there were no speed cameras around because I'll be getting tickets for sure if there were.

She is fine, but she was crying when I got there. She couldn't understand why Daddy wouldn't come in the house. I swooped her up in my arms and hugged the dickens out of her...and then started crying uncontrollably for about 10 minutes.

I have always suspected I was becoming my mother. Now I have the proof.

Kyla and I are going tonight to get new locksets for ALL of the doors. I don't want the next time she does this to be with the little twisty locks on the door knobs, the ones I mentioned before that I DO NOT have a key for. Then I'm storing extras in strategic locations around the damn house and in the cars for just such an emergency.

A few new pictures

This is Lili occupying herself at a children's store with the movie "Ratatouille". I must say the thought of rats cooking dinner makes me never want to eat again. Bleck. But she liked the music.

This is Lili in her new Princesses Chair that she picked out. I pushed for the Tinkerbell one (that is purple and green and not a spec of pink), but I lost the battle. Sigh...

To the best of my knowledge this is the first time Lili has ever been on a ride at a store. This is obviously Dino, at it is as the Toys R Us near the house when we got her Princesses Chair.


She was far more enthused with the ATV than picking out furniture. I have a feeling something like this will be under the tree this Christmas.

Her new favorite past time...Sled Dad races in the living room. That is her leash/backpack thing hooked to it.

I think this is self-explanitory. She did this all by herself.

19 Months Ago Today...

Today Lili is 19 months old.

My little Lili Monster has gone through a lot in a short about of time. Difficult labor/delivery, a (short, thankfully) stay in the hospital, the dog attack and subsequent surgery,a couple of colds, vaccines, skinned knees, several bonks to the head, and her first car trip.

She has gone from a little lump of love, to rolling over, to sitting on her own, to standing on her own, to walking on her own and now to running on her own. She's learning to talk, to eat like a big girl, and she even gives you her feet when she sees the socks and shoes come out (albeit usually the wrong foot for the shoe you are holding up).

She relishes bath time, play time, her alone time, using the slide at the park by herself, and any chance she has to harass the dogs in our family (Jr., Punky and now Foxy).

She hates to be told no. She cries if she doesn't get her way or if you won't get up and follow her when she wants you to.

She wants to feed herself, she turns on the bathroom faucet by herself, pushes things under the light switches so she can stand on them and flip the switches to her hearts content, as well as the washing machine and dryer (and usually when they are empty). She climbs the stairs by herself. She bounces in her crib. She grabs books and reads.


She's had personality from day one. She is going to be this independent little imp for the rest of her life. She will work to get her way no matter the situation, which can be both good and bad. She will have goals and accomplish them all because she wants to. She'll figure out any problem, situation, or road block that comes her way.

She has a heart as big as she is. She has a smile that is even bigger and can light up a whole room. Her laugh makes my heart skip a beat. When she wraps those adorable little fingers around my hand, I melt into a puddle of mom goo.


She's the light of my life and becoming her mother has been one of the single greatest experiences of my life. My baby grows and changes everyday. She learns a new word every day. It is exciting to be a part of this journey she is on. And I can't believe I am so blessed to have a healthy, happy, and wickedly intelligent child.

She is my "Little Wonder". Every time I hear this song I think of her. Here it is for all of you to enjoy.

Back from Sedona

We had a great time. Lili most of all...provided she was not in her car seat. She loved running around Sedona and Oak Creek Canyon. But the moment you tried to put her back in car seat the screaming started.

Matt & Lili at Slide Rock State Park
Lili appreciating public art by climbing on it and playing on it.

She did not like the drive up once we hit the peak at I-17 before Camp Verde. Her first ear pressure popping experience. Not fun, but she did get a Happy Meal for her pain and suffering.

Getting her Happy Meal

We were unable to get a larger hotel room, so poor Lili got to sleep in her pack n play in the bathroom. In all fairness we tried it in the room and she just kept poking Matt in the head and pulling his hair. No one got sleep the first night, causing a bit of stress on my part the next, but all is better now.
Lili falling face first into some flowers she was trying to sniff. I laughed, yes, but it was funny and she didn't cry.

We did come home a day early, but it is all good. Lili is now nestled in her crib sound asleep and Matt and I are watching Family Guy while I upload pictures.

And now for some nature pictures ...

Lili at the Park today

Pictures of Lili

Hi All,

Sorry it has been so long since I blogged about the munchkin. Things have been very busy around here preparing for Zoo Walk on Saturday. Plus the exciting Holiday Book Drive for the St. Peter's Indian Mission School that is coming into play here REALLY soon. I will post more on that later.

I've got a bunch of pictures of the Lil-meister for you to enjoy.

She loves to feed herself now (and notice the beautiful new color on the wall that Matt painted as a surprise).
This is what Lili does in the mornings. She gets her milk and her cheerios, cuddles on the couch and watches the Sprout Channels Sunny Side Up Show with Daddy before starting her day of running around, climbing, running around, screeching at the top of her lungs, running around, eating, running around, sleeping, running around, making a mess, running around, helping Matt unload the dishwasher or sort laundry, running around, and greeting me at the door. Busy busy day!
See above description :-D
This is her REALLLLYYYY missing her mouth. She thought this was hilarious. Then Matt made Mohawk out of it (after he stopped laughing) and I had to wash her hair 3 times before it all came out.
And this was tonight. She used the spoon for awhile, but then, as you can see, she switched to using her whole hand. Quite messy but hilarious. I just love the fact that she wants to do things for herself. She is independent and I think it is great.

I really love this little girl, and I'm so glad I have her in my life. I'm blessed and do my best to treasure her and cherish every moment of her little girl-hood.

Lili's 18-month Checkup

She is still perfect, folks. But we all knew that.

She is in the 97% for head size (genius), 90% for height (tall, 34"), and 70% for weight (skinny, 24.11 pounds). Again, she is a tall, skinny genius. I've said it before, I'll say it again.

I asked about the talking thing. She says about 6 words but doesn't seem to move past that. And she gets frustrated trying to say what she wants to say. The Dr. said there is nothing to worry about. She is fine, no need to panic, and yes I was panicing, but I am calm now. Whew!

I am still going to use the flash cards and sound out words with her. She is having a bit of trouble with sounds and gets frustrated. We'll work on it.

One day she will babble and then the next she'll be talking in full, coherent sentences, just you wait.