Singer OR Chef?

Mila is singing all the time nowadays (in her own language of course)! Never a quiet moment in the Koester household. Here is a video of Mila at the dinner table last night...just singing away to herself!

In addition to her love of music and singing, Mila has developed an obsession with my cookbooks. I do love looking through cookbooks myself so I understand the appeal, but last night, Mila's bed time story was Betty Crocker Cupcakes. REALLY?!

Here are some pictures from our adventures lately! 

We visited the good ole Topeka Zoo. I just love this picture of Mila holding hands with Patrick. Such a big girl! 

Mila and her "dudes"

Enjoying Tyson's 2nd Birthday Party! 

Cousins! 

Mila was on the verge of a meltdown in HyVee (hence the pacifier) until we remembered the kid's pony  in the lobby up front. She loved riding this pony. Look at her form! 

Enjoying  a sunny day! They have been rare!

Lola LOVE! 

Aunty LOVE! At Megan and Wes' Engagement Luau.

Reunited with her Aunty Megan

Throwback Thursday

Mila 7 Months

Mila 19 Months

Mila Discovers her Shadow!

Mila is obsessed with her shadow! And her reflection!

Singing!

We asked Mila to sing for us yesterday and this is what she came up with! Too cute!

Here are some pics taken in the past couple of weeks!

Other than the KU game, this was our highlight yesterday. UGH. I'm pretty sure rubber ducky would have preferred a lukewarm bath. We are sick of this snow!!!!!

We have enjoyed a few nice days though.Here's a super awkward shot of Mila with Aunty Alessa...enjoying a park day!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Mila in Mommy's office!

Playing Pac Man at Grandma's house! Well sorta..mostly just pushing buttons of course.

Happy Monday, everyone! We are looking forward to a warmer week (weather-wise) and fun with friends and family this weekend for Easter. So excited for Mila to hunt for eggs! I think she will really be able to understand it this year. 

Halfway to 2!

Mila is 18 months old! I think this video pretty much sums up our Mila as a toddler. DON'T EAT THE SOAP, MILA:

Mila's Aunt Kylie, and I, always joked when Mila was an infant that she was a "spicy ham." Definition - passionate (some might say difficult) yet funny and adorable. This has definitely continued into her toddler years. I cannot wait to see how she is as a teen! Mila is constantly pushing the limits and has her challenging moments but she is HYSTERICAL and so much fun!

Mila at 18 months is talking all the time! Her vocabulary amazes me. She is really into stickers and coloring (yay for not eating the crayons...sometimes), bouncy balls, puzzles and books! She is really starting to get the hang of brushing her teeth and washing her hands (we have step stools by every sink in our house and she loves looking at herself in the mirrors). We have started to introduce her to the potty but so far, Minnie Mouse is the only one who uses it.

Here are some pictures and videos from our adventures lately!

Mila with her aunties

Mila lets me put pigtails in her hair! Now she just needs to pose for a decent picture! 

Mila at "open gym" just loungin.....

My cousin, Shannon, and I ran the Shamrock Shuffle while kiddos and husbands cheered us on! 

Aunt Ky-Ky visits from Denver!

Snuggles

Mila with cousin Winona...enjoying a nice-ish day!

Just checking each other out

Hamming it up for the mirror

SNOW

We are sick of it! This is what we have been doing this past week....

With a little bit of this...

And a bit of this, of course. STIR CRAZY TODDLER.

Frozen yogurt always saves the day though (Mila approved)

 Yup I am officially ready for spring. Winter and toddlers do not mix. 

Happy Valentine's Day!

I think I'm going to make Mila wear themed out holiday outfits until she's twenty. This outfit did come with a darling bow but Mila ripped it out immediately, of course. She does not like for anything to mess with her perfectly manicured, mullet.

Happy Valentine's Day, all! Mila - we LOVE you. Thank you for bringing us joy, love and laughter every day.

New Words!

All of a sudden, Mila has started saying all kinds of names! Here is a video of her saying the names of the other children in her home daycare. At the end she says "Ky-Ky" for Aunt Kylie and tries to tackle, "Grandma."

17 Months

We are well on our way to a YEAR and a HALF.

Mila will be 17-months-old on Saturday! Her mind is exploding. I cannot believe how much she knows and can express already!  Here are some of the many things that have amazed me this month (and these things are probably only amazing to Patrick and I because, well, we just think everything she does is fabulous). 

1. Mila is starting to really love being read to. She has always loved flipping through books but has never been able to sit still long enough for us to read the whole story. She now sits on my lap and lets me read a book. She also has developed favorites and asks for me to read certain books over and over again. One of her all-time favorites is "If You Give a Cat a Cupcake." Like mother, like daughter :) We read this AT LEAST three times every night.

2. Mila knows practically all of her body parts. I guess she has for awhile now but the other night we asked her where her KNEES are (expecting her to be confused) and she pointed to them. Holy moly! 

3. Of course Mila cannot actually say her alphabet or "count to 3" but she has her own words for these things and uses them appropriately. Before she slides down her play slide she counts to three (her own version) and whenever she sees her alphabet books or puzzles shes says the alphabet (again, her own version). 

4. Mila signs "more" and "eat." The only two signs we ever really taught her. She can also say both words but let me tell you, the signs really help Patrick and I!  She is also starting to use the word "please" correctly. 

5. Mila can take her shoes on and off all by herself! She has been doing this one for awhile as well but it still amazes to me! We spend a lot of our play time with one shoe on and one shoe off ..see below. 

Mila amazes us every day! Her vocabulary and understanding continues to grow. She gives hugs and kisses, high fives and blows us kisses. She loves "playing house" with her stuffed animals (Lola is included in this category). She feeds them, puts them to bed and cuddles. Now when we introduce a new word, she almost always tries to pronounce it herself and usually gets pretty close! Favorite words this month: Poop, Sleep, Shoe & Meow (Mow). 

Loving this nice weather! We enjoyed two park dates on Wednesday, one with friends and one with Daddy!