Memories - The Prequel

I have decided to input my previous blog stories into this blog.  Enjoy!

2007 Memories

Life with Dayna was never boring.

One night I was on the computer after Dayna was in bed. I heard her get up and go to the bathroom. About twenty minutes later I smelled something. I went to inspect. I found the stove burner turned on with no flame. ACK! I smell GAS! Holy moley!

I turned off the burner and opened all the windows I could. I closed the bedroom door to protect Dayna from the fumes (the window was open for fresh air). I then proceeded to sit outside in a lawn chair until the house was sufficiently aired out...until 2-3am :-/

The Cucumber Story of '96

I don't even think Dayna was a year old yet. She was very advanced for her age - rolling over at 2 months, scooting by 4 months, climbing the stairs at 6 months, standing and running (not walking, running!) at 9 months and getting her own Froot Loops and sippy cups out of the fridge by the time she was one.

One afternoon (or evening, it was a long time ago), Lisa and I were sitting in the living room chatting while Dayna watched TV (probably Lamb Chop). Suddenly, we realized Dayna was no longer in the living room with us. I hollered for her. No response. Of course not, she's a baby. I hollered some more while I got up and began looking for her.

I nearly had a heart attack when I walked into the kitchen to find my "baby" sitting on the floor straddling a cucumber in one hand and a steak knife in the other. She was getting her own snack. I tried not to get to frantic while I approached her to save her from the steak knife. She was doing a wonderful job, but I had visions of missing fingers!

Cheese Head (and I don't mean a Packer's fan)

As you've seen above, my daughter was a quick one hitting those milestones. By the time she was 14 months old, I had her trained to get out of bed, get her sippy cup from the fridge, and pop in Winnie the Pooh so I could get an extra hour of sleep (well, half sleep). After Pooh was over, she would come wake me up. I wouldn't be able to get the kid to sleep until 11pm, no naps during the day, and she'd be up at 6-7am.

One morning during our routine, Pooh ended and Dayna decided she wanted breakfast. She went into the fridge, got out a block of cheddar cheese and made her way to the bedroom to "wake up Momma." Momma was in for a rude awakening. My darling daughter didn't just wake me up, she clobbered me! She threw the cheese at my head, said, "Cheese!" and then looked at me expectantly grinning. If it wasn't the first time she said "cheese," I'd have been really upset!

Don't buy glass baby bottles
When Dayna was little, I used to buy the little glass 4 oz bottles of apple juice for her. I washed and reused them for a long time. Sometimes while we laid in bed (because my kid never liked the crib and the bed was the only place I could get her to sleep) she would have a little water bottle.

One night while we were laying in bed, she was drinking her bottle, I was dozing. Imagine my rude awakening, if you will, of my little one swinging her hand back holding the nipple of the bottle while saying, "More!" As my luck would have it, the glass bottle smashed into my eyebrow bone and sent me into tears and seeing stars!

I never bought, nor used, glass baby bottles after that. Can ya see why?

Please don't be in the pool!

When Dayna was about three years old, we had some company over. All of the adults were in the kitchen playing Spades. Every so often I would go check on Dayna while she played in the living room. For a few hours that worked out well. Then one time, Dayna no longer appeared in the living room.

I hollered for her. No response. (Do we see a trend here?) I ran through the house hollering. Still no response. I sent someone to the store to see if she went for cheese doodles (she had a habit of wandering to the store three houses down to get 25 cent bags of chips). Everyone else was wandering around looking for her. I ran out to the backyard in tears and grabbed the skimmer. The pool was green at that time (either early in the season or late in the season, I can't remember). I cried my eyes out while I dug through the pool thinking, "Please don't be in the pool, Please don't be in the pool!"

I ran back into the house crying and hollering for her. As I walked aimlessly through the living room I heard a giggle. A giggle! Where is it coming from? "Dayna?" Another giggle. The TV! The TV is giggling at me? "Dayna Leigh!" She poked her head out from behind the TV laughing and smiling! I didn't know whether to yell at her or hug her. I opted for hugging.

The intelligence of a three year old
I have learned a lot from my daughter over the years.

For instance, remember when the gear shifter of the car was made from those little broom bristles? Did you know that's a piggy bank? Me neither, until Dayna started dropping coins into it.

Did you know that if we didn't have skeletons we'd look like jelly fish? I hadn't put that one together until my daughter told me.

One of my favorite stories is when Dayna was about three years old. It was morning, early morning. I put the kettle on for a cup o' instant java, Momma's wake up juice. Dayna came into the kitchen and said, "Momma, can I...wait. Have you had your coffee yet?"

I groggily said, "No."

My snarky daughter looked at me and simply said, "I'll come back later," and walked back to the living room. Ah, I trained her well! She's the best!
 
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There are numerous other stories I can tell. Once I have some more time and remember them, I shall update this.