Monday, January 19, 2015

January 19

And here we are, our big, independent 15 month old girl.


Happy 15 month birthday, baby girl!



Did so great at her well check!  Barely cried during her vaccinations, but I nearly did when brother told her what a great job she did and that she was "brave and strong."



Big girl wanting to go jog with brother at Run Club.


It's crazy to think about.  Big brother didn't start walking on his own til right after 15 months, and wasn't really getting good until 16 months.  Life was still pretty easy.  With Little Sweetie walking right before her first birthday, she has used the last three months to perfect her speed and agility and life is, most definitely, not easy.  She's everywhere and into everything!  Normally, she's following you around, begging to play, just as you are trying to get ready for the day.


Hi Momma!  I found a comb and some water and am ready to do my hair!  Oh, you wanted to do your hair?  That's silly.  Just do mine and get yourself a hat.


She's full of adventure this month and loves to play, whether by herself, learning to share with a playmate, having fun with her favorite brother while he was home on break from school

     

Peek...a...BOO!



   

I see you!

     

Miss Adventure on the playground!




Hi, Baby L!  Let's play!



The three amigos on a dinner date!


     

Wake up and play with me, big brother!



Sibling time!


The biggest adventure this month, though, has been that Little Sweetie got to start going to her own My Gym class!  She was a little unsure at first (and her hesitancy in big groups reminded me how on our own we've been since big brother started school and we stopped going to boot camp.  She's not used to being around big groups of people anymore.  Being a part of this class will really be good for her.) but soon warmed up and started getting more brave.

     

First, she was just a fan of the fact that there were balls to play with!




Getting braver and checking stuff out...



     

Not so sure about this separation time business (kept running to find me), but she finally settled in an played independently for a few minutes.  



An after My Gym treat of her favorite:  hot dogs at James Coney Island!


Height and Weight 
Did well getting her stats at her 15 month well check today.  She's definitely grown and has reached 31.25 inches (75%), but she's lost some weight and is at 20 pounds, 9.6 ounces (41%).  That definitely caught us off guard, but our doctor said it is probably due to her activity level.  With all her walking and climbing and chasing brother, she is just burning so many calories!  As long as she is still eating well (which she is...definitely eats her fill and then some!), there is nothing to worry about.  Oh and her head circumference is 19.25 inches (99%), no surprise there!


     

Keep eating, little girl!  We've got to put (and keep!) some meat on those bones!


Personality
Sadly, baby girl has been pretty grumpy lately.  Her cheeks were a bit puffy and her gums were hard, so we think those molars are still slooooowwwwwlllyyy working their way up.  Unfortunately, they just won't cut and it makes bedtime, and sometimes even day time, very rough.  


Just not happy.  

Also, as I mentioned earlier, her hesitancy in big groups is something new for this normally very happy and sociable baby.  I've so rarely seen her shy in any way other than just playful shy.  I'm very glad we started My Gym and hope to see her gain confidence in herself.  We've been lucky too to have had two playdates with our friends, the D family.  It's been great for her (and for brother!) to have some individuated play time with other kiddos.  She's really enjoyed it (we all have)!

Developmental Milestones
Climbing is our new "thing" (thankfully she seems to be practicing it mostly at My Gym and hasn't given Momma any heart attacks at home from climbing on tables or anything...yet) and I love watching her gross motor skills grow.  I'm probably a little over observant of her development right now since this is where we started seeing some minor delays in brother (walking late, not jumping), so anything that shows her progressing makes me smile.  It's so different to have a walking/running baby at 15 months!  She likes to play with her "babies" by holding them, feeding them, and putting them to bed.  She's also really getting into zipping and unzipping things.  

As for talking, she is still babbling pretty constantly and is very insistent about making us understand things, even if she doesn't have the words for them.  I think we might get another overzealous talker like Momma!

We've also been talking about moving her from the high chair to the booster chair and brought down the booster to try out.  Now, however, she thinks she just has her own living room chair and just likes to sit on it like a throne!  Which is kind of funny, because I also just caught her trying to be a baby in the baby bouncer again.  It's quite the theme of her life right now, going back and forth between big girl and baby.  On my end, I'll just keep her my baby for as long as I can.

