ada charlotte {11 months}

My Ada,

It's amazing how much changes in the course of a month. At the beginning of the month, you were timidly crawling, moving only four paces or so before collapsing. Now you are zooming all over the place and it's both crazy and fun! :) You were also making faces and noises at the beginning of the month that you've since moved on from. You're just bound and determined to grow up, aren't you? ;)

Sometimes I wish for the past -- to hold your tiny cuddly self and really enjoy every moment instead of stressing (I thought that in the moment, too, but I just couldn't figure out how to wish away that stress!); sometimes I wish for the future -- to hear the funny things you'll say as a toddler, to have you able to communicate in WORDS what's upsetting you, to see the kind of human you'll become. But I try to live in the present moment, enjoying every new thing as it comes and soaking you in at every age you are :) I just love you, my girl. I'm so happy you're mine :)

Stats

You weigh 18.4 pounds (35% -- same percentile as last month) and are 28.75 inches long (55% -- same length as last month, but dropped from 75% . . . again, who knows when I'm measuring you correctly!)
You wear mostly 6 month clothing, but you still wear a bunch of 3-6 month items and several 6-9 month items. The only reason you're not wearing more 6-9 month items is that what we have seems to be more appropriate for fall . . . hopefully those things still fit you by the time the weather cools down! I also had this realization that if it were winter, you probably couldn't wear many 3-6 or 6 month items because all the pants would be short on you. It works out great with shorts in the summer though!
Still in size 3 diapers.

Notable events

Daddy and I left you for more than 24 hours for the first time. We did this fun scavenger hunt called Questival, and Granny B came to the house to watch you. I was all worried about how you'd sleep since it can be unpredictable, but you did better for Granny B than you ever do for me! On any given day you might sleep in, take an extra long first nap, or take two naps that are both longer than an hour. But when Granny B came, you did ALL THREE! Slept in til 7ish, slept 2.5 hours for nap #1, and slept an hour for nap #2. I was blown away! And also grateful that you did so well :)

While you spent time with a bunch of your cousins last month, we didn't get a pic of you with your same-aged cousins (on my side) until this month :)

ada (10mo), parker (6mo), beth (5.5mo), lydia (3mo)

You got to visit Papa T and Granny B's house for the first time :) We went up for a little family reunion in Burley and then spent the weekend in Boise :)

Tricks/Milestones

Like I mentioned above, you are crawling like a champ. It's crazy! You sometimes crawl on hands and knees, and other times you crawl on hands, one knee, and one foot. Usually you switch to one knee/one foot for hard floors.
You finally started walking with assistance! For a while you've liked to be pulled to a standing position, but we couldn't get you to move your feet. Now we can take you 10-15 steps before you're done with that.

You kind of sign "all done," but I'm not convinced you know what it means. I'm still trying to figure out when you're done and when you want more.
We switched you from formula to cow's milk. The transition went fine, and I'm singing the hallelujah chorus that we get to buy a gallon of milk for ~$2 every other week instead of a container of formula for $20 every other week.
You've officially pulled up to stand in your crib, but you don't do it every time (you've actually only done it 2 or 3 times in the past 2 weeks or so). You also pull up on this walker toy you have and some shorter furniture, but you haven't yet pulled up on the couch, nor do you cruise along the furniture yet.

You've started to actually touch your touchy-feely book, and you're sliiiiightly less intent on eating your books now; instead you've started to flip the pages for me :)
You're in the process of learning to high 5 :)
You still have zero teeth :)

My favorite things

There was one night a few weeks ago when I was singing your bedtime song to you, and you (uncharacteristically) put both hands on my neck and it was just so sweet. You also occasionally lay your head on my shoulder and pat my back when I'm singing you to sleep. It's freakin' adorable.
Oftentimes when we get in the car, you will talk and sing so sweetly to yourself in the backseat. It's precious! And lasts a max of 15-20 minutes. Then you're done with the car ;)
When you shake your head back and forth to mirror me (or anyone else), it is the stinkin' cutest thing ever! One time I asked you if you wanted more food and you started shaking your head and it was so funny and fitting! But I'm pretty sure you mean it as "no" . . . you just do it for fun!

