Well my little Peanut is 16 months old today and has an attitude far beyond this age. She is so spunky and so silly and overall a joy yet if she doesn't get her way wow just wow.
Take church this weekend. She had napped well that day, ate a snack so we figured all would be well minus the fact that she is still working on her molars and the 4 other teeth coming in of course. It was Palm Sunday. Kiya immediately latched on to a palm frond and would not let go. We have learned to pick our battles with her and given our location this wasn't a battle we were going to pick.
Mass starts off well, Kiya is maintaining her death grip on the palm frond and being quiet. YEAH! Well, she starts to wave the frond around and hits the man in front of us in the back of the head. He was nice about it but we felt terrible. Kiya and Dave took a break to walk around after this.
Then it is time for communion, we are standing in line and as we are walking past the baptismal fountain, Kiya calls out "ball" as it is round. She must have then noticed that there was water and immediately started pointing and screaming the farther away we got. The kid loves water. Needless to say after this and a few other incidents, we left early.
But she is just as silly as she is spunky. Take her new found love of trying to get away from Mommy and Daddy. She can scoot pretty fast especially on the kitchen floor, crawling she is slower at but either way she has a new love for trying to avoid us, especially at bedtime. She will be in the kitchen and peek around the center island and if we make eye contact she just giggles and keeps on going. Where to? The bathroom down the hall of course. The place mommy and daddy don't want her to be. We keep the door closed now but she still tries to head on over there.
She is at such a great age right now. Learning new things to do, talking and her personality is really starting to shine. I love watching her flourish and grow and test her limits. She is one smart cookie and I am loving it even though she keeps me on my toes.
So dearest Kiya,
Know that no matter what, I will always love you. You can scream and kick in church, you can try avoiding your bedtime, you can throw you sippy cup at the dogs and it won't change how I feel about you. You are the light of my life and while I may be upset with you about your behavior, know that it is your behavior and not you. You will always be my little peanut and I love watching you learn and discover new things. I especially love hearing your sweet sweet voice and your "dada" song. So to you my daughter I say go and explore and learn and discover, just stay out of the dog's water dish. :)
Monday, March 29, 2010
Friday, March 26, 2010
AMAZING
Kiya crawls!!! I can hardly believe it but out of the blue she decided to crawl today!!! So exciting!!!
Her therapist is going to be thrilled. She said that crawling or walking would be best to help Kiya with her curved spine :)
Then for the icing on the cake, Kiya scoots on over to the coffee table and stands up. She pulled her self up to standing with ZERO help from me. She has done this before but usually while right next to me or grabbing on to me in some way. This time is was all by herself, I was on the opposite side of the table.
Kiya never ceases to amaze me. I am so honored to be her Mom and so thrilled to see her thriving. She just has her own time table. She will do things when she wants to. So for her she wanted to crawl at 16 months...it works for her so it works for us.
Bring on the next level of baby proofing....
Her therapist is going to be thrilled. She said that crawling or walking would be best to help Kiya with her curved spine :)
Then for the icing on the cake, Kiya scoots on over to the coffee table and stands up. She pulled her self up to standing with ZERO help from me. She has done this before but usually while right next to me or grabbing on to me in some way. This time is was all by herself, I was on the opposite side of the table.
Kiya never ceases to amaze me. I am so honored to be her Mom and so thrilled to see her thriving. She just has her own time table. She will do things when she wants to. So for her she wanted to crawl at 16 months...it works for her so it works for us.
Bring on the next level of baby proofing....
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Monday, March 22, 2010
Pure joy
Everyday with Kiya brings me pure joy. I can see the joy and innocence on her face and it makes me smile.
Take for example, her recent attempts to pull herself up. She has been successful pulling herself up from sitting on the ground a few times now which is BIG progress for her. She has gotten to a stand at the coffee table, the couch and her toy box. When she does do it she gets this grin and not just a little grin but a huge, "I am so proud of myself grin". You can see her whole face light up and sometimes she even claps for herself.
Or how about the times when she gets the shapes in her shape shorter. Again with the grin and again with the clapping.
Or better yet, the time this last week when she took two unassisted steps from her chair to her Daddy and then lunched forward in a full belly laugh.
Or even the time she, with our help, climbed up the stairs. She was just so thrilled.
Or the way she will try to splash all of the water out of the bathtub while laughing hysterically.
Or the way she will peak around a couch or cabinet or chair or even a piece of paper to play peek a boo. Such joy in her face.
Or when she figured out how to change the letters in her Fridge Alphabet toy. Such excitement that produced much dancing to the new letter sound and much clapping.
I should try and capture that grin as it is always the same grin but hard to get on camera.
She has such a joyous spirit and an innocence about her that I envy. She doesn't yet have the burdens of life and reality on her shoulders. She can live life to the fullest with little worries at this point and it is sweet to see her do so everyday.