     

I'm a big girl, I'll just sit here in this big girl booster chair and...wait, there's a bouncer available?  Nevermind, I'm a baby.

Fun Tidbits
She's just the sunshine of our family and, even though those terrible teeth like to try to ruin our days, they can't stop the smiles and cuddles that make everything worthwhile!


Momma and Little Sweetie, awake...



...and Momma and Little Sweetie, asleep.  Live for these cuddles!  



I see you taking that picture Momma!  Stop the selfies and let's get back to Family Movie Night!


Good night, 

LSM

Little Sweetie's Momma

Monday, January 5, 2015

A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Every three years, we stay home and celebrate the holidays in Texas.  It let's us take some of the stress out of the season by not having to travel with the kiddos and it's so nice every so often to see the kids faces light up as they open the gifts under our own tree.  We are also extremely fortunate that our family has been willing to come to us during these stay at home years, so that we can still enjoy being with our loved ones over the holidays.  This year, Mimi and Pop-Pop came down for Christmas and Mamaw and Papaw came to ring in the New Year!

As part of our gifts to the family this year, we got new family pictures taken (so that Little Sister could be included!).  Unfortunately, Little Sister was not the most cooperative with her pictures (or with Santa for that matter), but we did get some good shots, especially once the play piano was brought out.  

     

     


These pictures demonstrate what kind of mood Little Sister was in to start the session...thank God for the magic piano of smiles!





First, Big Brother did his best Schroeder impression from Charlie Brown...



...which got Sister interested...




...which then upset Brother because he was not keen on sharing...



     

     

     

...but we convinced him to give Sister a turn and ended up getting some good shots...



     


...so then we all snuck around her!  Bam, family picture accomplished!


The rest of Mimi and Pop-Pop's visit went well.  We had a Santa playdate at a friend's house, did some projects with Pop-Pop, enjoyed a Christmas Eve Santa visited, opened presents, and got to visit with Uncle C and A on Christmas Day.  

     

Santa stopped by Ms. J and Mr. C's house.  Sister, again, was not a fan.  Her angry tears kept distracting brother too!


      

      

Putting together and testing some of the toys their Great-Grand Pap had made a long time ago.



     

     

Santa made his annual Christmas Eve stop...Brother was excited, but Sister was content to watch from Pop-Pop's arms at a safe distance.



Sister was ok with leaving out the cookies, milk, and carrots...



     

...and she was certainly ok with opening presents with Brother the next morning!  Merry Christmas!


After Mimi and Pop-Pop left, we got to have second Christmas with Mamaw and Papaw, along with more family pictures!
     


Second Christmas!  The kids (and Papaw) were enjoying the presents (and tormenting the dog with the new remote control car).


Family pictures went a bit better this time around.  Sister smiled, but Brother burned out early.  Still made some great memories, though!




     

     



 This last shot is a perfect "Brother, stop, you're embarrassing me!" moment.


Unfortunately, our visit was marred by Mamaw and Papaw coming down with the flu.  They had to be put in quarantine for a few days, but finally were on the road to recovery when they had to leave.  Little Buddy and Little Sweetie were very worried about them, but we convinced them that "rest is best" and that they could best help by picking out Gatorade flavors to help Mamaw and Papaw's tummies.  Because they were sick over New Year's, we toasted together a few days late.



      

 Cheers!  Happy New Year!



Another important event closed out our year; Little Buddy and Little Sweetie are getting a god-cousin!  Aunt S and Uncle M asked Daddy and I to be godparents to Baby L.  We are so blessed to have this adorable little man as our godson! 

     

Our sweet godson!


So we leave 2014 one godson richer, one ASD diagnosis wiser, and all our bonds of family strengthened.  We came into our own as a family of four and adapted to the challenge that our family might be a bit different than we imagined, but that being different is ok.  We still have plenty of room to grow and mature and look forward to the lessons that 2015 will bring to us!

Wishing you a wonderful new year, 

LSM

Little Sweetie's Momma