61 weeks...or 14 months

a little self-timer action. she's so stoic

Homegirl is 14 months old. Such a big girl. But with only 2 teeth and no walking she still seems like our little baby girl, which I love. She is such a delight. Sometimes I just want to squeeze her and kiss her soft cheeks. She continues to be such a gift to us and a sweet reminder of how God loves and provides. I was just thinking about this time last year and how much has changed...not so much with me, but her. She can now participate in her world and every thing is a wonder to her. I love it. She is still super easy and she is also at the age where she doesn't have language so sometimes it can be a whiny "uh uh uh" which can make a mama crazy. But 30 minutes of that in a day is nothing in the big scheme of things, right?! I just have to remember that in the midst of it. She is keeping us busy!

- We celebrated our second Christmas with our little lady. She wasn't really into it but it was still fun. Her favorite was the tree. She'd point to it and would say something that sounded close to "tree" but not really. She loved the "ball" ornaments, which is why we didn't have any ornaments on the bottom third of our tree.


in her Christmas pjs and fleece
- She LOVES to read. I LOVE that she loves to read. I'm amazed how she can sit through a handful of books. She loves to listen and to turn the pages. It's fun to watch her anticipate the next page as she turns it.

reading in the car
- She's getting to be such a big girl. According to the Wii she weighs about 23 lbs. (i think) and she's got some yummy chubby legs that look so cute in leggings.

- She is always on the move. She doesn't seem totally interested in walking, which is fine with me. (i have lots of child-proofing to do) She is so funny sometimes...she'll crawl around in circles, sometimes she exaggerates her crawl by swaying her head. When she wants to carry something, she has figured out a way to scoot. She is continuing to build her core strength before she's ready to walk. (ha!! according to our chiropractor crawling is good)


not sure what this face is all about
- She is still a great eater. Sometimes she plays hard to get like when she wants to feed herself instead. Her new favorite is spinach & cheese ravioli. (we felt a new tooth today so eating may just get easier)

double-fisting her banana
- She is all about mimicking. It's so fun and really cute. Lately she's even saying my name. Not "mama" or "mommy" but "amy" and "mamy". Adam thinks it's hilarious. I don't have a word count for her. She repeats a lot of our sound when we say something whether it's "i love you" or "i'm going to get you" or "hello" or while reading. It's fun to hear her mimic the sounds as she's learning language.

- We spent New Year's day at my sister's house, which was crazy and fun. Her twin girls are getting so big and amazingly beautiful, but Charis wasn't quite sure about them. Soon they will all be the best of friends.

checking out her pretty cousins
- She loves to put things on her head. Sometimes to play peek-a-boo or sometimes just to crawl around with her fleece or a towel on her head. It's silly and so stinking cute.

playing with the towel on her head
- She has learned where her eyes, ears, nose and hair are. This one book we read talks about these parts and she always reaches back to touch mine (even my hair now that it's growing back). Lately she likes to "play" with her eyelashes.


snow! i just love this picture. she looks like Adam here
- We started using a few signs when she started eating. That seems to be the best time to teach a few signs. And let's be honest, that's all I know. Recently I taught her "please" and she's picked up on it rather quickly. I'm trying to incorporate new ones now that she's getting older and learning more.

"please!"
We are both crazy about Charis. crazy for charis!!! She is just so much fun. I swear I still can't believe I'm her mama. That is just crazy. But so good. She continues to be such a sweet distraction for us as life has been pretty hard this past year. I'm thankful that she is oblivious to it right now. I love seeing her personality bloom. I love how she wonders at her world. I love how she is learning to communicate with us. I love how she dances, especially when she eats, as if that bite was so yummy it made her shimmy shake. I love how she still points with her middle finger. I love that she understands what we are saying. I love how she takes her dollie to her face and sucks her thumb when she goes to bed. I love that we can spend a whole day in our pjs together. I love how she squeals with glee when we go into our bedroom to see her daddy in the morning. I love that she reaches for us. I love that she knows what kisses are and let's us kiss her all over. I love that God created her to be uniquely her and has given us the honor to be her parents. I love that I get to tell her that she is God's masterpiece.