12 months

Horrah! Ellie is one and we have survived our first year as parents. I would like to say that it hasn't been all that bad, but I'm sure that my brain is glossing over the difficult bits, especially those first few sleepless months. The difficulties breastfeeding. The infections. The gurd. And lets not forget labor itself.  The mommy brain really knows what its doing when it floods us with a cocktail of hormones to make us forget.  Bravo mother nature, bravo. Really though, she is such a fun and loving girl that it makes all the hard bits seem trivial. We love being her parents and we love that she has made us into a family. She's like a body part you can't live without. It is not possible to love this kid any more than we do. Nuff said.

Now that she is officially one, she has decided that she's a big girl and is only going to do big girl things. Such as walking.  Once she took her first steps, she was off, and has been walking ever since. Now she is practically full on running and navigating up and down terrain.  She thinks she knows how to go up and down stairs, but she actually doesn't.  That doesn't seem to stop her from trying though (!). She is also conversing up a storm and it seems like she's forming sentences, although none of it makes sense.  There are times when I even feel like she's lecturing or yelling at us.  She does know one word - no.  And she uses it a lot and in conjunction with shaking her head back and forth.  She also uses it indiscriminately, so even if she wants something she'll shake her head no and then continue to take it from you anyhow. Or shake her head no and smiles at you. Tricky little minx.  She has just recently got the whole concept of waving hello and goodbye and will do it at appropriate times or when you ask her to.  She is also really good at clapping her hands, especially when singing or dancing (dancing is also shaking her head back and forth like she's saying no. Sometimes I get a little bob up and down). I have started to teach her how to high-five but she hasn't quire grasped that yet.

She is really starting to understand her world and relationships.  She has started placing objects inside of each other or takes them apart, like taking apart her blocks and putting them back or pulling off the rings of her donut toy and then putting them back.  The other day she grabbed my keys and tried to put them into the doorknob.  She tries to ring the doorbell every time we go in the house. She knows when I put my tennis shoes on that we're going for a walk (kinda like a dog, he he). She even tries to put her shoes on herself. Even if she can't understand it, she does not miss a thing.  She is really big into imitating sounds or movements. She is in love with reading her animal books and when I do the animal sounds for her, she tries to imitate them back to me. She points at the pages until we make the sounds for her.

She is still very independent when it comes to eating. I have given up on purees all together and she basically eats what we eat, just in small bite sized pieces. We just started giving her milk in place of formula for her two nap bottles and she takes it no problem.  We are still trying to find a sippy cup that she'll take in place of the bottle.  That has been a real challenge and I hear it's hard for a lot of kids. I don't really blame them because some of this sippy cups are really hard to get anything out of.  If I can't do it, she can't do it! So the search continues. She will drink water out of a straw cup finally, so that has been great. We have started letting her feed herself with a spoon and she surprisingly got it right away. I've mostly just stuck to yogurt because it stays on the spoon better than anything else, but we'll venture out to other foods soon. It makes a huge mess but that's the name of the game.

She has also decided now that she's one, that she no longer needs two naps.  I'm not sure if this change is here to stay, but ever since her birthday party, she's only had one nap per day. It's nice because I feel like I can stay out and about with her longer before having to come home for nap time, but it also sucks right now because I NEED to nap and I've been exhausted with her being up more often. She is still tired and gets cranky without that second nap but trying to get her down is like trying to cage a wild animal. Not.Going.To.Happen.  Like I said, she's a grown up now. 

The girl is still really tall and continues to be in the 90th percentile for height.  She only gained 7oz last month but her weight is still in the 50th percentile. She continues to grow up! I don't know where she gets that from - not my side of the family, that's for sure. She still hasn't grown very much hair.  It is getting longer in the back but it's growing at a snails pace.  People still think she's a boy, even if she's dressed head to toe in pink. I mean common, really people?  Here are her stats for this month:

Head circumference: 45cm   
Height: 30.5''   
Weight: 20lb 13oz

I have to secretly admit that I am happy that we have made it through her first 12 months because it was getting increasingly harder and harder to take her photo with her monthly onesie sticker.  They don't tell you this when you buy them, but once your kid learns how to move, you aren't going to get a good photo.  This month we only got one good photo and you're looking at it. I will continue to update you on Ellie comings and goings but I think I am done with her monthly reports.  We'll blog about our adventures and happenings as a family and I will surely keep you updated on baby #2. Hopefully I can keep it up as much as I did with Ellie!

12 months!

Checking out the chickens

Riding her new red trike

Feeding herself yogurt

Already trying to drink beer!

Olivia, Maggie & Ellie

Hanging out at Great's house

I only like the sprinkler if I can sit on it.

Pool time!

Playing in the yard

Love!

Using Poppy as a train

Tia Time!

Grandmanina & Poppy

The birthday girl