17 months

It’s only the middle of February… someday soon I’ll post about our New Year’s holiday.  For now, I’ll brag about my adorable  girl.  She’s already 17 months old.  She’s a little kid.  She’s not a baby anymore.  She’s learning and growing so much!  We had her in to the doctor a couple of weeks ago for a late 15 month appoinment.  Who knew there was a 15 month?  Long story, so I’ll just tell you that I didn’t know and when I had her in for something else they mentioned that she was due for some vaccines that she was supposed to get at her 15 month appt.  Anyway.  She got a great review from the doctor, who was impressed with her smarts, cuteness and behavior.  She didn’t flinch when she was being poked and prodded by the doctor.  She only wimpered for a few seconds when she got two shots, one in each thigh.  What a trooper.  She weighed 22lbs 4 oz (30%), was 32.5″ tall (89%), and her head circumference was 44.5 cm (9%)

We know she’s a little sponge right now, so we try to teach little things during everyday activities.  Yesterday when she was helping me put the clean dishes from the dishwasher away, there were three spatulas; a red one, a green one, and a blue one.  I had the green and the blue one and when I asked which was which she got it right, twice.  When I had all three, she wasn’t sure which one the red one was, and she picked the blue one.  Still some work to do.  She can pick out the shapes of triangles, circles, stars and squares, but doesn’t quite know the difference between a square and a rectangle.

She loves, loves, loves to be outside.  Yesterday I opened the patio door to bring in our boots, and before I got it closed she scooted down the steps and took off running across the yard; no coat, no hat, no toys.  She headed straight for the garden.  I had to chase after her in my slippers.

She loves books too.  She will keep herself occupied on our 7-10 min drive to school with one board book.  I can’t really say that she has favorites right now, because she loves all books.  But, she does quite often pick out Danny and the Dinosaur, Come over to my house, and Puff the Magic Dragon to read before bed. 

She loves animals.  We went down to the Soulard Farmer’s Market over the weekend and there is a little (weird) pet store/booth there.  There was a bantam rooster with whom she was smitten.  She chases Trixie around the house and tries to give her kisses.  She looks for birds when she hears them.  And she can’t pass up a dog; not even a picture of one.

She has a few words in her vocabulary, but rarely uses anything but “Dada” and “No.”  She can also say “Mama”, “bebe” (baby) and “wawa” (water).  She tries to mimic what you say, and sometimes she does a pretty good job.  She can’t say “yes” yet, but she can nod and shake her head like a champ.  We usually get a pretty good idea of her opinion.   She can throw a tantrum like a seasoned two year old, wet noodle when you make her do something she doesn’t want to, and scream bloody murder.  We know she’s learning and testing, but sometimes our patience is tested a little excessively.  But, we love her anyway.

These are from playing outside today.  It snowed a little last night, and just after lunch, all the snow on the ground was gone.   It was too cold for rain boots.  There were some really cold puddles though!