Lillian - 12 Months

Considering that Lillian is already 13 months and I'm just now starting this post, I'm thankful for the notes that I keep throughout the month marking her milestones at each age. Time goes so fast and skills are learned so quickly, it's impossible to remember if she was able to say/sign/do/accomplish ______ before she hit whatever 'month' birthday if I don't write it down!

However as Lillian turns 1 year, the feelings I have are just as much work mentioning as the physical and cognitive achievements. She is walking, she is understanding more, she has so much personality (she is a ham - in the way that she performs for attention AND in the way her little legs have maintained a few good rolls and her cheeks their good 'squishability'). She doesn't feel like so much a baby anymore and it's so easy to forget the struggles we were having not even 3 or 4 months ago as she figured out life and we figured out Lillian.

I think it's a funny thing to say that I don't remember my life before kids... I'd say that we're at a stage where we remember life without kids, but we have finally REALLY adjusted to the lifestyle changes they require. Maybe I've said that before, but I think the feelings of how different things are have finally quieted down. I think in many ways kids get easier as they approach 1... in other ways, I think YOU get adjusted to your new life! Either way, I would say that we wouldn't change our lives to go back to life without kids! Lillian is truely the apple of our eye.

For Lillian's 1 year birthday, we celebrated with b oth of our families in College Station. It was extra special, because Grandad (Michael's dad's dad) met Lillian for the first time. Aunt Sara made Lillian's cupcake cake, Lillian smashed and ate a strawberry cake, we opened presents, and of course, took lots of pictures! The day was a near perfect celebration with the ones we love, but we definitely missed Uncle Marcus! The pictures of her covered in cake and icing are missing.... so once I find those you'll get a separate post.

- Lillian is a great eater and she especially loves avocado, black beans, turkey, ham, cheese and pears... really, if it is orange or yellow she loves it! Corn, sweet potatos, strawberries, grapes, oranges and so on. She'll eat it as baby food if it's green or occasionally if it's mixed with other stuff (e.g. she generally won't eat peas, but she did eat pot pie with peas in it the other day!).

- Her separation anxiety is so much better when she goes to the nanny, but as we go to the church nursery more we are still seeing tears. This will get better with time we know.

- She is much of a daddy's girl lately and will cry when he leaves much more than she fusses for me.

- She LOVES to say "da-da" too and typically will still say it when we tell her to say 'ma-ma' ... then she laughs! Part of me wonders if she's doing it just because she's seen us react to that before.

- She is walking everywhere... she doesn't crawl to get where she wants anymore!

- She is signing and pointing all of the time, though lately she's signing for food when she's thirsty sometimes and signing 'finished' when she's really not done. I have a suspicion that sometimes she's 'finished' with a certain food and is ready for something else.

- As far as Lillian is concerned, every animal says "Woof" but sometimes we will get the quack for duck and HISS for snake.

- She is sleeping all night from 8 or 8:30pm to anywhere from 7:15 to 8:30am

- She sometimes will get 'nose' and 'eyes' correct, but more than that she loves to try and wriggle those little fingers into your mouth!

- Speaking of mouths, hers has 9 teeth with 1 molar completely through and the others swelling up.

- She gives the bestest, wettest, open mouth kisses

- She understands to put her paci in her bed when we wake up in the morning and after naps (though don't think those little arms won't be reaching in through the slats as far as she can get them trying to get the paci during playtime).

- She understands when we're telling her not to do something... though sometimes she'll give it just a few more trys before she lets it go.

- We experience a few arched-back mini-fits a day when we take her away from something she wants or when we have to stop playing for a diaper change or something less fun. They are short lived and usually consist of about 5 seconds worth of protest (longer if we end up on the changing table!) . :)

Her hair has been getting thicker and thicker lately so I'm hoping that in my 13 month post (haha which I already know about since she's 13 months and 3 days ;)) I'll be able to report some curls - if I have a child with board straight hair I'm going to have to hire a consultant for styling tips!

Until we meet again....