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Valentina’s 22 month update
There are so many precious things about this very moment in time that I don’t want to forget about my children. I love the way they curl up on my lap and fit so perfectly in my arms. I love the way they sleepily smile in the morning with their bedhead, teddy bear in hand. I haven’t shared much about our third child because she’s our third which inevitably means I’m very busy every day. But there are a few things I never want to forget about Valentina and her brother and sister at this age.
Here goes nothing!
10 random facts and thoughts on Valentina at 22 months old:
1. She is speaking up a storm. She speaks in full sentences and picks up language a lot faster than the other two did. For example, this morning over the course of twenty minutes she said the following things:
“I did it!”
“Where’s baba? At work.”
“I want to eat”
“I love you too.”
“I need help.”
“Alessandra did it.”
“Bad girl!”
“I dance my music.”
2. She pronounces her brother and sister’s names the cutest way. Raffi is RA-RA and Alessandra is SA-SA or A-SA-SA. Her baby blankets and babies are ALL called BLAY-BIES. I will be sad when she stops with the cute names.
3. Valentina is the biggest troublemaker out of all my kids. She is a very curious child and has dumped out entire drawers, climbs into baskets, throws food off her tray, and tries to run into the street daily. Just this morning she opened her changing table drawer from her crib and carefully pulled out every. single. wipe.
4. Much like me as a child, Valentina likes her sleeves pushed up constantly. She just isn’t comfy when her sleeves are down!
5. One day Ali was trying to help me by pulling Valentina into the mud room to put her shoes on. Valentina yanked herself away, looked at Ali disapprovingly and yelled “BAD GIRL!” while wagging her finger at her. We all started cracking up.
6. Valentina is obsessed with big shoes. She cries to get them on and then walks around like a clown while giggling. It is adorable (when she isn’t frustrated).
7. I’ve kept up with taking plenty of photos of the kids, as you can see by my Instagram feed. Valentina loves the camera and will smile big while yelling “cheeeeeseeee!” the minute you try to take a photo of her.
8. Unlike my other kids, Valentina doesn’t really like fruit or vegetables. She goes crazy for sweets and it’s a struggle to get her to eat any fruit besides apples, pears, cantaloupe and watermelon. She dislikes all the berries and won’t touch a vegetable besides green peas and cucumbers. I hope she outgrows it soon!
9. Valentina wants to be potty trained so badly but I’m waiting for her to turn 2. She also loves brushing her teeth and spending a lot of time in the bathtub. However, she will also make every effort to dump all the bathwater onto our tile floor.
10. Valentina loves her big brother and sister so much. She lets them dress her up, throw her into the foam pit at the trampoline place, snuggle with her and read books to her. She demands their attention and they love to give it to her.
BONUS STORY: If I try to carry one of the other kids, Valentina physically pulls them off of me and yells “mine!” She thinks that I belong to her and her only. Luckily the kids get a kick out of it.
And before I forget… here are a few things I don’t want to forget about Raffi and Ali at this age:
1. Ali, almost 4, says “blanklet” and I will be so sad the day she stops.
2. Raffi, 5.5, is reading chapter books now (he just finished James and the Giant Peach) and makes every effort to teach Ali to read. They sit together for a long time every week to “practice” her reading. It’s so sweet.
3. Alessandra decided to tag everything in our house and then claim it isn’t her. She very clearly spells “AIL” instead of “ALI” and has tagged their kids’ chairs, our bathroom door multiple times, our countertop, Valentina’s hand, and more. She’s a sneaky one!
4. Raffi is taking gymnastics now and takes it very seriously, but if I ask him about it he denies practicing. I catch him practicing his stretches and wall handstands when he thinks no one is looking.
5. Moving has been the absolute greatest thing for our family. I love our new home and yard and neighborhood and neighbors and we couldn’t be happier here. More on that soon!
Pomegranate Celebration Cocktail for Thanksgiving
It’s been a long time since I’ve shared a recipe here, and to be honest this isn’t quite a recipe either. But it’s a delicious cocktail that I intend to make in giant batches on Thanksgiving. It will be our first time hosting in our new home, and we finally have the room for everyone to sit at tables together. We have 40+ people coming and I can’t wait! With such a large group I thought it would be fun to make a cocktail for everyone to enjoy in addition to our bar set up. If you’re looking for a tasty and refreshing fall or winter cocktail this is the one for you.
Pomegranate Celebration Cocktail
1 part pomegranate juice
1 part PAMA pomegranate liqueur
4 parts prosecco
1 spoon of fresh pomegranate arils per serving
Directions: Stir together the first three ingredients. Put one spoonful of fresh pomegranate arils into your glass, then pour in the cocktail. Enjoy with ice or without!
Some notes: I found the Pom brand pomegranate juice in the refrigerated section of our grocery store. You can also find pomegranate juice in the end caps of the refrigerated section at Target next to the Naked juices. Last, Sam’s Club has the best pomegranates right now and they are priced reasonably at 6 each for $12.
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