Singing Songs & Rhymes & Books

I am always impressed with how kids remember things and create associations with places and people. We already knew that you loved listening to music, and dancing and have great rhythm (which I think you get from your daddy). He's always humming, signing, he's been making songs up about bath time and brushing your teeth since you were born. Now you start signing his songs and others randomly, and it makes us laugh! You even get the rhythms right... so even if the words are off sometimes, we still recognize what song you're singing right away.
Once on a long car ride home, you and I went though a hand full of songs. ABC song, Twinkle, Twinkle song which is probably your favorite and you know all the words too, Rocka-baby (that's what you call it), Old- McDonald are a few that you just request as soon as we're done with one. The Old-MacDonald song is particularly funny because we wait for you to name the animal and tell us the sound before we sing it. So you've named off a few funny ones like octopus, and turtle to all be on the farm w/a pig, a dog, a mouse, and an owl, a turtle, a ladybug, and lots of others I can't remember anymore.

You also know a few common baby rhymes, even Russian ones that I grew up with. Unfortunately I don't remember most of them by heart, so you learn them from hanging out at Baba & Deda's house and you have so much fun when Baba does them with you. I love seeing your face light up when you see them as well as Inna, Grisha and Aaron. You talk about them all the time and as soon as we tell you that you'll see them you get super excited. Sometimes when we pick you up from daycare, you ask to see them, it's like you know that they're just around the corner from where we pick you up.

But back to the music and singing & books... You usually pick out a few of your favorite books to read after we brush your teeth. You definitely have favorites, and for a few nights you'll ask to read the same book as the night before. There are so many that you now remember. Not only the names of the actual book, but the content. As I flip the pages you finish my sentences... it's pretty incredible, your brain is just like a little sponge of information.

Since most of the nights daddy is actually the one putting you to bed while I relax or finish cleaning after dinner, I actually miss it because I don't want to forget how precious this time is, and then when I do it, I am reminded again how lucky we are to have you in our lives.

A few weeks ago when I would walk into your room to tell you to go to sleep (this happens because you constantly leave the room or start wandering around when it's bed time). You say "I want to rock", which means you want to go on the rocking chair with me and sing some songs. I really love that time, even thought it's usually past your bedtime, I love how you snuggle up next to me or lay around my growing belly and look up at me or the stars & the moon projecting on the ceiling, and just lay there calmly singing the songs with me. Sometimes you touch my lips when you want me to stop, and you continue singing on your own. This has become the last part of your bed time routine and has made a world of difference because you get all calm and relaxed, and you are much more willing to stay in your bed after we're done. It's just so precious, and totally reminds me of when I would nurse you before bedtime in that same big purple rocking chair and how much you depended on me when you were so tiny and now I can still be there for you. Part of me wants to hold on to these moments and hope they never go away! Knowing that's not very realistic, I will enjoy them now and remember them always.

I haven't been able to upload any pictures in a few weeks because our MAC broke :(, so no pictures in this post.