Almost taking a step

Here you are almost taking a step. Now you can stand without holding on to anything! I may be your biggest cheerleader which is certainly evident in this video. I'm a little embarrassed of my excitement but here it is anyway:

Weekend with Josh

The days seem to get busier every day. You love to be on the go which leaves less and less time to document your adventures. Josh came to visit this weekend. It took you a while to warm up but you were blowing him kisses before it was time for him to leave. We had a nice Memorial Day weekend. Josh bought a fancy camera that we used to take lots of pictures of you. Here are some of the pictures.

Waking up after your nap:

Looking at bubbles. You would not crack a smile. Just intently kept your eye on those bubbles:

Smiling so big that you made your nose crinkle:

Looking out the window of your fort:

Standing at the top of your slide:

Taking a rest on Mommy in the hammock:

Pushing Mommy on the hammock:

Still pushing (hence the reason you needed a rest):

Getting ready to rock your baby doll:

Waking up from your nap:

Breakfast at Regency and the only picture with Daddy. He was behind the camera a lot this weekend.

Lily you are doing so many new things lately. Your personality and sense of humor are really coming out lately. You seem to be changing everyday. I hope to write about some of the things you are doing soon and before I forget.

Love,

Mommy

Kick It!

You've learned to kick a ball before learning to walk. That's my girl!

Morning at the zoo with Mommy

We spent the morning at the zoo today. I knew when you particularly liked an animal because you would blow kisses to that animal. The peacock, gorilla, turtle, cow, and ducks were lucky enough to receive one of your kisses. You loved riding the train and said "toot toot." Here are a few pictures:

Go Union!

We went to another home game yesterday and you're getting pretty good at this tailgating stuff. We kicked the ball and you practiced walking - just a little bit.

With every outing it's just as important to have books in your diaper bag as it is to have diapers.

Like last time you loved all the people watching and the fireworks that we're both looking at here.

Just like mommy, you fell asleep during the best part of the game.

Daddy has his priorities in order.

Who's Who?

Which one is Daddy, which one is Lily?

I'm So Pretty

We sometimes have to compensate for your short hair by putting you in a dress to girl you up a little bit.

Update: 13 months

Dear Lily,

You are now 13 months old! You seem less like a baby and more like a toddler every day. You understand everything we say. Daddy was playing with your doctor kit this morning and you learned where your heart is located. You pat your heart when we say "thump thump, where's your heart?" Your ability to learn is astonishing. You have mastered your shape sorter and can even complete simple puzzles! You are happiest when Mommy or Daddy are teaching you something. You are starting to say more words. Your spontaneous words productions are: Bow/Bowie, Sca/Scout, moo, up, mo/more, meaw/meow, bye-bye. Every time you see a cat you say "meaw" and blow it kisses. You say "mama" and "daddy" but you still don't use our names to call us. You are very good at nodding your head "yes" and "no" to communicate your wants. I can ask you a question and you almost always answer appropriately. Like "do you want to go the playground" ALWAYS gets a yes and "do you want some more food" almost always gets a no. You are also signing the word "more" all the time. If Mommy or Daddy do anything funny you immediately sign more. I can tell when you really like something because of the way you ask for more. It's precious.

I wish I could report that you were doing just as well with walking and eating. You are still not walking. You like to stand up but will NOT let go. I think you probably could walk but you just don't seem to want to. You have to be very sure and confident before you do something and you are just very uncertain about the whole walking thing. As for eating, you have become extremely picky. You will not eat any fresh vegetable or fruit. Some days you will eat pasta and other days you totally refuse it. You seem to have some problems with food texture. You will almost always eat baby food but you can't eat that forever. You will rarely try anything new. If I try to hide a veggie in a bite of mac and cheese, you skillfully swallow the mac and cheese and spit out the veggie. I'm trying to not make a big deal of what you eat. I offer fruits and veggies at every meal but I am really hoping this is just a phase. You transitioned well to cow's milk but lately you don't even want much of that. Too bad you can't live off of goldfish crackers forever.

Your personality is really becoming apparent now, and it's clear you are your father's daughter. You are very serious in new situations. You observe your surroundings and take a long time to warm up. We went to the Please Touch Museum (Children's Museum) for Mother's day. We had fun exploring all the toys and riding the carousel but it took you a while to show you were having fun. Thank you for a great mother's day. You are a blast to be around. Here are some pictures of that day:

Driving a race car:

You loved ringing this doorbell and opening this tiny door:

Crawling through a tunnel in outer space:

You don't quite get the idea to put your hands down for this one:

Riding the carousel with Daddy:

You and Daddy make that face you both make:

You were watching the carousel while waiting for your turn to ride. When it stopped you promptly signed "more":

Sitting on a swan:

Re-enacting the movie Big:

Having a cow:

Pretending you are a potato farmer. You loaded each potato in your wagon then pushed it around. You got a little distracted by another kid pushing the doorbell on the tiny door:

Today the weather is perfect and we are off to enjoy a Union game.

Love,

Mommy

Say cheese

Getting four one year olds to look at the camera and smile is nearly
impossible.

Smith playground

At Smith playground with the boys.

Feed the baby

During breakfast this morning you decided to feed your baby. You saw
your baby across the room and demanded that I bring her to you. You
gave her a bite of food then fed yourself.