"Don't Fence Me In"

After watching Clara reach near-hysteria on our recent drive down to Texas after hours of being strapped into her car-seat, over-tired, and refusing to sleep or be distracted with toys, I began realizing how much her distaste for confinement has manifested itself throughout her life.

• It all started in the womb. That child would kick out her legs and lock knees, stretch out her body as much as possible, and press outward on every side as if to make more room. I frequently has bruises from her doing this, none of which have I experienced in my current pregnancy (although I still have 2 months to go).
• After she was born we tried for a couple weeks to swaddle her at sleep times or if she was upset, having been told all babies love this. Finally, logical deduction led us to stop these efforts, after which time Clara began sleeping spread eagle and much more contentedly.
• She's never been one to be happy on long walks her in stroller. As much as I pushed the issue, thinking she would adapt, I ended up putting myself into many stressful situations trying to sing to her, distract her with toys and snacks, or carry her in one arm and push the stroller with the other long enough to get us back home without disturbing the whole neighborhood.
• She has never been easy on car trips.  

And I can't blame her for any of it. Upon thinking about her low-confinement-tolerance, I realized the old Roy Rogers song "Don't Fence Me In" would be fitting for her.

So for anyone who needs a good 'ol song stuck in your head today, here's the link to hear it:

Roy Rogers singing "Don't Fence Me In" (Click 'Skip Ad' on the screen)

That's definitely a reminiscent song for me, and one I heard many times on family road trips growing up. Makes me happy. :)

Clara-isms

As Clara's language is continuing to develop, she's come up with several phrases and "isms" to aid in her communication with us.

While we know exactly what she means, it's quite humorous to see how she twists sounds and joins words to create her go-to phrases.

Clara-isms

• "Take a night night"--anyone who's sleeping for any reason
• "Meekos-songs" --turn on some music!
• "a-das-da-dis-das-JESUS!" --Clara's interpretation of how to read books: babbling with an occasional, excited "Jesus!" thrown in every couple of pages. :)
• "Sockies, horsey, ducky" --Somehow she discovered putting the "y" sound at the end of words for effect.  
• "Coffee" --every drink that mom drinks apparently
• "See-ya-later" --to anyone who's leaving
• "Hugs! (we hug) Kithes! (we kiss) High fi! (we high five)" --Clara's more-than-daily demand for affection. So cute.
• "Baby A-na" --the name of her baby doll and every baby we see in pictures or in public, not to mention the name of her little cousin...

Some of my favorite and most persistent Clara mis-pronunciations

• "Noke"--milk
• "Beet-beet" --the sound a horn makes
• "Gink-gee" --stinky
• "Block-ee" --broccoli
• "A-pack" --backpack
• "Neea" --banana
• "Ca-pa" --grandpa
• "Pu-ter" --computer

Surprisingly, she can say many words accurately and clearly; I would say over a hundred of them, if not more.  She's coming right along in her communication-skills.

And, she's finally referring to me as mommy, which is heart-warming.  Up until now I've pretty much been the "hey you!" who will come if she cries or fusses, so there was no motivation for her to label me with a name, even though Mitch has been "dad" for like a year.

I'm happy to say I'm moving up in the world!