Dear Hadley: Month 13

Dear Hadley:

You are 13 months old now, and we are having so much fun with you! You learn something new every day and amaze us with your wit and charm. Right now, everything is funny to you. You giggle constantly-- while you are eating, while you are petting Bella, and especially while you are running around the house. And man, are you running. Daddy asked me a few days ago when you started running and honestly, I can't remember, either. It just happened. You were walking with this wobbly gait one day and the next, you were running as if you had been doing it forever. You have so much fun pushing your little ride-on car around, chasing Bella and Allie, and just exploring your house.

There are a few things you really love this month: Bananas!!!, dancing, and your Baby Doll. Those bananas!! You have always loved them, and this month, that love has seriously intensified. You decided that bananas are THE food to eat for breakfast and you do every morning. As soon as I put you in your chair in the mornings, you start chanting, "nana, nana, nana." And, as soon as I get your banana to slice into your oatmeal, your chants become all-out impatient wails that turn into outright tears when you realize that I have to, of all things, heat up your oatmeal for 20 seconds before you can eat it. You would think with all of that drama that I was starving you, but no, you just can't wait 20 more seconds for that banana. Horrors. Your love for bananas runs deep, child.

And the dancing! You LOVE to dance. You have been dancing for a couple of months, but this month was completely different. You seek out music, pushing buttons on your activity table or push car to start a new song, and as soon as the music starts, you start moving. You shake those hips, bop your head, and swing your arms to the beat. Daddy and I have the best time just watching you bop along to your music.

You also recently developed a deep love for a doll you received as a gift for your birthday. It is a cute, little pink and purple thing that you carry around all day, hugging, squeezing, and kissing. You talk to her, prop her up on the couch and fireplace hearth, and at times, try to get her to sit on your ride-on car seat. You work so hard at trying to balance her on that seat and then you slowly back away to see if she will stay. She usually doesn't, but you are stubborn enough that you keep trying and trying and trying. And, at nap time, when I tell you it is time to go "night night," you look everywhere for that doll and once we find her, you clutch her to you and carry her to your bed. I absolutely love that you have a favorite doll now.

You made huge strides developmentally this month, too. Of utmost importance, we transitioned you to whole milk. And at the same time, we made the transition from bottles to a sippy cup. Amazingly, no one was injured in this transition! I have to admit, I was a little worried. You did great, though. We completed the transition in a little over a week, and you never complained. You are also now almost completely feeding yourself finger foods. You like to hold your food and take bites as opposed to having me cut you little bite-sized pieces. You still let me spoon feed you your oatmeal and yogurt, but other than that, you want to do it yourself. You are such a big girl.

All of a sudden, you also seem to understand just about everything we tell you. This both fascinates and terrifies me. We can tell you to give Bella kisses and you will whirl around, find Bella, and run to her to give her a big, slobbery kiss on the head. One night, you were trying to cuddle with Bella and she was being too wiggly for you to kiss. You fixed that by taking your little hands, putting them on either side of her face and holding her still so you could lean in and kiss her on the top of the head. It was too cute!

I can ask you to hand me something or to share with me and you immediately hand it to me. We constantly tell you to "sit down" in the bathtub and you do-- albeit slowly sometimes. Speaking of the bath, you LOVE your bath. You jump with glee next to the bathtub while we prepare your bath water and giggle and splash once we put you in. You have the best time "swimming" in the bathtub.

You have become quite the little chatterbug lately, too. You are saying "nana" for banana, "apple," "Daddy," "Mama," "no, no, no," "yeah," "bye," and "all done." My favorite is when Daddy gets home at night and you squeal, "Dad--eeee," when he walks in the door. I love to watch you two together.

I love you, Sweet Pea, and can't wait to see what this next month brings!

Love,

Your Mommy