LEAH LYNN’S 1st BIRTHDAY

I don’t know about any of you and the holidays, but it was a serious blur for me. A beautiful, magical blur; and a lot of that magic this year has come from our little Leah. I was having some serious Mommy guilt about having Leah born so close to Christmas. (Like I could’ve planned that or something, right?! 😛 ) Since we had seen all of our extended families so close to the holidays, we decided to forgo throwing Leah an actual party. I know it’s ridiculous, but not having a first birthday party kind of bothered me. But then her day came (December 27th) and we were all tucked away at home– just us four– and it felt pretty special to me. The hustle and bustle of Christmas and traveling and shopping and cooking had all settled and it just felt right. We were in our PJs for most of the day, were all super tired, and ate leftovers for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I’m not sure if Leah will be jazzed about this arrangement for the end of time, but she seemed pretty happy this time around.

We drove back late from visiting family the night before Leah’s birthday. All of our Christmas decorations were still up– not that we had a lot, but they were still up– and I ran around like a crazy lady storing them away and sprucing up the mantel for Leah’s birthday. I’m sure she could’ve cared less, but I figured it had to come down anyway, so the 26th is going to be my day to tear down Christmas. The rest of the house was a complete disaster– new toys and laundry everywhere– but the birthday mantel was on point.

She woke up at her usual 4:30 AM time and was ready to party. The only “activity” we did later in the day was a brisk family walk around the block. She blew out her candle like a champ, but didn’t have much interest in eating her cupcake. I waited too long in the day for her annual “birthday flowers from Daddy” picture, so she was not too happy for that moment in time. But all-in-all, I will remember it as a beautiful day for our beautiful baby girl.

And because the holidays got the best of me and I skipped over Leah’s 10, 11, and 12 month posts, here they are in all their glory:

10 MONTHS:

• 10.20.16: started to crawl. She is everywhere.
• Allergies with runny nose and saggy eyes. Rubs right eye way more than her left.
• While in her carseat, drops/ throws toys on the door side, so when we open the door to get her out, it’s an avalanche of clutter.
• Grabbed and pulled out a chunk of Mya’s hair.
• Wants to do everything Mya does and wants every toy that Mya holds.
• Eats everything. Favorites: Scrambled eggs for breakfast. A rice/ green bean/ carrot pressure cooker dinner.
• Bedtime 6:30. Wakes up at 3:30, then back to bed until 6:00.
• Says “Ma ma ma ma ma ma” over and over until I hold her.
• Pulls everything off shelves and out of baskets. Loves attacking Mya’s dollhouse of small things.
• Laughs the hardest when her and Mya chase each other naked down the hallway before bath time.
• First trip to the Omaha zoo. And she looooved it. She was pointing at and lunging and “oooo ooo oooo”-ing at every animal.
• Bath time is getting shorter because she keeps trying to climb out of her little tub.
• Lowered her crib mattress because she sits up and attempts to pull herself up.
• Finds the monitor cord near her crib and pulls on it.

11 MONTHS:

• 11.02.16: Stood up by herself while holding on to the ottoman.
• 11.10.16: Crawled up a whole flight of stairs.
• Lounges in “marshmallow” (the bean bag) with Mya… at least long enough for us to snap a couple pics.
• Likes when Mya pulls her in the wagon.
• Uses her walker less and less. Starting to get frustrated when we put her in it. But when she is in it, she chases Mya around with a light saber and growls at her.
• Was cookie monster for her first Halloween. (Mya was also cookie monster.)
• Sign languages for “more” with food or when she thinks something is funny.
• Bit Mya on the back when Mya didn’t give her the toy that she wanted.
• 2 teeth and 1 peeking through on top, 2 teeth on bottom.
• Loves pina colada smoothies… sans rum.

12 MONTHS:

• Weight: 22 lbs 3 oz
• Height: 31 in
• 12.07.16: Took her first three steps to Mama by herself.
• Bedtime 5:00. Wakes up at 4:30. It doesn’t matter if we put her to bed later. She still gets up at 4:30.
• Naps once in the morning and once midday. Nap length varies from 30 minutes to 1.5 hours. But usually on the shorter side.
• When she doesn’t get her way, she throws her head back, lays on the floor and cries.
• Peed in training potty on the second attempt. We only try before bath, but she’s gone 4 out of 5 times.
• Tries to drink bath water when she’s tired.
• Eats all food, but doesn’t like cheese.
• Hungry right when she wakes up in the morning. Eats almost 2 eggs and a banana for breakfast.
• Holds trampoline bar and bounces knees.
• Stands in shopping carts.
• Loves dogs and barks with her lips out and her eyes wide every time she seems one.
• Claps for music and for herself when she walks.
• When I wash my hands, she rubs hers together as if she is doing it too.
• 2 teeth and 2 peeking through on top, 2 teeth and 1 peeking through on bottom.
• Prefers Mama above all else. I know this will change, but I’m soaking it up while it lasts.

Phew! I think I covered a lot of the highlights. I loved this past year with our family of four so much. Hoping to be back on here soon with a Christmas recap because Christmas with kids is magical and I don’t want to forget anything. 🙂 Derek was traveling again this past week, so I’m catching up on some sleep, resting my back from a very active Leah, and soaking up some hubby time. Cheers to the freakin’ weekend!