This is it Piper, your last month till your big birthday. Slowly but surely (well...not that slowly, but definitely surely) you have become just about my favorite thing ever. I don't always make the time to record your milestones as well I wish I did, but I could write forever and still not feel like I captured everything. I keep having these moments where I just want to freeze time and soak in every bit of each memory, so I can be sure it will last forever. Each day goes by slowly, but when I look back and realize we've known you almost a year, I can't even believe it. I want you to know how much I treasure the unique little person you are, and how blessed I am to get to be with you (almost) every day. Here's a least a taste of who you are right now:
- You weigh: 19lbs, are 28" long and your head is 18.5" around. (If you're wondering, all that translates to around percentiles in about the 60th range.)
- You can stand up unassisted! You're an independent woman! Ok, it's only for a few seconds but we are still so proud of you. And you are SO proud of yourself. You start by holding on to something, and you get your feet planted wide, and hold your hands out for balance. You typically have your legs slightly bent, like it could all go wrong at any minute (which it often does). When you finally let go, you get a huge grin on your face and you look around to make sure everyone sees how big you are. (they do.)
- You are getting close to being able to walk, but don't seem to like it much. You're not a big fan of us holding onto your hands and helping you walk. And you'll maybe even take a step unassisted reaching for another surface to grab on to, but in general you'd rather crawl. Wait- strike that. You'd actually rather us carry you. I try to tough love you a bit and make you work it out...but I'm a softie (though your dad is worse) and usually give in because it means I get to snuggle you.
- You are obsessed with "talking" on the "phone". And by talking, I mean chattering away in your high pitched jibberish. And by phone, I mean any object that you can get anywhere near your ear. You have always loved our iphones, and are constantly reaching for them, but now you're happy to accept a stand in- whether it is your own toy phone, a hairbrush or a mini monster truck. You hold them up to your ear (well...you try, you usually get it somwhere between your shoulder and your head) and listen.... I should be worried that it means you see us on the phone too much, but really it's so cute I don't care. (Though we will have to have a serious talk when you eventually do have a phone attached to your ear....but I'm hoping that's at least thirteen years away.
- You can wave and clap on command. That kind of makes you sound like seal lion at the circus, but we're still very proud of your "tricks". I just love to see that you are understanding so much more now. And it's beyond adorable when you wave hi and bye to people...I've yet to see someone not just melt when you greet them.
- You said your first word: "uh-oh". Wait, is that two words? Or no words? I'm not sure, but I count it. It's just a sound, so it's not much, but you seem to know what it means. You say it whenever someone drops something. It was a surprise to me because I don't think we say it that much (maybe they drop a lot of stuff at daycare?) I have to be honest that I would have liked you to say "mama" by now, but oh well. You're little "ouooh-ooh" is so sweet, and I'll have the rest of your left to nag me with "MOM!". (For the record, you can technically say "hi" and "dada" but they both happen pretty randomly, with you only lucking into the right context once in a while, so I don't think they count yet. But soon!)
- You learned to say "more" in sign language. Sometimes it accidentally looks more like clapping, and sometimes you hold one palm out and touch your other hand's fingers to it (vs. having both hand's fingertips touch), but you're trying! We are trying to teach you other signs but its slow going. We're working on Mama, Dada, thank you, all done, tired, and milk, (which you may understand...though you might just be making a fist by accident...hard to say).
- Your hair is getting so long. I love putting little bows in it....You don't get to wear them to "school", but any time we go out you can bet there is going to be a color coordinated ribbon (or piece of felt) on your head. Turns out there's a little bit of my mama in me after all. You also love to hold the brush and try to brush your hair. Or ours.
- You like bathtime.You used to wail when we put you in the water, but now you actually like it! We recently switched you from the infant tub into your inflatable duck. It's so cute to see your little naked bum splashing around in there. You play with your little animals, and like to dunk your plastic cups. My favorite part is after though when we wrap you in a towel and dry you off. I get to sit and snuggle you (are you seeing a theme? I love to snuggle you!) We blow dry your hair, which is wholly unnecessary, but is a fun little ritual. You're always so squirmy, this is one of the only times that you will sit still and calm. Your dad has a fancy accent he likes to do (similar to Frank, from The Father of the Bride) and he chit chats to you about your spa treatment while he fluffs your little locks. I love to watch him love you.
