Eleven Months

Helen Grace is 11 months old!

April 25, 2010

• She is saying Dada a lot, and while she sometimes does babble with it, she will often look at John, smile, and say “Dada!” She is still working on versions of “Rebel” and “Mama” too.
• She is hearing ‘No’ a lot more often- and does NOT like it. No, don’t put  your hand in the cats’ water bowl; no, don’t eat the cat food; no, sit on your bottom in the tub/high chair; no, don’t touch the stairs; no, don’t touch the DVD player. When you pick her up from doing something that she’s not supposed to do and she’s mad, she kicks her feet like crazy and arches her back. The fits have gotten so bad that I have started laying her on the ground when she starts thrashing so she won’t hit her head. She will usually give up after a few seconds of rolling on the ground with no attention on her.
• She can help take her shirt off (pulls her arms out of the sleeves and pulls it over her head). Once you unbuckle her car seat straps, she starts flailing her arms and does a pretty good job of getting them free. We are in trouble once she figures out how to push the release button on the car seat!
• Her hair is really coming in now- still mostly in the back though. Looks like it will still be dark blonde with a little hint of red in some lights. When she gets hot, it starts to curl up in the back. So cute!
• She has stood on her own for a few seconds a couple of times this week. I’m anxious to see how long it will be before she tries to make a step on her own. She can crawl like lightning, and she can make her way around the entire house by either hanging on to furniture and cruising or crawling. She loves to crawl between pieces of furniture or between or under your legs- loves a challenge! She also is walking with her scooter or grocery cart really well. It used to get away from her easily on the hardwood, but I’ve noticed this weekend that she is controlling it much better. See the video below from this afternoon.
• Very obnoxious new trick- she grits her teeth! Arggg! Completely grosses me out!
• She points at everything…she will point at herself in pictures; she will point at someone when they enter the room; she will point at a kitty. It’s endless. And we’re working on teaching her facial features, so she will point your eye out if you’re not careful!
• When she is sitting on the hardwood floor with her feet out in front of her, she will start pushing back off her feet and laughs at the funny sound it makes.
• When she stands on her tippy toes, her head comes to the top of the kitchen table. Scary how quickly she is growing. She weighs a little over 20 lbs.
• She is laughing a ton and will giggle like crazy when you tickle her (feet and thighs are especially ticklish).
• She has started playing with her own hair when she is sleepy. Interested to see if this will continue.
• She is still extremely attached to her Lovie. She loves to hug it and chew on the knots on its arms. She is needing the Paci less and less these days. She really only wants it at bedtime, and she could really do without it if necessary.
• We had a new experience this past week. She and I went to Target, and I had to run to the restroom when we got there. I put her in a cart and wheeled her in the family bathroom with me. She was just fine until…I flushed. She absolutely freaked out! I mean, shivering lips, crocodile tears, and squeals. I hadn’t thought about it, but that must be the first time that she has been around a commercial toilet with the loud flush. Whew, the drama!
• We are looking forward to her first airplane ride in just over a week. We are going to New York state to celebrate John’s aunt and uncle’s retirement from the Salvation Army. We are looking forward to some fun family time!