17 Months

Dear Annie,

More and more big changes are happening in your little world! It's crazy to me that now, when people ask how old you are, I can respond with "one and a half" - the days of quoting your age in months are over! We are away from home this week, up at your grandparents' cabin, so we finally have taken our monthly pic elsewhere!

You are a smooth little walker now, you still fall sometimes but not too often anymore. You've picked up speed, but you don't run yet - fine with me, that's for sure! You still love to climb, and playgrounds have become much more fun for you this month - you can climb up slides, and go down, and just this weekend you've figured out how to climb a short ladder after MANY attempts.

Outside is still your favorite place to be, although sometimes I think you enjoy the process of walking over doorframes, in and out, in and out, almost as much as being outside! You love picking up sticks, collecting rocks, playing in the water and just walking around. The stroller has become a favorite and you really love taking walks, pointing out things you see and hear on the way! You've become quite the interactive travel companion now!

New words continue to come out of you seemingly every day - I stopped keeping track, but I think you've probably added 10-15 words to your vocabulary this month. None of them are particularly understandable to everyone, and some sound absolutely nothing like the real word (for example, for both flower and water you say something that sounds vaguely like "da-doo") but you sure are letting us know what you're looking at! My favorite word that you learned this month was "Up!" when you want to get up somewhere - finally, something useful! You used to cling at our legs, look up, and say "dow? dow? dow????" and then when we'd say "UP?" you'd say "pup!" and now you just say "UP!" I also quite like "night night" when you want to go to sleep or when you lay down on a pillow. It's so cute to start hearing what's going on in your little head! You aren't really babbling much anymore, instead just running through all your words, or humming a little tune. Your favorite word continues to be PUPPY and you say it alllll the time, anytime you see an animal at all resembling a dog, or hear a bark in the distance.

You've started singing and dancing a little this month while walking - you bop around, sway, and shake your arms when we're singing, and you also try to sing along. You've gotten better about motions to songs, and continue to love to sing along to things like itsy bitsy spider, ring around the rosie, and this little piggy.

Family and friends are so much fun to see now - you squeal with glee and rush over to people that you recognize, such as your grandparents, aunts, uncles, and the neighbors. Still no one gets a louder scream of excitement then going over to Nate, Molly and Mia's house! When you see your friends or family in the distance, you like to shout "HEY!!!!!!!!!! HEY!!!!!!!!!!!!" at them until they turn around and wave back. This usually isn't enough, and you do this several times until you move on to the next activity.

I would be remiss if I only mentioned the fun things you are doing this month, because that wouldn't be a very accurate depiction of who you are! You have some QUITE cranky times, Miss Annie, and I have to say they are VERY frustrating to us! Some days (like today, actually) you just wake up on the wrong side of the bed, and almost nothing will turn you right again! You are full on into tantrum mode, and some days the tiniest thing will set you off, like not being able to get a lid on a jar, or having something taken away from you before you are ready. You throw yourself on the ground and kick and YELL, VERY LOUDLY! Anyone listening would surely think you are being tortured. You are getting much better about saying please nicely when asking for something, instead of grunting "EH! EH!" while reaching for it, which is very nice. We try to ignore your tantrums most of the time, but we fear someone calling Child Protective Services on us because of how loud you are! We just keep repeating "this is just a phase..." (that will probably get worse before it gets better, but oh well).

While there are some real lows of this age, the highs are even higher. I just love sharing experiences with you now, having conversations, and seeing you figure out your world. You still LOVE to eat, your favorites are any kind of fruit and carb, Mexican food, and anything in a tomato sauce. and CHEESE of course! You used to open your mouth for anything I'd try to feed you, but you now examine what I have, and shake your head no if you don't want it. NOTHING will convince you to try something you don't want, no matter how much I know that you would like it! You're very good with a spoon, and have gotten much better with a fork too, stabbing neatly instead of wildly.

Annie, I'm so excited to see you grow and change into a true toddler and little girl. You are so full of personality, and we truly do just sit and watch you with wonder most of the time!

We love you forever!

Love, Mom