11 Months

Guess who's 11 months? CRAZY how time flies. I can't believe our baby is almost a year old. What a blessing she is and a tremendous addition to our family. We are so thankful and grateful.

Here are some fun 11 month stats of Ellie. Unfortunately I don't have weight and height, but she seems to be doing well. :)

* Ellie has discovered the exciting adventure we have at our house, otherwise known as the stairs. She loves to be "chased" up the stairs and will gleefully climb up them, only pausing occasionally to make sure you are still chasing her. :)

* One of her new favorite games is "drop the sippy cup" and watch her silly parents pick it up again...and again...and again... She will be sitting at the table with us at dinner, get a giant smile as she holds the cup over the edge of her tray. Giggling while staring one of us in the eyes she slowly lets go until "oops!" it is on the floor. How did that happen? As soon as the cup is retrieved, the game starts over. Unfortunately, because she is so dang adorable - we continue to oblige. However, I'm getting tired of it - so it soon may become Daddy and Ellie's special game.

* Ellie talks... a lot. It can involve soft or loud, high or low sounds - but usually there is something coming out of her mouth. At times we wonder how she doesn't hurt her ears with the ear-piercing screeches she lets out. Those get old fast! She has let some of those out at restaurants too...fun times. :)

* Ellie isn't walking on her own yet, but will gladly walk with you anywhere - as long as you go her pace and hold both of her hands. She is starting to let me let go of her hands while she is standing still and will balance for a good 10 seconds. However, I haven't seen any interest in trying to do it on her own yet. I bet that will begin in a couple of weeks when I am desperately trying to work on my thesis.

* She is now sleeping 11-12 hours straight through the night which is AWESOME. I am finally getting full nights of sleep, which is incredible and a long time coming.

* Her words now are: "Dada" (which we think is now actually directed at Justin - VERY cool!), "dadadada" (yes, different then the previous word), "Da" (I think directed at Bruno and when she is discovering something), "Mama" (not directed at me yet, but still cool), and the a bunch of babbling and yelling-type vocals. :)

* Ellie can usually be distracted or calmed immediately with singing, which is awesome. I sing everything to her. She probably thinks life is a musical. It is amazing what silly little tunes you can come up with for any activity. The crazy thing is now I will get some of these little tunes stuck in my head. It is weird to be running and all of sudden be singing: "El-lie, Elena Marie, Elena-lena-lena-lena-lena Marie." Fun times. :)

* We went to the zoo the other day and she was way more interested in the animals than she was 2 months ago. It was pretty amazing to see her cognitive development in that way! Her favorites were the turtle, goats and pig from the petting zoo, elephants, and giraffe. It was awesome.

* Finally, we are struggling with naps. I think she may be starting to move to one nap per day, but I really want her to take 2. With her attitude and demeanor, I am not convinced she is actually ready for 1 nap (she can get cranky!!!), so I am working on it. However, unfortunately - there are times now where I just give up b/c it is not worth the fight. Hopefully I can put her back on a schedule since we will now be in a more regular routine again. Here's to hoping!