- You don't love to read. This breaks my heart, but I'm trying to remember that it's temporary. You used to sit and stare at me forever while I read to you, but now you want to be on the move. You just refuse to sit still long enough to get through a book. You do like to flip the pages though. My solution is to give you a book to hold while I read another one. Otherwise I can count on you constantly ripping mine out of my hands.
- You're learning to dance. Or at least learning to rock and bounce whenever you hear music. If you grow up and love to dance I will almost forget about you not loving to read. Almost.
- You learned to blow raspberries. It is both adorable and disgusting.
- You love to eat. The daycare ladies are always talking about what a good eater you are- "better than the boys!" We have to pack you breakfast, lunch, and two snacks (plus two bottles) each day, and it's always a bit of an adventure as to what we put in there. Your favorite is turkey and cheese, but you're pretty good with vegetables and fruit too. You definitely eat on your own terms...if you're not in the mood for something, it is just not going to happen. I think it's funny to see your personality and preference come out already! Recently we took a trip to Columbus on our own (Daddy stayed home to clean out the basement...fun!) and the only way to keep you quiet was to give you a cup of puffs so you could munch to your heart's content. You ate those puffs for a solid hour, and by the time we got there you were smothered and covered in puff dust. Dirty as a pig, and happy as a lark.
- You don't have a "lovey"...some special object (blanket, stuffed animal) that you can't be without. We have some toys that we bring with us pretty regularly, but you've never shown a clear preference for anything. And I put a little knit sheep in your crib at night hoping you might make it your favorite, but you seem largely indifferent to it. Mostly you like objects. Hairbrush. Cell phone. Lotion bottle. If it's ours, you love it even more. And if it shakes, you're in heaven. You are definitely a quirky kid....we often calm you down during diaper changes by handing you something from the table. Next thing we know you have a death grip on the hand sanitizer, and insist upon carrying it through the entire petting zoo. (True story.) The last time we were in Columbus I found you in your pack and play snoozing next to a tiny plastic mailbox. G'mi said you had a hold of it while she was rocking you to sleep and you refused to let go so she let you keep it. I can't exactly see a pattern with you...other than you like to hold things. And don't care much what those things are. Do we have a hoarder in our future?
- You are a pretty great sleeper. Note: I did not say napper. That is still a giant crapshoot. Could be an hour, could be fifteen minutes. We never know... But at night you do great. You go down between 7:30 and 8:30, and go through til 6 or 6:30. I really wish we could extend that an hour, but I try to be thankful for what we have. You used to go back to sleep for an hour or so after that early wake up call, but those days seem to be long gone. Now when you're up, you're up...and if I don't immediately take you in to the bathroom to see your Daddy while he gets ready, you are not happy.
- You are a bit of a daddy's girl. You love me I'm sure, but you're very attached to your daddy. You light up when he comes in (and you do your happy grunt), and you cry when he leaves the room. I get a teensy bit jealous sometimes, but then I remember how awesome he is, and I really can't blame you.
- You just got a new tooth on the bottom. I think it's technically a molar...it's down on the right side, a space or two away from your other teeth. It didn't seem to bother you much, but a couple days after we first saw it, you then started drooling, and getting stuffy, and spiked a fever. You were sick for two days (wouldn't sleep, couldn't eat...just wanted to be held. ALL DAY. I stayed home from work to take care of you, and you slept...on me...for at least 4 hours of the day. Trust me when I say that is not like you at all). I'm not sure if you caught a bug, or if it was a late reaction to the tooth breaking through, but if it's the latter, I'm a bit nervous about what is still to come.
- You are so cuddly. Your newest and most adorable thing is putting your head down on us when you're playing. You'll be crawling around, and messing with toys, and then all of a sudden, your cheek is on our laps, in a whole body hug. You also really love to be held. It's definitely worse when you're sleepy...you get cranky and don't tolerate us putting you down. Sometimes it drives me nuts (I just want a minute to myself...or actually need a minute to get something done!) but I try to remember that I wished and prayed for a snuggly little baby, and try to be grateful for what a love bug you are.
- You love to watch other kids. Especially older kids. You always want to know where they're going, or what they're doing. Maybe you should have been a youngest child so you could watch all the action...You are a very serious observer too. You'll smile and engage with people easily, but you also often get a zone where you're locked in on taking in what's happening around you. If something catches your eye, I have a hard time getting your attention back.
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