17 Months

Since this has been a draft for almost a month, I decided I better finish it and post it before Monday (when Eliza turns 18 months old).  Note:  all the information in this post is as of December 14th - as of today, things have changed (those updates coming soon).

My sweet baby girl is turning into an inquisitive toddler who is way more fun to have around than I could have possibly imagined.  She is such a smart, observant, and absolutely silly girl.

She currently has 12 teeth, and her top two canines are starting to make an appearance.  Her smile and giggle lights up the entire room; she smiles with her eyes just as much as her mouth.  Eliza usually sleeps anywhere between 10-11 hours a night (most of the time; this past week has been pretty rough for all of us), and takes a 1-2 hour nap every afternoon.  She has become quite adept at crawling and scooting around on her bum, but still isn't walking on her own.

 She can stand alone for 3-4 seconds before she either falls over (with celebration) or grabs onto something.  She will walk if she is holding onto something (like mom or dad's hands - both of them).  She recently started walking down the hall while only holding one hand and sliding her fingers against the wall.  We are constantly working on the walking independently thing since baby brother is due to make his arrival any day now. 

Eliza loves, loves, loves books.  She spends the majority of her day reading and looking through book after book after book.  She has recently started putting the book away before getting another one, but she doesn't do that quite as often as I would like. 

She also loves music - every morning she comes into my room and turns on my radio.  She climbs up on my bed, and dances to the songs.  Unfortunately, she has learned how to turn up the volume - she likes it all the way up.  She is also found quite often playing the piano.  I am impressed that she uses her fingers instead of her hands or fist. 

Eliza can be a picky eater at times.  Sometimes she eats everything in sight, and other times we can't get her to eat anything.  We never know what she will eat or what it will take to get her to eat it.  I still can't get her to drink milk; although I am trying to sneak it in a few more things.  The first thing she wants in the morning when she wakes up is a sippy of juice.  If I let her, she will drink cup after cup after cup of juice, wetting through diapers every 30 minutes.  Last week I started giving her a Danimals smoothie in the morning - hoping to give her a little nutrition since juice doesn't have very many nutrients.  I slip a tiny bit of milk into the Danimals, and as long as she doesn't see, she will still drink it.  But, the silly girl won't drink it until she sees me put some juice in it as well.  Even the tiniest amount will satisfy her craving.  I've also started giving her V-8 Fusion so at least she gets a full serving of fruits and vegetables with every cup full.  I feel bad limiting her fluids because fluid is important, but the girl will seriously drink all day and not eat a thing except a cup of yogurt, a cheese stick, and a handful of pretzels. Every day, she crawls to the fridge and pulls out a cup of yogurt.  She is so independent that she will only eat it if she can do it on her own.  She dips the spoon in and feeds herself.  It makes for a messy, yet satisfied Cakes when she's finished. 

Helping mom cook dinner is another favorite activity of Eliza.  The moment I start pulling things out to make dinner, Eliza is at my feet eager to help.  Sometimes she is more of a hindrance than a help.

Each morning after getting dressed, she must sit on the vanity to comb her own hair and brush her teeth.  After she is finished, she spends a couple of minutes admiring herself in the mirror and pulling silly faces.  It really cracks me up.  

She finds the silliest places to sit - like under the bathroom sink.

And the step between our kitchen and family room is her favorite spot. She will eat snacks and read books from this spot. She also enjoys standing up from that spot, and she is so proud of herself when she does.

Other loves: Going running with daddy. She will stretch out with dad - she'll even touch his toes for him. She just loves being outside. Most of the time she falls asleep on the run, but will wake up as soon as Bruce gets her out of the stroller. In this picture, she is wearing her snow suit to be sure that she stayed warm enough.

She's a regular secretary - wanting to type on the computer all the time.

Taking bubble baths. She pulls the bubble bath out of the cupboard at least three times a day, and hands it to me to fill up the tub.

Although she doesn't say any sensible words, she understands almost everything we say. Her favorite word is yes - she doesn't say, she simply nods her head, but her eyes show clear understanding. She knows the following body parts, and will point to them when asked: head, hair, eyes, nose, mouth, lips, teeth, tongue, ears, chin, neck, arms, hands, fingers, shoulders, belly, chest, knees, ankles, elbow, armpit, toes, feet, leg, back.



This girl is hilarious. She is the most observant, strong willed, silliest little girl I know, and I absolutely love her to pieces. I'm so lucky to be her mom - she is a very good girl who is full of so much love and spunk. She'll always be my little girl.