Stephanie at 2 3/4 years old

Stephanie with a ball down her shirt

I can't believe that in 3 months it will be warm here and Stephanie will be 3. It has gone so fast. As much as she still seems so little she is also grown so much. She loves wearing her rosaries, one is hers from her baptism and one is Emily's from her baptism. She takes them everywhere we go. She loves her music class. She had a couple weeks of transition trouble but she got over that and loves all the songs, instruments, and dancing. She is into reading her books which means she pulls one out to read, looks at a page or two, and gets another one until there are 30 books on the floor. She also loves to bring a book downstairs with her every time she goes upstairs. There are books downstairs but she still needs to bring one. She has become a picky eater or has figured out that snacks taste better than dinner. She use to love eating everything and that included her fruits and vegetables. Now she will eat a few bites of food, little bit of fruit, no veggies, and ask for her Easter candy. Or she will try to open the pantry and get some crackers out for a snack. I have to stick to "no, you didn't eat your dinner so you can't have any crackers" but I am a terrible meal eater so that's hard for me. I do it but it's hard. She loves to sing her songs, mostly in her own words, but I can tell from the melody what song she is singing. Usually it is Twinkle twinkle little star, ABC's, I'm proud of you, or Wheels on the bus. I haven't said much about her speech or her language because right now I kind of feel a little bit unsure. I have had an inkling that there is something more going on that she is just a late talker so we are in the process of having her evaluated again by Children's Hospital here or at UW-Milwaukee. I just want to be able to help her talk and make sure she gets the help she needs no matter what the diagnosis is. I feel bad that she try to tell me what she wants and I don't understand it. I know that is hard for both of us and it is hard to get mad at her sometimes because I know she just gets frustrated without having the words to use. She does talk a lot but it mostly a lot of talk that must only make sense to her because it doesn't make much sense to me. She is so sweet and loving and such a joy in our lives that I will do whatever I can to help her. I can't wait for the day that I can say "she just never stops talking".