Dear Everleigh (15 Months!)

Dear Everleigh,




Today you are FIFTEEN MONTHS OLD! This is crazy, and just so you know all the stuff they say about time flying is true.

Here's what you've been up to this month:

NO: you've learned your declarative word and you are not afraid to use it when asked just about anything. Do you want some food? No. Do you want to take your bath? No. Can Mommy change your diaper? No.  You even say it in this super cute grown-up way that makes you sound more like a real housewife of New Jersey or something than a fifteen month old baby. It's still sort of adorably frustrating and sassy but cute. It may not be in another couple months---we shall see.

BOOK-IT: we made our first library trip as a way to save me from reading the same 20 books you currently own over and over and over and over and over. We checked out 5 on our first visit (Tubby, Oops, Bye Bye Time, Lady Bug Girl Loves, and Naptime for Kitty), which I soon learned were not nearly enough. We had read those 10 times each by bedtime that first night. So we keep going back, and back and back. You have a fondness for the written word that I appreciate :) Especially books with guest appearances by kitties and doggies. Oh and you also continue to express a burning desire to get Mommy and Daddy's books off the grown-up book shelf. You seem especially drawn to Kerouac and Poe, which reinforces my belief that you are awesome.

STINKY FEET: your feet are sometimes stinky/sometimes not. But either way you think it is the funniest thing ever when we pretend to sniff them and tell you they are stinky and wrinkle our noses up. Good times. Even better when Elmo smells your feet and tells you they are stinky stink.

SWINGING: up until now, you've basically allowed us to place you in a swing at the park and then proceeded to look completely indifferent and stare into space while swinging back and forth. But this month you've really gotten excited about the swing, which is decidedly more fun for all of us. You giggle and say whheeeeee! and it's great. You also insisted this weekend on trying to swing by yourself in the big kid swing. We were skeptical, but you held on tight and loved it and did not fall (which is mostly what I was worried about). What a big girl you are, Ev!

MOON WALK: I have to get this on camera, I swear. You only pull this move out when we're rocking out to some fun tunes on the back deck. You turn around and slooowwwly start walking backwards. Now we request it, "do the moonwalk!". To which you typically reply "no." Regardless, Michael would be proud.

DORA and YO GABBA GABBA: for most of your little baby and toddlerhood, you've been pretty uninterested in television shows. Which I think is cool--I don't want you crying for the TV and obsessing about your favorite characters and so on. But it CAN be a pretty handy tool once awhile to have in the parenting tool belt if you need 15 minutes to clean the kitchen or cook dinner (our main living space is open loft-style so the kitchen kind of is the dining room is the living room, etc.). This month for the first time you actually got into watching the occasional Dora or Yo Gabba Gabba episode and watched it all the way through. And while we're making sure not to overdo it, it's so fun to see you get into the shows and wiggle your little booty to the songs. Love it.

TEETH McGEETH: you have been a bit of a late-bloomer in the teeth department (got your first two bottom teeth at 10 months and your top 2 at 11 1/2 months, then nothing). So your mouth is still a little 4-tooth smile. But not for long....we're starting to see some more uppers breaking through and the bottom gums are looking puffy. You may well get a mouthfull of teeth overnight :) My take is that you've been focusing so much energy on being awesome, you haven't had enough extra to dedicate to growing more teeth and hair. Oh, and while we're on the subject, this explosive teething process has made for some interesting nights! When you get into crying because my teeth hurt mode, it's basically impossible to comfort you without totally waking you up, saying your name over and over, and making you look me in the eye. Oh and then giving you some Oragel. Then you usually drop right back to sleep like I pushed a button. Strange....

ADVENTURES IN SLEEPING: we've been working on this big girl bed transition for a couple months now, and you're doing pretty well. I'm glad we went with a full sized bed for you, because you move SO much in your sleep, you need a whole bed. You flip, you flop, you toss and turn. This week, you actually fell off the bed (it's not on a frame so it was only about 10-12 inches up), and onto your strategically place pillow pet. And through all this you kept on sleeping. You stayed on the floor on your pillow pet for about 2 more hours before waking up and being like, "what the??" only in baby language it was more like "waaaahhhh! Ma...ma". You can get up and down off your bed yourself and while this is mostly good, you have scared me a couple times by waking up in the night, not crying or saying anything (I sleep with an ear basically on the monitor at all times), but walking into our room and standing by my side of the bed and then crying. It's probably funny to watch me jump :) And it's also neat that you know where we are and how to come get us. I'm sure there will come a time when I'll miss our nighttime snuggles.

LOVE YOU: you also started saying "Love you" this month, which basically makes my heart melt where I stand every time I hear it. I mean, I guess I already assumed you loved me, but hearing you say it really just amazes me and makes me feel like the luckiest gal around. Love you, Love you, Love you too!

So there you have it-- some highlights from the month. There are so many more things you're doing and learning and amazing us all with, but I don't think anyone wants to read Dear Everleigh, 15 Months
the novel, so I'll keep it short (ish).

You are so funny, smart, intuitive and cool. Every day I spend with you, I am inspired to be more present, more kind, more patient, more inquisitive. I can't wait to see what the next month brings!

Love you always,

Mama