32 Months

This year is already going by so fast. Sabine continues to amaze us daily with what she picks up, learns, and comes up with on her own. She's been very interested in babies for a while, she's always loved her baby dolls, and with several of the moms in our play group having just been pregnant, she's watched the process. One of Sabine's favorite games is to tuck a doll under her shirt and talk about the baby in her belly. (Usually it's a girl, and usually her name is Josie, but occasionally she switches it up on us, just to keep us on our toes.)



Sabine will go around telling her other dolls and stuffed animals that "I can't pick you up right now because I have a baby in my belly."


In this picture, she is demonstrating how her lap is getting smaller to one of her other dolls, like in her current favorite book, The Berenstain Bears' New Baby.

Sabine has a noticeably longer attention span now than she used to, she likes books with more words and spends longer at a given activity. She's doing a lot more independent play, and we get a kick out of listening to her make up scenarios with her dolls and animals in her bed when she's not in the mood to go down for a nap. It often involves Sabine draping a blanket over her head and talking about her long hair and/or braids. It's funny, I remember doing that as a kid, too!

Sabine also upped her creative skills this week--out of nowhere she said she was going to draw a person, and then proceeded to draw a circle with two eyes, a nose, and a mouth! I had no idea she knew how to do that, but it was absolutely identifiable, right up until she drew all over it with a different color. Still! Discernible shapes. That's a big step. She's drawn several other people since then, occasionally adding hair and ears as well.


Admiring her handiwork in her Father's Day card to Daddy.

Sabine's still very active, she loves to run and jump, but she's able to sit still for longer periods too, as I mentioned in the last post, restaurants have become much more enjoyable. She's currently taking a solid two-hour-long nap in the afternoons, usually around 2:00, which is great because for a while there we thought she was giving up her naps. But she's also going to bed later, often not falling asleep until after 9:00. It's hard to go to bed early when the sun is still out so late! But she gets more time with Daddy in the evenings, which is a treat for everyone, and we're able to enjoy the evenings a little, as the sun goes down and the air cools off just a bit. She's a big fan of running through the puddles when the sprinklers come on.



Overall, a great month!

Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day to our favorite daddy!



And to our favorite Grandpa! I wish we had a more recent picture, but this one will have to do. Sabine had a wonderful time with you on Friday, and we hope you are having a safe trip, so far.



We had a lovely weekend with family and friends. Sabine got some good quality time in with daddy, and they even watched Dumbo together for the first time. We didn't have to fast-forward at all, which is a big deal. Usually with movies there are intense or "scary" parts that Sabine insists we fast-forward, but Dumbo went straight through.

Dustin got some good bonding time in with his other favorite person this weekend, too, yay for another boy in the family!



We had a nice, relaxing weekend, and even hit a few restaurants. It is really getting easier with Sabine, she is able to sit still longer and entertain herself more. We're finally at a point where it is really fun to go out to eat together as a family. Hooray! That is something both mommy and daddy enjoy very much, and hopefully Sabine will too.

If only this beautiful weekend wasn't over quite so quickly.

Estes Park

This past weekend, we stayed up at the YMCA of the Rockies in Estes Park with some good friends. It was, overall, a fantastic trip.


Moms and girls


Play time on the deck before dinner.


Easing into the day with breakfast in the cabin.


Hiking with Daddy. Sabine refused to go in the carrier, she climbed the whole way by herself. Complete with her own backpack. (And then melted down and had to be carried for the return trip.) But still! Half a mile up a mountain! We are proud.


Admiring Dream Lake with Daddy.


Attempt at family portrait. Sabine refused to be in the picture if Mommy's hair is going to look that goofy.


Hugging. Probably the best picture from the whole trip!


Getting a massage after a tough day in the outdoors.

We had a great time with some really special friends. Here's hoping this becomes an annual tradition! There was even a pool, and a round of very windy mini-golf. Sabine enjoyed holding her ball, maybe next year we will work on putting.