Walking with the Cooks: Happy 18 months, Anna!

Our sweet Anna is on the brink of being a big girl. This is most evident in the way hangs with the big kids. She likes to play with them in her own way and they love to include her. She is snuggly and observant and a perfect fit for our family.

Weight: 28.6 lbs (96th%)
Height: 33 in (84th%)
Head: 47 cm (70th%)

Diapers: size 5
Clothing: 2T, 3T

Likes: chasing Josiah's remote controlled car, coloring with crayons, utensils, putting legos on her fingers, the reverse walker at PT, identifying body parts (nose, belly button, etc), being in the water

Dislikes: mom leaving her with a sitter . . . or leaving at all after the sitter, eating something she isn't interested in

Schedule:
7am Awake for the day!
9:00-11am Nap (most days)
1:00-3pm Nap (may not sleep if she gets a good morning nap)
7pm Down for bed

Sleep: A runny nose is the only thing that will get our girl down in this department. She moved in with Josiah before Christmas and they are doing quite well together. They each like having the company at night, for better or worse. Now that they novelty has worn off it is almost always for better! His room is nice and dark, which makes for great naps.

Physically: Anna's hair has gotten a little longer- she had her first pigtails! Her eyes are still a dark blue and the has a chunky cheeky smile. She has many new teeth and seems to be getting a break in that department. That helps us all get more sleep! Anna is now cruising well and will walk holding our fingers. This is a huge improvement for our girly who wouldn't put weight on her legs six months ago! She is going to physical therapy for one hour a week (we love our physical therapist!) and we are seeing steady progression.

Food: We have laid off the iron and Anna has gotten much more comfortable with finger foods. She really likes using a fork though, much more than her fingers. We still feed her sometimes and give her pureed pouches to make sure the is getting good veggies. She really likes soft foods, like chicken pot pie and overnight pumpkin oatmeal. Anna loves blueberries. We give her a cup of milk about four times a day.

Communication: Anna had about 8 distinct words (waa-waa, bye-bye, hi, yeah, touchdown, yay, no-no, uh-oh) going into her 18 month well-visit, so we have been referred for a speech therapy evaluation. We'll see how that goes! She is babbling lots these days. One night at dinner it sounded like she was babbling the alphabet song, but we couldn't be sure. She has perfected her "all finished" and "more please" signs and uses them really well.

Fun things:
- Anna is in an "explore via taste" phase that we look forward to passing. The kids are good at helping me notice that she has something in her mouth. She has perfected her innocent face :)
- We went for a swim in the seminary pool recently and Anna was in heaven. She had so much fun and many of her inhibitions with standing were lessen while in the water.
- Anna doesn't dance on her own much (she is too focused on standing to move her backside or arms), but she loves for us to pick her up and dance with her. She gets a crinkly eyed smile that is priceless.
- Josiah can get Anna out of her crib in the morning, which means we don't have to get up right at 7:00! She also sometimes gets a serious case of the giggles just before bed. The anticipation of a good night kiss on her cheek does her in.
- Anna had her first original glazed doughnut from Krispy Kreme and her first sucker!