Lilli-proof

So much for cutting down on the mess.



"Indie Song of the Entry"

The River by Anathallo

Sleep success

When she first slept through the night, I woke at the normal times she usually woke. Sometimes she'd be awake, but not upset. A few days later, I only woke up when she yelled loud enough to wake me. And unless something was truly wrong, she didn't start yelling for us until 6-7 a.m. When the yelling was more for play than for need, I turned the monitor down a little and slept through the night myself.

I hesitated to talk about it, in fear of jinxing myself or being overly confident in the test run. Here we are a few weeks later and she's sleeping through the night more consistently than either of us. I call it a sleep success for now.

We still are working on weening, but that's an entry for another day.

"Indie Song of the Entry"

Furniture by The Albertans

Birthday Celebration

Lilli's Birthday:

Gymboree



The Beach



The Aquarium



The Cake



The Hat




The Face

12 month backtracking

I'd like to say I have been diligent about keeping up with my thoughts over the past month... I haven't but I have made a valid attempt, E for effort. So look for postdated posts from the past month that I have missed. So much has happened, so much to share.

Most importantly, Lilli turned one year old last week. It was such a bittersweet moment for both Dave and me. Part of us was thrilled that our little girl has grown up into such a wonderful little person. The other part is saddened that such a wonderful time in her life passed so quickly, like the blink of an eye. Just yesterday she was laying around barely noticing the world around her and today she is a running, climbing, yelling, talking little girl. No longer a baby, but not yet a kid.

We opened a new chapter all of our lives. So many things to explore, so many new things to learn and she is ready. She's a sponge of knowledge and skill, it's incredible. Monkey see, monkey do. She watches so carefully then practices, then succeeds. It's scary, wonderful, and inspiring. We look forward to the next year.

Happy Birthday Miss Pie.

Punk Rock Baby

I had to share this:



My loves, my heart.

12 month appt

I wasn't looking forward to the 12 month well appointment. The probing questions and advice session, that hardly seemed professional, last time makes me less confident this time. For her 9 month appointment, I went overly confident, maybe even proud of our little girl. She was walking way before most kids, she was starting to sign and gesture, and most of all she was healthy. Then I got kicked in the stomach and felt like a bad parent for a few days.

My plan was to try not to think about the appointment and focus on being the best parent I possibly can be every single day. And I feel as though I accomplished my goal, to a point. I won't lie, it definitely bothered me up until the second it ended, but I curbed my anxiety and focused on the important things.

We saw a different doctor this time, one without a thick accent I couldn't understand fully. She came in, asked the normal questions, read off Lilli's measurements the assistant took right before, asked us about her diet, talk to us about flu vaccinations, asked if we had questions (which we always do), and that was that. No questions about our relationship, no comments about our parenting styles, and no accusing eyes about both of us being there for her appointment. So needless to say, we have a new doctor preference. Winner.

For shits and giggles, Lilli's measurement results:
Height: 30 inches (78%, holy tall!)
Weight: 18 lbs 15.04 oz (16%, and now Dave is trying to feed her non-stop)
Head: 18 inches (69%, big old head to contain all of those devilish ideas)

12 month gestures and language

With a year behind her, Lilli has realized there is more to these signs and gestures than just to get what she wants. She has learned to blow a kiss to Daddy when he leaves the room... well more like sucking on her hand then blowing spit everywhere, close enough. She figured out that, like a wave, it's a sign that correlates with an action. And now Daddy gets a special send off every time he leaves the house. She has also learned "uh-oh" and now throw-down-pick-up has become a favorite dinner time game.

Now, I'm sure I Pavlov-ed this one into her, but entertaining none-the-less. When I ask her how old she is, she puts up one finger (sometimes). I'm positive she doesn't understand WHY we clap and cheer frantically when she does this, but it made my heart grow three sizes.