11/13/13

Our little gal is 14 months old already. Time is flying, to say the least. I find myself getting all teary-eyed at the littlest things she does, lately. Maybe it’s because Nora is in full toddler mode and I’m realizing that she isn’t a “baby” anymore. But we all know that she will always be MY baby forever. I feel my heart breaking with sentiment and bursting with mommy pride at the same time. I guess that’s how we moms are supposed to feel about our kids as they get older, right?

Here are some stats and fun facts about this month in the life of our Eleanor Sue:

Weight: 24 pounds even. Although I’m sure that after her first Halloween she gained another pound to that 🙂

Sleep: Sleeps 12-13 hours straight at night, going to bed at about 7-7:30. Although, we did have an ear infection earlier in the month and that made for about 4 nights of up every 1-2 hours and ending up in bed with Mommy and Daddy all 4 nights. Our bed was snug to say the least 🙂

Eating: Nora eats like a CHAMP! If something is put in front of her she eats it. The last week or two she has been pickier with her meat, but if I hide/smother it in sauce, she will eat it with no problems. She LOVES animal/graham crackers, all vegetables (peas, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots and avocado) and any type of fruit is always welcome on her plate. She is starting to learn how to use a fork/spoon and it’s fun to watch her try and master them. It makes for a messier meal, but she is a cute mess 🙂 Still drinks about 4 bottles of milk a day and enjoys her daily cup of juice (to prevent constipation), usually apple or cranberry. She loves carrying her water bottle around and is a pro with a straw. She smiles with pride when she drinks from one. She is becoming such a little person!

Clothes: mainly 18 months, although some brands of 12 month clothes still fit. We are loving that fleece footies are back in season again. So toastie, and oh SO adorable!

Talking: not to many words yet. “Mama,” “Dada,” “Yes,” and “This and That” are about all we get out of her so far, along with numerous animal noises. She babbles to hear little heart’s content all day long and can almost always communicate with me what she needs with grunts or pointing. I have the feeling more words are right around the corner, though.

Toys and Games: Now that it’s colder out, Nora loves climbing on her tree house in the basement and riding her tractor and zebra on the hard wood floors. This girl has a hankering for books and we read for (literally) hours a day. I have started letting her watch an episode of either Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Sophia the First or Little Einsteins everyday and she loves to clap and dance along. We have been listening to Christmas music a lot lately, and she has favorites already. I mean, you should see her when “Dance of the Sugarplum Fairies” comes on. Pure joy! Nora LOVES to chase and be chased around the couch in the basement. She squeals when you scare her and giggles all day long, even at the word “tickle.” She is showing early signs of imagination and creativity: making Mickey and Minnie Mouse kiss when she plays with her castle set, pushing her babies around in her stroller and shopping cart and burping them and taking piggy back rides while making horsie noises. It’s awesome, I tell you. Awesome. Except climbing on the kitchen chairs and onto the table is not awesome. That’s terrifying. We are still working on that.

Fun New Things: we went to open gym at Debbie Howard’s earlier in the month and Nora really enjoyed it. We will be going back very soon. We did lots of pumpkin carving, a full day of trick-or-treating as a daisy, eating candy, crunching in the fall leaves, playing at the park and getting the house ready together for Christmas. Speaking of Christmas, we made ornaments together last week and it was so fun to have her actually help this year. What a difference from last year! She loves watching/helping me cook and bake, and is getting pretty good at stirring spoons in cookie dough mixture. Nora met her new friends, Kohen and Eliza, and we had her friend, Brexton, over to play today. Let’s just say that we REALLY need to work on our sharing skills. Yikes!

This month has been…a dream. I feel like this little girl’s personality is through the roof and it’s so fun watching it come out moment by moment. She is active, spunky and definitely has a mind of her own. I find no greater joy than being her Mommy. My prayer this next month is to continue to be intentional with Nora. I feel like she is a 24/7 sponge and is picking up on every little thing we do. I want nothing more than to give her everything she needs, to teach her everything she needs to know and to love her like Jesus does. I know I can’t do it alone. I am praying that God grants Eric and I wisdom as we move forward into this next month of Nora’s life as well as patience as we are starting to move into a phase where her strong-wildness is coming out (in very colorful ways!).  But I also know that this stage of her life involves a lot of cuddling, tickling, reading, playing, singing and kissing. And I pray that I am always readily available to do these precious, IMPORTANT things with my little girl. Cause I know that she is always waiting with out stretched arms to do them with me.