14 Months

In keeping with the randomness of my updates one Claire, here is one for her very important 14th month.

Stats:
Claire is 28.7 inches tall and weights about 21 pounds. She still only has three teeth all of which are on the

bottom but her fourth is working at coming in now.

Speech:
Claire has a real word! Jeff and I differ on what her first word was, but this is my blog so I'm claiming it as kitty. Whenever she sees Blanket and gets excited she sounds just like Boo from Monster's Inc. That is the only word she regularly uses in its proper context right now, but she understands a decent number of basic instructions. Of these the most important is that she reliably understands and responds to being told no.

Sleep:
I think we are now officially sleeping through the night folks. Hallelujah thank you Jesus. Whew. I mean, you really do just get used to being tired, and that truth isn't as depressing as I thought it was before I had a kid. I do seem to have amnesia about Claire's first summer though and keep getting excited thinking that this coming summer will be her first. Then of course I remember that we already had a summer with her in which we did all the fun water and outdoorsy things that I'm looking forward to doing again. My only explanation for this amnesia is that I was even more tired than I realized!

Personality:
Claire can be a little bit of a stinker these days and can throw a tantrum when she gets frustrated,  but as long as I'm not asking her to wait for food she is a pretty happy girl. She enjoys having people over to the house and showing off her new skills as she walks from one person to the next. Of course she still is pretty attached to Jeff and I but as long as we're near by she likes to visit with new folks too.

Movin' & a Groovin':

Claire doesn't appreciate people who don't share.

Claire is getting more and more confident in her walking abilities these days. She's still most comfortable crawling, but she is now choosing to walk to get somewhere close instead of crawling. Her limit of unassisted walking is somewhere around 10-12 steps but she gets a little farther every day, and she's picking up speed. She still likes to use her walkers to go long distances, and if she can't find a real walker she'll make one out of anything that's handy. So far boxes, desk chairs, TV trays and high chairs have all been turned into improvised walkers.

Favorite Things:

Claire is still madly in love with her puppy dog. Her new favorite thing to do is to sit on top of him while he's laying down. Prince is pretty understanding with her but one of these days he's going to decide to get up while she's on top of him. That is going to be remembered as either the day she learned how to ride a dog or the day she got a giant goose egg on her head. It will most likely be the latter.

The new thing Claire seems most fond of doing is hanging out in the front yard. Since we put in the new sod the weather has been really nice, so I've been taking her out with me when I go to water the yard. She plays in the puddle created by a leak in the hose while I get my chores done. We've stained a few pants this way, but she couldn't be happier so it's a sacrifice I can live with. I'm really looking forward to more water related activities this summer and getting one of those water splash tables for her to play with.

Claire has expanded her TV palate and now also gets excited to watch Sesame Street. I am very happy with this new development since I can probably recite most of the first two seasons of Yo Gabba Gabba by heart. Also, Sesame Street is sooooo much quieter to have on. This mama is pleased. In preparation for our Disneyland trip in September we've started showing her some Disney movies as well. She's enjoyed Lilo and Stitch, Tarzan, Pocahontas and WALL-E so far.

A Wakin', A Wavin' and A Clappin'

In the last week Claire has made walking, waving, and clapping a part of her routine. The last two she's been doing for a while, but now they seem to have taken on real meaning in her communication. She claps when she's proud of something she's done or excited about something, and its not uncommon now for her to wave goodbye. Her wave before was actually more of a grabbing gesture because she wanted something, but now she's developed a gentler version to say goodbye with. Of course for the video she made me repeat myself several time even though she'd been waving every time I said good bye all morning, but that seems to be the nature of trying to capture anything cute she does on my camera. Though she did do it right before she took off so it was actually a goodbye.

The walking really just started yesterday, and at first she was only interested in doing it for Papa, and only if you caught her firmly standing of her own free will and called her over. Now she is happy to do it for both of us and will do it over and over again when we stand her next to something she can hold onto. I thought she'd be encouraged to walk because she'd eventually learn it's a better way to get around, but she's too good of a crawler for that. What seems to be getting her to do it is that it's become a game full of praises and giggles.

While I am super excited about the new possibilities Claire walking opens up in terms of activities she can participate in, I'm also aware of the fact that this is a new big step in taking care of her. Keeping up with a fast crawler is work enough, but it won't be long now before she's running from one bit of mischief to the next.

Claire's First Year Video

I just realized I forgot to post this on here for any of the folks who weren't able to make it Claire's party, or who just need a little cuteness pick me up during their day. The first song is actually a David Bowie cover of his song Kooks. I don't know that I've ever loved a Bowie song outside of his little drummer boy duet with Bing Crosby, but the line "but if you stay with us you're gonna be pretty kooky too" just made it the perfect fit. Poor Claire,you are doomed to being a bit of a kook with parents like us, but don't worry, it's more fun to be a kook.

Finding Her Own Snacks

Claire has made a discovery. She now knows where her snacks live and how to access them. Luckily she hasn't figured out how to open the sealed tops yet, but that's only a matter of time. The day care lady at church is into Montessori style child care and she was praising the idea of having her snacks down low where Claire can access them herself, but I'm pretty sure that's just going to lead to me walking into the kitchen one day to find Claire and Prince feasting on several tins of cheesy puffs. We'll see. 

Hmm, what to have, what to have...

What's this?

Mmmmm, waffles. Yeah I want those.

Why won't these open? I need my cheesy puffs!

Claire has her appetizer and dessert picked out. Now what to have for the main course? Wait, why is she staring at me?

