One away from One

In less than one month, I will be the mommy of a One Year Old!!  Exciting yet sad at the same time.  As with all milestones, I am so proud of my daughter; at the same time, I am so sad to see my baby grow up so quickly.  

I just love her grin in this picture!

Eleven months old.  She weighs between 19 and 20 pounds (our home scale isn't very accurate) and she is between 29 and 30 inches long.

She is such a morning girl.  She is so happy and can play independently in the morning.  As the day goes on, she needs a bit more mommy time and gets "touchy".

She has enjoyed having daddy home to play each night this month.

She is eating more table foods.  She refuses almost all pureed foods.  Which is good, except she refuses to eat most veggies and meat (table food or pureed).  Thanks to the magic of cinnamon, she will eat carrots and butternut squash now though!  She has enjoyed cheese quesadillas, kiwis, pineapple and strawberries.  I am trying really hard to not get frustrated when she continually refuses meat and veggies; I just want her to be healthy!

She is still struggling with the sippy cup.  I have tried Playtex, Munchkin, and Nuby brands.  No luck so far.  I offer it to her every day sometimes with formula sometimes with juice/water.  I will continue to try daily!

She has learned how to point.  Sometimes she will point to what we ask her to (Bailey, mama, dada, banana) but usually she just points randomly.  It's so cute!!  I enjoy walking her around the house while she points to objects and I name them.

She still loves her baths!  She gets so excited she rushes from one end of the tub to the other end of the tub squealing.  She tries to stand up and we are trying to teach her to stay on her bottom.  She is getting really good at splashing too.

Kicking our legs up and down :)

She is a little sponge.  She mimics us all the time!  She still coughs every time she hears someone cough.  She will shake her head no if we shake our head no.  She will dance (bounce up and down) if we bounce up and down.  She will kick her legs up in the air while I kick mine up.  She takes her fist and makes the bababa sound while she rubs it over her mouth when we run our fingers over our lips making that sound.  Isn't it amazing how much they absorb?!?!

She loves to be outside.  We go on long walks when it's nice.  She enjoys playing out front with the neighbors.  I imagine that the majority of our time will be spent outside once she starts walking!  

She still puts everything in her mouth (unless it is meat or a veggie, ha!)

She has gotten much better in the car.  We are able to run around a lot more without her getting too upset.  

She still gets loads of attention every where we go.  

She can say nana (banana) and ayee (Bailey).  We haven't declared a first word because honestly it's so hard to tell sometimes if she is actually referring to the object or if the object just happens to fit the current sound!  But, most of the time we think her first word was Bailey....crazy, but true!

She loves to listen to music; we have Pandora Toddler Radio on a lot while we play.  

She LOVES reading books.  She enjoys turning the pages, lifting the flaps, and feeling the textures.  The whole time we are reading a book she just chatters away, as if she is reading to me!  

Oh my sweet Ellie Lynn, she challenges me daily to be more patient, more attentive, more interactive, and more creative.  Each day has the same routine, yet differs from the day before and the day after.  I hope I continue to grow into the title "Mommy" and that I always strive to seek the best for my baby girl.  I often think that I have more love for her than my heart can hold, yet God always stretches my heart to hold more love each day!

Oh...and I created a super fun surprise for Ellie's party that I can't wait to share!!