Take for example, her recent attempts to pull herself up. She has been successful pulling herself up from sitting on the ground a few times now which is BIG progress for her. She has gotten to a stand at the coffee table, the couch and her toy box. When she does do it she gets this grin and not just a little grin but a huge, "I am so proud of myself grin". You can see her whole face light up and sometimes she even claps for herself.
Or how about the times when she gets the shapes in her shape shorter. Again with the grin and again with the clapping.
Or better yet, the time this last week when she took two unassisted steps from her chair to her Daddy and then lunched forward in a full belly laugh.
Or even the time she, with our help, climbed up the stairs. She was just so thrilled.
Or the way she will try to splash all of the water out of the bathtub while laughing hysterically.
Or the way she will peak around a couch or cabinet or chair or even a piece of paper to play peek a boo. Such joy in her face.
Or when she figured out how to change the letters in her Fridge Alphabet toy. Such excitement that produced much dancing to the new letter sound and much clapping.
I should try and capture that grin as it is always the same grin but hard to get on camera.
She has such a joyous spirit and an innocence about her that I envy. She doesn't yet have the burdens of life and reality on her shoulders. She can live life to the fullest with little worries at this point and it is sweet to see her do so everyday.
Thursday, March 18, 2010
15 month check up
Today was Kiya's 15 month check up. I surprisingly had to wake her up at 8:15 so we had time for breakfast and could get out the door. This didn't go so well. Kiya HATES to be woken up so she was a tad crabby for her appointment but she managed.
Here are the numbers:
Weight: 22.7lbs (39th percentile)
Height: 31 inches (60th percentile)
Head: 46 cm (50th percentile)
Since her one year check up, Kiya has gained over a pound and a half and grown almost 2 inches in height and 2 centimeters in head circumference.
To think 10 months ago she was in the 5th percentile for height, and less than 5th percentile for weight and head circumference. She is doing just great! The doctor was very pleased with the numbers and just how well Kiya is doing.
She met all of the developmental milestones except walking of course. She gives kisses, turns pages in books, scribbles with a crayon, can point out body parts, etc. In terms of the walking the doctor isn't concerned but is glad we are consulting with a therapist and recommends we keep with that. She noted that the therapist is not concerned yet so neither is she.
They asked me how many actual words she says and I responded 12-15. Now to be clear she can say that many words but uses some more than others. She can now say: mama, dada, doggy, ball, uh oh, no, up, hi, bye bye, mouth (minus the th), that (dat), bow wow, ruff, papa (she says this sometimes for puppy and grandpa), daddy, mommy, ear (ee while pointing at ear, oh and she can moo like a cow. She says a bunch of other sounds too but we can't figure out what she is talking about yet. Bubba is a favorite and we aren't sure yet what she is trying to say--maybe Badger....guess we shall see.
The doctor was thrilled with her speech development. She couldn't believe she was ever behind in her speech. She was also impressed with how much Kiya understands. She responds (not very well) to the word no and she can follow simple directions like touch your head or can you switch hands (transfer toy to other hand). We say this a lot when she is getting dressed and undressed.
Kiya got 3 shots today :( But won't get anymore until she is 2 :) We couldn't get a good look at her teeth but it appears that she now has 6. She is getting two more on the top.
We made her 18 month check up appointment for June. I can't wait to see what she is doing and saying then. Fingers crossed she is walking by then and if not we will move on to plan B with that one but for now we are just thrilled to keep watching Kiya discover new things and grow big and strong.
Here are the numbers:
Weight: 22.7lbs (39th percentile)
Height: 31 inches (60th percentile)
Head: 46 cm (50th percentile)
Since her one year check up, Kiya has gained over a pound and a half and grown almost 2 inches in height and 2 centimeters in head circumference.
To think 10 months ago she was in the 5th percentile for height, and less than 5th percentile for weight and head circumference. She is doing just great! The doctor was very pleased with the numbers and just how well Kiya is doing.
She met all of the developmental milestones except walking of course. She gives kisses, turns pages in books, scribbles with a crayon, can point out body parts, etc. In terms of the walking the doctor isn't concerned but is glad we are consulting with a therapist and recommends we keep with that. She noted that the therapist is not concerned yet so neither is she.
They asked me how many actual words she says and I responded 12-15. Now to be clear she can say that many words but uses some more than others. She can now say: mama, dada, doggy, ball, uh oh, no, up, hi, bye bye, mouth (minus the th), that (dat), bow wow, ruff, papa (she says this sometimes for puppy and grandpa), daddy, mommy, ear (ee while pointing at ear, oh and she can moo like a cow. She says a bunch of other sounds too but we can't figure out what she is talking about yet. Bubba is a favorite and we aren't sure yet what she is trying to say--maybe Badger....guess we shall see.