One Less Obstacle

I'm a mix of excited and nervous about Claire's new ability to confidently go up and down the stairs. On the upside, she is most likely not going to try and go down them face first when we aren't looking anymore. On the down side, she can now get anywhere in the house on her own. Why haven't we bought baby gates yet?

Discovery: Toy Box

Just a quick post today to chronicle Baby's discovery of the toy box. Did you know that the box at the end of her bed is chuck full of stuffies? Well she didn't until about five minutes ago. A whole new world of possibilities has opened to her.

 

At first she was timid, and didn't know what to expect.

 

Then she got excited at the discovery.

 

 

Then she couldn't figure out how to make the lid stay up long enough to pull a toy out.

 

 

Finally, she got distracted by her favorite basket and decided to fill it with treasures instead.

 

Don't worry little one, I'm sure you'll figure it out next time. What's important is that you know its there. Next challenge, pulling a stuffed animal out of the toy box.

Pulling Up

Last week I walked into Claire's room to pick her up, and I caught her trying to grab her mobile.

 

Her ability to get herself up into a sitting position is still new enough that I was impressed by that. Her attempt to grab her mobile was just icing on the cake, but then, this happened.

 

 

Oh goodness. Claire is getting to be such a big little girl (and yes her mattress has since been lowered to a much safer height). OK, so I have to admit, she did it once the day before, but I didn't catch it on tape so it didn't happen.

 

 I shouldn't be surprised that there is only one guaranteed way to get her to stand up and that is to call Prince into the room. After I had taken the video of Baby reaching for her mobile I saw her get into position to pull herself up, but she couldn't quite get it. I tried doing everything I could to encourage her before I gave up and just called the dog in. The second he came in she popped up. I may not have any irrigation lines in my back yard anymore, but I definitely don't regret getting Claire her best friend.

 

 

 

Learning to Play

We recently returned from a trip to Indiana, and aside from being a great time to hang out with family, it was also a time of great development for baby Claire. During this week, in which she turned four months old, Claire became very interested in playing with toys. She had started to show some interest before, but everything we had for her to play with at home was just a little too heavy or large for little baby hands.

Her first big burst of interest was when we sat her in her cousin's Kick and Play. It's like a saucer bouncy seat, but with toys dangling above and sensors below her feet. She loved batting at the colorful toys and hearing the noises the seat made as her feet hit the sensors. While she swatted at the toys a lot, she seemed even more interested in kicking everything, including the hanging toys. This little lady has definitely found her toes in a big way. I now have to fight them out of her hands during diaper changes!

Jeff was especially inspired by her new found interest in toys and bought her several light weight ones while we were out and about (you definitely know you're a parent when you go to the mall to buy grown up shoes and only come back with items for the baby). She's particularly in love with the green ball he found for her in Nashville Indiana. Its delicate enough that she can get her little fingers gripped around it and its full of rattles. She gets frustrated at it sometimes though because she hasn't figured out how to get a giant round ball in her mouth. I'm sure she'll figure it out in time.

I'm really excited that this development happened during a week when Jeffry was off of work. Being a SAHM, I get to see all her little changes in person, and it was a real treat for him to get to do the same.

Her First Laughing Fit

I don't know how many times I can watch this before it stops filling me with joy, but if the world were like Disneyland, I'd have her laugh playing from all the hidden speakers to be a soundtrack for my life.

Operation Cradle

Its too dark to get a picture when Claire is in her cradle, so just pretend you're seeing  a cradle instead of a dog bed!

Jeff and I decided that co-sleeping was the best option for us when we first brought Claire home from the hospital for many reasons. First, we were interested in getting as much sleep as possible in those first few months, and being able to sooth her quickly when she'd start to fuss before she even fully woke herself up was key.I also started staying in bed to do night time feedings which also got us back to sleep faster.Second, and sort of going hand in hand with the first, newborns breath very lightly and I couldn't help but check on her throughout the night for the first several days to make sure she was still taking in air. It sounds silly, but it seems like something most moms go through when they bring their little ones home.  Finally, our house is a bit chilly, and I felt she'd be a little warmer sleeping with us.

Now that Claire typically only wakes once in the night to eat (though last night it was every two hours) I started thinking about when to move her into her cradle to sleep. She had also taken to throwing her feet out of her co-sleeper and poking me at night which made the getting more sleep reason for co-sleeping no longer applicable. Even though the reasons to stop co-sleeping were starting to manifest, I was reluctant to move her to her cradle. Granted, its only about two feet from our bed, but when I'm used to having her safe and warm next to me all night two feet seems like a long way. There was also the slight twinge of sadness at the idea of Claire moving beyond her need to sleep with us. I spent a week or two thinking, tonight is the night, but then I'd chicken out when bedtime actually rolled around.

On Saturday April 14th, this momma got brave. After Claire's last feeding she was soundly asleep, the room was nice and warm and the cradle looked like a pretty good idea. I had no more excuses to not give it a try. She didn't even wake up when I laid her in it and watched her for several minutes as I gently rocked the cradle back and forth. I put the co-sleeper next to the bed just in case she woke up upset, repositioned the pillows and blankets in the bed to their pre-baby positions and cozied in for a good nights sleep. As I drifted off, I was surprised to find I actually enjoyed the idea that we all had our own little beds.

I think Operation Cradle has been a definite success. Last night was the only time I've had to bring her back into our bed so far and even then she had spent most of the night her cradle. While its slightly sad to think my little girl no longer needs my arm nestled around her to get a good nights sleep, it is also exciting to see her content in her own space. I think this was a milestone for both momma and baby as she learns to grow, and I learn to let her.