Getting older

 Madeleine is getting old enough that I'm really starting to use more montessori activities in our home. Most of them are practical life skills. They help me out the most and she loves them. On top of that, she's so proud of herself for helping me.

She moves all of the laundry from the laundry basket to the washer. 

 She brushes and "flosses" her own teeth.

She washes the tupperware.

She has her bath routine down. She knows how to drain the tub, put away her toys, and wrap herself in a towel. I don't even need to remind her most of the time. It's awesome.

She also knows the more complex routine of leaving the house. She not only gets her shoes, gloves, doll, doll stroller ready to leave, but she also helps me get my shoes, socks, hat, and coat on. If Baby X is around, she also grabs all of his things. It's pretty funny.

She helps pick out snacks and prepare them.

She is great at "helping" with baking. She actually is pretty good at pouring everything in and mixing...but she also has a tendency of putting fingers in all the ingredients. 

 She also has been learning how to crack and make eggs. She doesn't cook with the stove yet, but I can see that in the near future. She knows the stove is hot and that she can't touch the pan or metal part, but she also cries the whole time they are cooking...which is less than helpful.

I also recently made her a lot of little dresses. These dresses are special because she can get them on herself and they don't have a front or back. The elastic gives her plenty of room to stretch the dress while she's putting it on. 

Two has been pretty hard so far. She's struggling with the words "wait" and "after". Things like "We can leave after we pay for our food" or "After I finish this email", almost always leads to a meltdown. She's trying really hard though, and I'm hoping as we help her be a little more independent that she'll feel a bit more in control. At least that's what the theory is according to parenting books...