The doctor was thrilled with her speech development. She couldn't believe she was ever behind in her speech. She was also impressed with how much Kiya understands. She responds (not very well) to the word no and she can follow simple directions like touch your head or can you switch hands (transfer toy to other hand). We say this a lot when she is getting dressed and undressed.
Kiya got 3 shots today :( But won't get anymore until she is 2 :) We couldn't get a good look at her teeth but it appears that she now has 6. She is getting two more on the top.
We made her 18 month check up appointment for June. I can't wait to see what she is doing and saying then. Fingers crossed she is walking by then and if not we will move on to plan B with that one but for now we are just thrilled to keep watching Kiya discover new things and grow big and strong.
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
10 pictures
I received a couple requests for 10 pictures to celebrate our 10 months home with Kiya. Here you go :) I even got them in the right order on the first try from just home until last week. Enjoy. I know I do. It was nice to look back and see just how big she has gotten and just how much hair she actually has now.
And for reference she was just under 6 months at homecoming and is now 15 1/2 months.
And for reference she was just under 6 months at homecoming and is now 15 1/2 months.
Monday, March 15, 2010
Home sweet home for 10 months now :)
We have officially been home with Miss Kiya for 10 months so in honor of this milestone here are 10 of the many thousands of things that I love about my precious daughter in no particular order.
1) I just love her sweet singing voice. Sometimes she decides to sing whether it be part of the ABC song or just a whole bunch of melodic da da da's. It is truly beautiful.
2) I love how super excited she gets when she hears the garage door opening which signals Daddy is home. She gets to me however she can as fast as she can and immediately wants to go see him.
3) I love her strong, independent side. It keeps me on my toes most days but I know it will serve her well in life.
4) Her kisses. Just too cute and very sweet.
5) How much she LOVES and I mean really really LOVES her books. She can sometimes sit quietly and flip through them herself but usually she will grab the one she wants and scoot on over for you to read it to her. She is very insistent about which books she wants read and don't try to skip any pages, we found that one out. She knew and got mad.
6) The way she was started to sleep on her side and snuggle with her blanket. It is so cute.
7) How she can really concentrate on something whether it be trying to figure out how to unzip her coat or the velcro on her shoes. She can be very focused when she wants to be.
8) The way she plays with the dogs and is so excited (most of the time) when they come and sit by her and she can pet them. She even found one of Sebastian's favorite hiding places in the kitchen and will scoot on over there and give him a hug or a pat on the back. If she is annoyed with them she will push them away but most times she is excited to just be able to touch them, especially Badger since he is just now starting to warm up to her.
9) How when we say peek a boo she covers her ears. I think she is afraid she will miss something if she covers her eyes.
10) Her laugh. Hands down the best sound of the day and this kid LOVES to laugh. She likes it when we make her laugh but better yet she wants to make us laugh. She is super silly and she knows it.
I am honored to be her mother. She is the light of my life and even though she is starting to challenge me I wouldn't change a thing. These last 10 months have been a learning experience for sure but they have been the best 10 months of my life. I look forward to the many months and years ahead with my spunky little one.
1) I just love her sweet singing voice. Sometimes she decides to sing whether it be part of the ABC song or just a whole bunch of melodic da da da's. It is truly beautiful.
2) I love how super excited she gets when she hears the garage door opening which signals Daddy is home. She gets to me however she can as fast as she can and immediately wants to go see him.
3) I love her strong, independent side. It keeps me on my toes most days but I know it will serve her well in life.
4) Her kisses. Just too cute and very sweet.
5) How much she LOVES and I mean really really LOVES her books. She can sometimes sit quietly and flip through them herself but usually she will grab the one she wants and scoot on over for you to read it to her. She is very insistent about which books she wants read and don't try to skip any pages, we found that one out. She knew and got mad.
6) The way she was started to sleep on her side and snuggle with her blanket. It is so cute.
7) How she can really concentrate on something whether it be trying to figure out how to unzip her coat or the velcro on her shoes. She can be very focused when she wants to be.
8) The way she plays with the dogs and is so excited (most of the time) when they come and sit by her and she can pet them. She even found one of Sebastian's favorite hiding places in the kitchen and will scoot on over there and give him a hug or a pat on the back. If she is annoyed with them she will push them away but most times she is excited to just be able to touch them, especially Badger since he is just now starting to warm up to her.
9) How when we say peek a boo she covers her ears. I think she is afraid she will miss something if she covers her eyes.
10) Her laugh. Hands down the best sound of the day and this kid LOVES to laugh. She likes it when we make her laugh but better yet she wants to make us laugh. She is super silly and she knows it.
I am honored to be her mother. She is the light of my life and even though she is starting to challenge me I wouldn't change a thing. These last 10 months have been a learning experience for sure but they have been the best 10 months of my life. I look forward to the many months and years ahead with my spunky little one.
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