So frustrating and yet so cute

I am finding myself constantly challenged by Gabriella at the moment. Between her not wanting to sleep through the night and then being miserable during the day I'm really struggling

However, she is learning so many new (and cute) things that its hard to be too disheartened during daylight hours.

She has taken to singing happy birthday and then blowing as if she's blowing out candles. With only about 9 or 10 weeks until her birthday she might just be up to blowing out her own candles this year. Must remember to take video.

She also loves to "wrap" things and hand them over saying "happy birfday" with a delighted look on her face. She waits for you to unwrap whatever and then grins at you and says "like" to which you must tell her just how much you like the present

For total confusion when you offer something she will say "want it" which can either mean she doesn't want it or she does want it. I often find myself trying to give her things because I thought she meant she wanted it but in fact doesn't. The shrugging her head into her shoulder is a good indicator that I'm once again wrong

Such a strong determined little personality

She's also such a climber! Every chance she gets she is up onto something. At the moment she is sitting on the dining table playing with some playdough toys and tidying up other things for me. This child is going to be my little clean up helper I'm sure - she likes to put things away for me. I've lost count of the number of scowls I've received when she's picked something up to take to the sink or the laundry

I love that she has reached an age where I can ask her to do things and she will actually listen. I ask both big girls to take their plates etc to the sink after meals and she has started doing it without asking.

Yesterday she surprised me by peeling her own mandarine. I fully expected it to be a pile of pulp by the time she had finished but it was actually perfect. She reappeared with her finger stuffed into the top of the mandarine with a ver pleased look on her face. After initially dropping the peel on the floor she piled it up on the kitchen bench when I told her where to put it

Apart from sleep I think the only other big issue is getting her to wean from the dummy. She is very much addicted to it and I'm trying to get her to only have it for comfort, bed time and long car trips..... I'm not really pushing it though as I've decided its time to wean her from BFing. She is nearly 22 months so we've had a very good run but I think it is one of the contributors to her night waking at present. Cheeky monkey likes to keep me on my toes. I was sure she was weaning a few months back when she was only on one feed a day and could have mornings of not having that one but since she has picked up extra feeds as well (while teething mostly) and is not wanting to drop back again.

So the focus over the coming week while hubby is home is to try to get her weaning and sleeping better. I am hoping to have back my very happy, delightful, cheeky monkey once she's getting some good sleep again