Alphabet: In December's post, I mentioned that Madeline's new alphabet puzzle would be her challenge for 2010. Well, that didn't last long. She can assemble that puzzle with ease, rattling off the letters and their representations by rote ("A is for apple, B is for basket..."). Aside from the puzzle, she can identify most of the upper-case letters that she encounters in the world. And, with some minor guidance, she can sing the ABC song. Of course, the ABC song has little meaning for her in relation to the actual alphabet. She's just memorized the tune and the sounds - so "lmnop" is a single phrase and not five separate letters. But she's definitely getting the idea that letters make words. For instance, she knows that we're supposed to be reading the letters when we're looking at a book - when she realizes that we're not reading exactly the words printed in the book, she'll point to them and say "Read this!"
Defiance: As Madeline explores her newly gained "Two-dom," she's exhibits more and more traits associated with that age. While I certainly wouldn't describe her as "terrible," she definitely is more vocal about what she wants and what she doesn't want. This is nothing new, but it can seem more intense at times than it has in the past. Her new phrase, coined just this week, has been to yell "it's mine!" when we try to take something from her that she shouldn't have. It's funny to watch because she's not doing it in a selfish or particularly angry manner, but you can tell she's throwing that phrase out there to see what happens. She's testing limits, which is exactly what she should be doing.
Here are some pictures from the past month:
In early March we took Madeline on her first real hike - to Ragged Mountain near Charlottesville. We had been camping and hiking before, but for the first time Madeline walked much of the trail herself.
Madeline enjoys hiding in the bushes that line the front of our house.
Madeline checks out the first flowers of spring.
Madeline enjoys playing the piano and the guitars. Who knows - will she be a musician? It intrigues me to think about the interests and hobbies she'll pick up along the way.
Stomping in an early-spring puddle.
One of the last times we had to put on the winter coat and hat.
Madeline's been eating with us in her booster seat at the big table for a few weeks now (and, yes, she's reaching for her vegetables!).
Madeline gives the blooming daffodils in our yard a good sniff.
Under mom's tutelage, and drawing some inspiration from her pink tutu, Madeline practices her ballet moves.
The cutest ballerina I've ever seen.
On a gorgeous spring day we went to Maymont to visit the animals and enjoy the weather. Madeline enjoyed the eager, friendly goats - from a safe distance.
