13 Months

Linnea,
You are 13 months old! Crazy talk! You fill our lives and our hearts with joy, and amaze us each day by showing us the sweet, loving, smart, silly little person you have become. Here is an update on what you are doing these days:

Eating and Sleeping:
We are feeding you "big person" food more and more, and you continue to be a good eater...but you are starting to become a bit picky! You are definitely developing opinions about what you like...and don't like. You continue to have three full meals with a sippy cup of milk/water at each, and an afternoon snack after your nap. We are finding more and more that you are driven by your tummy. You can be CRANKY one minute, and then you get a little food in you and you're okay.

At the beginning on Sept. we introduced you to whole milk. For now, we mix the whole milk with frozen breast milk, but soon you'll just have whole milk. You're doing great with it!

Right after you turned one we started reducing the time of your morning nap. You sleep just 20 minutes or so in the morning, and then have a nice long nap in the afternoon. You are adjusting pretty well. We look forward to the flexibility that one nap will bring! Early September you naturally pushed your bedtime a little later, which we love. We get to have more dinners as a family of three, and we get to spend a little more time with you in the evenings. Dinner is now at 6:00, with bedtime routine starting at 7:00.

Likes and Dislikes:
Likes:

• Your "stack-a-doo" toys from the Getchi - you got them for your birthday and they've been non-stop fun ever since.
• Being busy busy busy busy - up and down stairs, walking around everywhere, getting into anything and everything.
• Peek-A-Boo
•  Carrying around "preschi" (our plural for "precious"). You love finding little trinkets and toys and carrying them with you. You pick the most funny, random things!
• Books - you have started to bring them to us to read - so fun!
• Animals - Luther, animals at the State Fair, Bob the Cat...you love them all!
• Favorite foods: fruit (bananas, strawberries, blueberries), toast/bread, cheese.
• Being independent. 
• Playing "bonk" (doing head butts)

Dislikes:

• Getting up in the morning - you have been so cranky lately! You are slow to wake up, and fussy as all get out sometimes, but slowly come around to your happy self.
• Not getting what you want. :-)
• Being set down by mama/not getting to be by mama all the time. I love you very much, but you are sometimes SO clingy these days. I work hard at not giving into you, because I know you need to learn that you don't need mama all the time (**tear**)

Growth: You are still about the same weight/size as your year check-up. Growth seems to have really leveled off. You got two new teeth this month - upper right on 8/22, upper left on 8/30. You are wearing mostly 12 month clothes, although a few 9 month clothes are still in the mix.

Talking: Hi is still your only "real" word, but you continue to be quite the chatterbox. Whatever you are saying, it is clearly pretty important. :-)

Other Happenings:

•  Your birthday party on 8/18.
• Our family trip to the State Fair - the second time you've been, but what a difference from last year! You had a great time - you got a few bites of mama and daddy's food, got to "drive a tractor," and pet lots of animals (your favorite!)
• A trip to Grand Marais over Labor Day weekend- we stayed with your great aunt Barbie and had a wonderful time. We did a little caching, some shopping downtown, and relaxed.

We love you, Baby Girl!! It's so fun to watch you grow!

Love,
Mama and Daddy