All about Amelia...

Confession time: I haven't written down ANY dates of firsts the babies have done. Shame,shame, guilt, guilt. No first smile dates, no first roll from tummy to back. Can you believe it?!!! I think part of it is being overwhelmed by the thought of it and part is being a big picture person. Focusing on stages versus milestones. I have to stop this though. I must. I will.

So Amelia, though I have no dates for you, I am taking this moment to stop and write down the plethora of newness that is in your life right now. The closest I can get to a timeline is saying that you are 14months old and it is in the past few weeks that you have...

1) Started saying words! Your first (besides mama) was Dude, for your beloved dog friend in Texas. Then came Wow!. You have been working on Wow for a while and though you don't say it as often as Dude, I think you mean it when you say "wow wow wow wow". You also say "Uh oh" when you drop something and a "ruff ruff" sound when you hear a dog and "fffff" sound to imitate a fan. You also hold everything up to your ear as a telephone and have started "talking" while you do it. Oh and Dadadada has meaning now for sure.

2)Your temperament: You have become a bit more of my Miss Independent again after a pretty long string of major attachment to mama. You will go to others easier (I think our trip to Texas helped with that) and are content playing on your own for a while, even if I'm in the room. You have been in the church nursery twice now and have done great both times! You will sit with your wooden stacker with great concentration as you take each piece off and toss it to the floor. You haven't figured out how to put them back on but love to get them off as fast as I can "reload it". Same with pulling all of the cloth diapers out of a tub with great gusto and all of your animal magnets off of the fridge:) You are doing SO well with learning the meaning of "gentle", and in fact, your whole little person seems to have softened lately. You try so hard to be gentle with the kitty and with your brother and anything else that we say, "gentle Amelia" about. Outside is still your favorite place to be as you are such an explorer. Indeed, you are still your fun, go go girl self (every single person that meets you comments on how busy you are), but I just see a new side of you blossoming.

3) You are standing on your own now and we are just waiting for those first few steps. You don't like grass on your knees right now and so I think that may be the incentive it takes for you to realize you can move without touching your knees to the ground! You have also started to push your grocery cart that your grammy gave you for your 1st birthday! It is soooo adorable to see you zooming around the living room. Your grammy also taught you how to drink through a straw and you loooove it. You still love breast feeding and really don't care that much about solids. You do love to eat fruit (especially berries) and yogurt and bread and Veggie Booty and carrots and sweet potatoe and cheerios, but nursing is still your main priority and I cherish our quiet time together.

4) You blew your first kiss to your Uncle Johnney Mike. We couldn't believe it! His mouth dropped open and my eyes filled with tears. You haven't done it again since.

5) "Soooooo big!" is sooooo cute with you and Sammy raising your arms in unison.

What an honor it is to be your mama and watch as your personality and soul start to move more and more outward for us to see. It is a joy to be with you everyday Amelia--even after the long nights, even when I feel overwhelmed by yours and Sam's needs-- you make my heart feel glad. I love you my funny, brave, expressive, busy, cuddly little cute as a button girl. Love, Your Mama

A few moments captured for you...


P.S. Sammy, your "baby book" update is coming soon:)