Reese is 15 Months Old!

Last week my baby girl went and turned 15 months on me.  I've finally purchased a baby book for my poor child so it's been fun going back and filling it in.  So for posterity's sake, here is what 15 months is looking like for Reese.

Stats:
Weight: 21 lbs. 2 oz. (49th percentile)
Height: 30 and 1/2 inches (49th percentile)
Teeth: 12 and number 13 is on it's way.  Her most recent three teeth have all been molars and seem to be super painful :(

Sleeping: 12 hours at night (approx 7pm-7am) and about 2 hours during the day (morning and afternoon nap)

Eating: Still a bit of everything.  She currently likes (and I say currently because she changes all the time!) eggs, fruit, graham crackers, goldfish, raisins, Aidell's Chicken and Apple Sausage, pasta, turkey sandwiches, and peanut butter.  Over the last couple of months meals have become a wee battle.  Reese is very independent and wanting to feed herself, or wants me to feed her a certain way, and most times the majority of her food ends up on the floor after she excitedly and/or angrily threw it across the kitchen.  What can I say, we're working on it :)

Drinking: Organic Whole Milk and Water

Playing: We still love reading books, dancing, clapping, swinging, and more recently Reese has really loved playing with her cozy coupe outside.  We try to make it to the park at least a couple times a week and Reese loves climbing on the toddler playground.  She is currently OB-SESSED with Taylor  Swift's 'Shake it Off'.  I really don't know how much more I can take of the song...but it makes her so happy. She has really taken to playing with her baby doll and loves hugging her, putting her in the toy stroller, and pushing her around the house.  And, of course, playing with Lily is at the top of her list.

Likes: Library Babies Class, playing with other toddlers,  reading books, music, owl straw cup, playing with mom's make up bag and wallet, anything having to do with animals (particularly DOGGGGGIES), fruit and goldfish crackers.  Riding in shopping carts is tops and she and she loves waving to passerby's as though she is Duchess Kate.  She makes friends everywhere we go!

Dislikes:  Car seat (but overall this improving), diaper changes, having something taken away from her, mom leaving for work, and generally being told something is off limits.  Pretty typical toddler stuff.

Says: She mimics words and phrases that we say to her and really picks up on anything said to her repetitively. Currently she is saying Mama, Dada, Doggy, Down, There You Go, Thank you, Do Do Do (means I want that or do that), Love You

Milestones:  The big one is Reese is walking!  Right around her 14 month birthday she started getting more confident taking a few steps here and there.  About a week after her 14 month birthday, she put it all together and just took off. Naturally this was a day I was gone for a training and missed it all, but luckily Tom was with her to witness and record it.  In just a few weeks she practically runs now...and you can tell she really loves it.  After discovering her deep love of her belly button, we are working on identifying her eyes, nose, mouth, etc.

In addition to speech gains she is really becoming more and more independent.  And my mama heart is a little sad about this one.  Don't get me wrong, I know it is all age appropriate and shows that she feels secure enough to begin exploring her world...but sometimes I just want my baby to sleep on my chest.  But, she still treats me to the occasional resting of her head on my shoulder and my favorite thing right now is how she walks over to me and folds herself into my lap with a book.  Nothing better than that.

Not to sound like every other parent in the world, but it really goes by in the blink of an eye.

Happy 4th Birthday Lily!

Two weeks ago our sweet Lily turned 4!  It's hard to believe she wasn't even 2 when we rescued her, yet it feels like she's been a part of our family forever.  When Gouda turned 2 we started a family tradition of steaks to celebrate dog birthdays and anniversaries, which we have continued to this day.  It may seem silly to some but our dog will always be a part of our family and we want them to feel celebrated as such.  Tom picked up steaks from the butcher Saturday afternoon, I was in charge of the sides, and we ate early enough for R to join us.  Lily inhaled her steak in record time and enjoyed licking everyone's plates.   I really live for these little family dinners. 

After we lost Gouda Lily mourned for quite awhile, right along with the rest of us.  Until then she had never been the only dog in her home so it took some adjusting for her.  Since then she's really come into her own as "the dog" in the home and I think she's doing a great job.  She puffs her chest when anyone comes to the door and eagerly intercepts anyone stopping to say hi to R on our walks. 

Lily is a wonderful dog mama to R and they really have become best friends.  R becomes giddy with excitement whenever she hears the tags on Lily's collar shake in the next room.  She proudly points to Lily and exclaims "doggy!" as soon as she sees her.  R routinely sneaks snacks to Lily which is a daily struggle.  I love watching their friendship develop and get a total kick out of their interactions.

Happy 4th Birthday to our sweet, patient, and WILD Lily!  We love you so much and here's to many, many more birthday steaks.

Fall 2014

We have been having a fantastic fall season, and as with most things, it is so much more fun to experience with a toddler.  We have been enjoying the mild weather and keeping busy with story time at the bookstore, library babies class, date nights, lots of park time, and all the other not as fun stuff, like working, keeping up our home and hitting the gym (well that last one isn't so bad!).  We rounded out the fall season with a trip to Keeneland and I'm officially ready for the holiday season.
Some pics of what we've been up to!

Over the last couple of months I have really been getting into spinning and have worked out a nice schedule (with the help of Tom) to attend classes a few times a week that minimizes my time away from R.  I really hope it is something that I can continue to prioritize.

Now...who's ready for Thanksgiving?!