2/21

2/19 belly button
laughing
sleeping

9/27

signing more, saying more
MMMMM
bubbles
crawling, bum in air when sleeping
mama
nurse
eat
waving (mirror)
growling at b-day party
imitating

steve's job on website

10/23

add
sleeping through the night
bye to toy
bubbles
ticklish
10/26 heard a duck, paused a few seconds and said "duh"

11/10

pulling to stand this week, plopping down on bottom
book
mmmmmmm

My youngest sister Catherine's birthday is today and that gives me the excuse to publicly reminisce about my baby sis. At age 10, my mom decided it was good for me to understand some things so she told me that if "something" was missing in a few weeks she would know she was pregnant. Immediately I knew she was pregnant. Just knew. And I was so thrilled. That little one was Catherine and she was born when I was 11. I remember the last time I saw my mom pregnant with Catherine. Two of my cousins were sleeping over and my mom came to tell us goodnight. I remember looking at her enormous belly and thinking that she looked so tired. She was draped in an long-sleeved, to-the-floor, ugly 1970's silk nightgown (that so happened to be Taylor's cuddly "silky" for a long time) which was probably the only thing that would fit her at the time. The next morning, we awoke to Grandmother announcing that Momma was in the hospital. Happy day! I got to go to the hospital a few hours later and when I walked in my Papa was walking from the labor and delivery hallway back into the waiting room. Always the man for tact and good sense, he said, "I was just back by Rhonda's room and she was just screaming and yelling!" That terrified me. (Why would he say that in front of her kids?) We knew Catherine's name would be Catherine before she did and I thought that was a beautiful name. I was Catherine's babysitter and ______ and even taught her how to walk. I thought she was so cute and that her toddler laugh was hilarious. In fact, it wasn't really a toddler laugh. It was more of an adult laugh and she still has it. Catherine is now 19 and a student at Utah Valley University studying deaf education and sign language interpretation. I am so proud of her and who she is and so grateful that she's in our family!

Here are a few stories from Catherine's childhood that I love:

Around Age 3: I was babysitting and laying down with her in bed to put her to sleep. She said, "Do you love me?" I thought, "Oh how incredibely sweet!" and said, "Of course I do!" To which she replied, "Then feed my sheep." Then bust up laughing.

Around Age 4: The UPS trucks drives in up to the front of our house. Catherine ran to see who it was and said, "Oh, It's just the PMS man."

Around Age 3: Brother Taylor and Cousin Jeanette overheard Catherine looking up at the sky and saying, "Heavenly Father and Jesus, make all my wishes and dreams come true!" Taylor and Jeanette then put on sheets and fake beards from the costume box, knocked on the front door, and when Catherine opened it said, "We're here to make all your wishes and dreams come true." (The best part: My reverent mother helped them with their costumes.)

Around Age 4: Catherine was watching an Elvis movie on TV. When he came on the screen, she said "ooo-la-la". I said, "What kind of talk is that?" She said, "Love talk."

Around Age 5: (For some reason, Catherine had a grudge against marriage at a very early age while at the same time loving boys at a very early age.) Catherine: "I'm never getting married." Me (ever the all-knowing and happy to share her knowledge big sister): You have to get married to get into the highest degree of the Celestial Kingdom, you know." Catherine: "Thanks a lot." And stomps off.

Age 6: For her 1st grade class talent show, Catherine decided to wear and turquoised, squequined adult formal gown with giant shoulder pads. It was knee length for adults and came to floor. My mother got it discounted for her to dress up on. She wore it as she sang along with Celine Dion to To My Heart Will Go On.

Age 6: She frequently serenaded us on the car. She loved to sing with Christine in The Phantom of the Opera and thought for sure she was hitting those extremely high notes as well as she did. She also loved to listen to music from The Wizard of Oz and assisgned characters to all of us. She, of course, was Dorothy.

- McKay walked 4 or 5 steps by himself today!
- McKay tells on himself when he's doing something he's not supposed to. He says "no no no" before we can say anything. Sometimes he'll say it even before he does it so we have a warning. Or sometimes we hear it from another room so we know we need to go check on him.
- He loves to say "uh oh" and then throw something. So because he says it before he throws it, we have a warning and can grab it from him if we need to.

- McKay puts whatever he is holding to his head when I say "brush your hair." He also puts a brush to his head on his own.
- Today, McKay put a washcloth to his face when I said, "Wipe your face."

"Hot" Humidifier

McKay has a cold so the humidifier was going in his bedroom. When he saw the steam coming from it, he said "hot" and blew on it.

Yummy Feet

I had my feet up on the ottoman that McKay was kneeling at. He grabbed my feet and I wiggled them. Then he leaned forward, smelled them, and said "mmmmmmmm!"

- Today (12/17) McKay saw a furred-lined hood in my closet and said "meow". I asked it what it was and he said "cat, cat."
- When we finish our morning jog and walk up to the front door, I hold my hand out and tell McKay, "Good work! We did it! Give me a five!" And so he does. Now, as soon as we walk up to the door, he holds his hand out first so he can give me a five.
- While reading a book this morning, I said "fish" and McKay said "-ish" and moved it hand to try to do the sign for fish before I even did it.
- McKay loves to growl and loves when he gets "scared" by it.
- One of my favorite things McKay does is said "wow" or "oh wow" and sometimes "woe." Sometimes I can tell what he's looking at when he does that and sometimes I can't. He said it when he looks out the window, when he looks a fan or lights, or anything interesting, I guess. This morning when he woke up, I went and got him and brought him to our bed to nurse. He laid down, looked at the fan and said "wow, wow, woe."
- I think he says "nurse" when I tell him it's time to nurse and I think he said it on his own today when he bumped his head and wanted comfort.
- When I'm nursing him and it's time to change to the other side, I say "switch!" and he thinks it's funny and started copying me. Now, when he want to change sides (and usually it's from the right to the left because he likes that side better and can get more milk faster) he says "-itch."
- He tells me "night, night" when I say it to him. Today (12/17) he pulled up to the side of his crib from the floor and said "night, night."
night, night
- When he is hungry, sees something to eat, or I say "eat" he says, "mmmmmm", sometimes
very high-pitched.
- He loves to growl to be funny.

Proud Momma

I'm so proud of my sweet baby! He had gone to bed for the night and I thought I heard him crying from the other room. But it wasn't very loud and I wasn't even sure it was him. A little while later, I went in to check on him and he had the pacifier in his mouth which had fallen out and landed above his shoulder when he fell asleep. So the smart little guy found his own pacifier, put it in his mouth, and calmed himself back to sleep!