Lucy is about a week away from 16 months now, and I can honestly say that each day gets more and more amazing. She has turned into such a loving little girl. The few moments when she isn’t busy darting around the room, pulling the cat’s tail, or dancing on the coffee table, she spends loving me. I love it. She still likes being in my arms and spends a lot of time in our carrier.  My absolute favorite thing is when she decides to drop what she is doing, run over to me and pucker up, insisting on a kiss. There is nothing in the world sweeter than that.

Lucy is a tiny little thing. She is a skinny, muscular little lady with a giant head (really, it’s been in the 90%+ since she was born). I could blame it on genetics (my family has huge heads), but the truth is she has an enormous brain hiding in there. She is weighing in at 19 pounds and is 30.5” tall. She currently wears a size 5 shoe, but I have already been buying size 6, because if she is anything like her mama (and I suspect she is), then her feet will grow large and they will grow fast. Sorry Lucy, just be happy you have your daddy’s pretty olive skin and not my blotchy complexion.

She is a wild girl. Since the day she was born (and actually even when she was in my belly) I knew she had a lot of energy, more than other kids I have met around her age. This girl is always on the go. Like most parents I see quirks or personality traits and they lead me to wonder who she will become. I know she loves nature and she is a mover. I hope she loves hiking, because I could use a hiking partner. She loves dancing and music, but has absolutely no interest in the television (other than once or twice when I showed her shows about her favorite animals), maybe she will be a musician, I do love music and would love to hear hers! I have offered her crayons and art supplies, but she still tries to eat them, so all my dreams of her following in mama’s footsteps in becoming a painter are still dreams. What will you want to do in your life, my baby girl?

We have had some challenges recently, all teething related. She has 6 teeth on top and 6 on bottom. Her top canines are currently working their way through, and it has been rough. Nights have been restless and the days have been long. I sometimes forget how hard it must be to be a baby and get frustrated with the endless crying. It really takes a lot of work for me to step outside the situation and see why she is acting the way she is, and trying to find some sort of distraction from the pain for her. It must be hard being a baby, I wish I remembered.

Lucy has recently become interested in animal sounds. It all started with this little stuffed cat (which belonged to me when I was young) that meows when you squeeze it’s belly. Lucy started mimicking it, only instead of meow she chants “minow”. Since then we have been teaching her other animal sounds. She will say “boooo” anytime we point to or talk about cows in her books, and she will make the most lovely growling sound every time we get to the three little bears sitting on chairs in Goodnight Moon, which is still her absolute favorite book. She loves bears.

Every day with this crazy, wild, free spirited goofball gets more rewarding. Most days she exhausts me, but every day is a pleasure. I am so thankful that I am this incredible little girl’s mama.

In three very short weeks this sweet girl will be celebrating her first birthday. Where has the time gone? My baby is not such a baby anymore. Sure, her stature is small, but she walks and talks. Maybe they aren’t real distinguishable words, but we seem to communicate pretty well. She almost always knows what I am talking about and about 2/3 of the time I know what she wants or needs. We have a pretty good little thing going here.

One year though, that is big. One year, looking back it all seems like a fog.

It’s been a long time since I did an update on Lucy. She recently turned 10 months old. 10 months! I can’t figure out where the time has gone. She is growing so quickly, each day she seems less and less like a baby.

She has been walking for over a month, and recently has started running. She has seven teeth, four on top, three on bottom, and one more on bottom ready to poke through any day. She loves trying new foods but isn’t a very big eater. She is a skinny little thing, at her nine month appointment she was 16 lbs, and I doubt she is much more than that now. She knows a ton of words, and says a few. Throughout our day we go around the house (or wherever we are) and I quiz her on the name of objects and she points them out. Her favorite things are trees, our kitties (or keys as she calls them), and being held. She is very attached to me and wants to be carried about two thirds of our day. She is very energetic but has a very gentle spirit about her. Even when she falls she (usually) does it so gracefully.

It just keeps getting better.

Just poking my head in to say hi. It’s been quite a while since my last post, and I could apologize for my lack of presence, but quite honestly I am not sorry.

Lucy has hit this amazing stage where I no longer feel stressed. All I want to do is play, and watch her grow. So many things have happened since she hit 6 months a few weeks back. She sprouted two teeth, she took her first crawling step, she can sit up from laying down, she can pull herself up to standing, and most importantly, she said mama.

I am in heaven, and trying to savor every moment. I probably will not be back until after the Thanksgiving holiday, so I wish you all a good one.