Eliza at 26 Months

You've probably already read about the big highlight of this month. Eliza has potty power! It's so so nice to not be changing her diapers anymore! She has been doing really well with her underwear and wakes up dry most mornings!

Eliza (and her post-dinner messy face) poses next to her potty charts that hang in the kitchen. She still gets so excited to put a sticker up.

Eliza's imagination has been running wild lately. She is always pretending something. She often hands me what she says is "fifty dollars for Mama." Mike and I don't go around passing that kind of dough back and forth, so I'm not sure where she got that idea, but I like it. She likes to pretend to blow bubbles and have me catch them. One time she was rubbing her hands together under the faucet, so I turned the water on for her. She promptly turned it off and said, "No, mom. I'm just pretending."

Eliza pulled out a dozen baby wipes and spread them out on a tray table and told me "I'm sewing a skirt for Mama." She sewed for about a half hour!

For a few weeks, Eliza was really into serving "food" to us. On the plate, you can see the baby toys that pop together (I don't know what they're called). She calls them "peanuts" and they are a part of every pretend meal.

Eliza loves being outside. We are so grateful to have a fenced backyard to play in and lots of great parks all around. Her ears are very attuned to the sounds of nature. She loves listening to the birds sing. Sometimes we'll just lie in the grass on our backs and watch the birds fly around and perch on the many branches of our trees. Since she has been helping with the garden, she is very interested in planting seeds. She is a good helper.

Eliza loves sticks. She is good at sharing them and gifting them. She is always bringing them in the house or the car.

Eliza loves helping Daddy with the yard work.

Sometimes she even takes time away from her princess-ly duties to get the mowing done.


After covering her face with strawberries, Eliza picked me a bouquet of tulips from our yard.

Eliza and her friend Scarlett get so giddy and silly when they get together!

Eliza loves Dora the Explorer. She would watch it all day if I let her. She is quoting Dora all the time. It's hilarious. Dora taught her how to count in Spanish. Eliza also loves the Backyardigans and can name all the characters. Eliza loves reading books (especially about Dora or the "Backyards"). I often find her asleep in her bed with books all around her. I like to read them to her and leave out words or sentences for her to fill in. Her memory is amazing.

Eliza found a special spot to do her artwork. She is pretty intense with her coloring these days. She fills the entire page with colors. She chose those stylish red socks to keep her feet cozy during her nap.