When a bite of food doesn't quite make it completely in your mouth, you use the back of your forearm to get that food into your mouth. It's so funny! And cute of course :)

I don't do it very often, but occasionally I'll get you out of bed to cuddle before I go to bed. Since I can never cuddle you when you're awake, I steal the sleepy cuddles! And of course, I love them :)
You've pretty much given up growling, and you traded it for a new "la la la" sound. The sound is more continuous than spaced out, though, so it sounds kind of like "ladladladla." It's really cute :) I like it, but Daddy has said it's one of his favorite sounds you've made yet.

Random tidbits

I really never know how much to feed you, because sometimes you seem to want more and more and more, and sometimes you take two bites and then start throwing your food on the ground. I'm not sure if that's your way of saying you're done, or if you're just trying to play around. Sometimes I'm blown away by how much you eat, though! I mean two pancakes and one egg for breakfast? That's practically an adult serving (even though the pancakes are kinda small)!
You are super sensitive to bonking your head on things. Every time you do, even if it's just a tiny tap, you start crying for comfort. I try to just rub your head and tell you it's okay and that you're tough, but I also usually pick you up, so I'm a little worried that I'm teaching you to be a wimp 😂
You seem to like most foods (even pickles! which both Dad and I hate), but your favorites are for sure blueberries, avocados, and bananas. And of course, anything sweet.
You are great to play contentedly with toys -- normal toys and anything you can find. My measuring tape for sewing, shoelaces, and garbage cans are a few that you're currently drawn to. The measuring tape and shoelaces are fine with me, but I have to keep you away from those garbage cans!

Now that you're super mobile, my philosophy has been to let you play with pretty much anything you get your hands on unless it seems super dangerous. So I haven't moved anything on the lower shelves, because so far it hasn't been too much of a problem. For a while I was letting you make a mess of my bar cart's lower shelf (the hot cocoa shelf), but I had to put the cart in a closet once you started banging mugs together 😒
The one exception to the "danger" concern is that mossy stuff that you put in the pot of a fake tree. You started going for that stuff ALL THE TIME and though it was not dangerous, it was driving me nuts, so I put a garbage bag around the tree pot. It'll probably be there for the next 10 years 😩
You scare easily, just like Mama. If I ever pop out or unexpectedly say something to you, you jump a little :)
Idk what it is, but it's the funniest thing for Daddy and I to watch you poop. Your face turns all red, you do all sorts of grunting, and you just struggle so much! It's funny. Also, you poop 2-3 times per day. It's wild.
For a while there, you were pretty darn compliant with diaper changes! I'd lay you down and you would lay there til I finished, only moving in minor ways. For the last few days though, you seem to be back to your old ways of trying to get away from me whenever it's time for a diaper change.
You respond really well when we tell you to "come here." I'll beckon you with my hands, and you'll come crawling!
You made this really cute "O" face all the time at the beginning of the month, but you've since stopped. I don't know if I even got a picture of it! :(
You still cry for companionship but then proceed to seem not to want it once I pick you up. You're a little weirdo :)
I did a pretty good job of never letting you watch TV for the first 10 months of your life. You might see something on TV if we were at Grandma and Grandpa's house, but we never watched anything when you were awake. Wellllll I totally let that slip this month because I started re-watching a favorite show, and so you've watched some with me. You seem to like it haha.
You are always crawling all over me when I'm standing at the sink (or stove or whatever) in the kitchen. You really want to be pulled to stand or pulled into my arms. You show this by pinching my calves! I think you're just trying to pull yourself up, but it hurts!! Definitely not a favorite thing of mine 😂
You consider sacrament cups to be one of the best things ever, and you often crawl around with one in your mouth, leaving a trail of drool everywhere you go.
You do this thing where you make your cheeks all puffy and then you buzz your lips in a spitting sort of way. It's funny and cute :)

You love looking at yourself in the reflection of the dishwasher and oven. Sometimes you even make out with yourself 😂

You put literally anything you can find on the ground into your mouth. It's what finally got me to create a weekly cleaning schedule, so hopefully I can stick to that so you won't have any bugs or rocks to put in your mouth 🙈
You're also pretty obsessed with the fridge and freezer, and you're always trying to get in there when I open them up.

Love always,

Mama