January 2011

You are developing by leaps and bounds!

You're starting to climb stools and chairs. You've been doing stairs for a while now. I haven't seen you try to hike a leg over your crib yet, but you are going up on your tippy toes to lean over the edge.

You insist on drinking from a cup this month.

You are running around the house, and you love to summersault.

You had a cold almost the full month of December, and consequently learned how to blow your nose.

You have learned the concept of "on" and "off" and continually report on the status of electrical items. "TV off!"

Your vocabulary has hit the turbo button. Yesterday we went walking in the snow and ice and you were saying "Careful. Slippery." You are very good at asking for "More", both with words and sign language. And you are starting to say "Please." on a regular basis.

Your favorite character is Elmo, pronounced "Melmo."

You have figured out that Mama likes to bake and that if she's messing with the mixer, you need to have a taste.

You want your own computer.

The name for the camera is "cheese!"

You snuggle with your Daddy while watching movies.

You are pointing out family members and calling them by name in photos.

You are CRAZY independent. You want to do it yourself, don't help, don't touch, don't hover. And you can throw me a look that rivals a teenager.

You have decided that you like the look of hair accessories, including hats. You will leave them in your hair or on your head for extended periods of time, especially if you have gotten to check yourself out in the mirror and deemed yourself cute.

It's almost time for your first haircut, but not yet. I am not looking forward to trimming those sweet curls.

You went down a slide head first with no fear.

You have three boyfriends (Nate, Sam and Ben) that you go to story time with at the mall. You hold their hands when we walk to the play area and they share their french fries with you at lunch.

You went through a phase where you would not allow me to read you a book. I would get one sentence in and you would try to snatch it from my hands. That seems to have passed, and you are again backing up with your bum sticking out to sit in my lap and enjoy a book.

You have started to tell me when you have a dirty diaper, and you are busy taking off a diaper that I just put on you. I'm taking these as good signs that you may be ready to potty train soon. yay!

You are going through a phase where you scream, loudly and high pitched, your frustrations. We are encouraging you to use your words. :/

You have discovered a love of coloring. You can ask for paper and colors, and you hardly ever eat the crayons anymore.

You're growing so fast

This morning you woke at 5:00 a.m. You were crying so hard. Maybe you had a bad dream. Or perhaps your mouth was sore from the teeth that are trying to break their way through. But whatever the reason, you were crying so that your breath was shuddering and when I came in the room and took you in my arms, you laid your head on my shoulder and burrowed your body close to mine, as though you couldn't get close enough. We sat in your rocking chair and we we rocked and I brushed my fingers through your hair and tried to sooth you.

While we rocked, I thought of special moments we had shared. I remembered how we were walking in the park and how you smiled at the trees when the wind blew them and they waved their leaves at you. And how you listened so closely when the breeze blew again and the leaves whispered and told you their secrets.

You are climbing up and down the jungle gyms, sliding down the slides and running down hills. Your favorite is to play in the wood chips and wander about exploring.

So many things you have accomplished in the past six months. You had a birthday and climbed the mountain of gifts. You dance and sing and eat with a spoon. You love to play a piano and a kazoo. You give your Daddy a kiss every morning when he leaves for work, and then you seriously (and sometimes forcefully) turn his head so that he can kiss me too. You play with the girl in the mirror, flirting and kissing, sticking out your tongue and laughing.

You tell us "here you go" when you hand us something. Baby, no, cheese, and kitty are your favorite vocabulary words right now. You like to arrange the pens in their pot like flowers. You carry a bag on your arm as though you were born to do it. You give your snuggle buddies rides on your rocking horse and sometimes you give complete strangers hugs.

You spent your summer swimming in the pool and rode in an airplane. You went to the beach, then the mountains. I swear, you travel better than any of us.

You like to pretend to cook, stirring your pot and sharing tastes of the stew. You also want to step in and out of baskets or boxes...because you can. You like to throw a ball and chase it.

I get a kiss every day before I lay you in your bed for nap and nighttime.

March 2010

Your two front teeth are coming in. Now you have four on top and two on the bottom.

You stood on your own for somewhere between 10 and 15 seconds. You did this completely out of the blue, and I don't think you even realized you were doing it. I wonder if you will be like me one day. If I try to do something and I think about it before hand, I will almost always over-think it and flub up. If I just let it happen, things go so much better.

You have gotten fantastically good at putting food, and anything else that can fit, into your mouth. I need one of those shoulder pack vacuum cleaners to keep the floor clean.

yay! You figured out how to get to the sitting position from your belly. Very convenient skill.

Play time is starting to get fun! It's not all just putting stuff in your mouth anymore. You are batting and chasing balls, pulling strings on toys that have a pull string, and moving beads along a track. You are also starting to participate in group play at the library story hour!

I laid you in bed this evening, and you were still awake. I told you I loved you, caressed your head and walked out of the room, closing the door behind me. You didn't cry, or make a peep. This is a BIG DEAL. :)

It's your 10 month birthday, and you have another tooth pushing through on the bottom, and it looks like 4-5 are just about ready. Whew! Sore Mouth!

You kiss everything that you are fond of. People, photos, books, stuffed animals, blankets...

It finally happened. You crawled off the bed. :(

You understand me when I call you and say "Molly, come here!" And you can find me if I'm in a different room.

You have figured out that it means when we go the the YMCA and I give you to the ladies at the daycare, and you really don't like it.

You really like to rearrange the furniture, pushing chairs around the rooms.

You are sleeping through the night again. I'm so very glad!!

February 2010

You blew bubbles in the water during bath.

You decided to crawl like a bear today, on your hands and feet with your bum in the air.

You took your first course of antibiotics.

You are cruising along the furniture and with the support of a walker.

You ate your first spaghetti dinner! And subsequently, threw your first bowl of spaghetti on the floor. You loved it honey, you were just full.

You initiated a nose rub!

You've started to mimic sounds and faces. Monkey see monkey do!

You met your Great-Grandaddy Joyce. He thought you were beautiful.

You said "Mamamamamama!" yeah, yeah, you'd already been saying "Dadadadada" for a while, but I've been waiting for this one for a while!

You are starting to feed yourself, both with your fingers and with a spoon.

Daddy taught you how to jump on the bed.

Wholly crap, you climbed the stairs.

January, 2010

We went to Books and Babies for our first play date. You crawled one week later after seeing the other babies scooting around.

You saw your first snow. You made a snow angel and went sledding with your grandparents.

You took a bath in the big tub, and loved it, of course.

You had your first head cold.