Another month full of changes. I hate being repetitive with my comments about Zoe’s toddlerdom – but I can’t help but mention that this past month proved once and for all that she is no longer a baby.
For one thing, Zoe is now a walker. She had been taking (literal) baby steps for weeks until she finally decided – just about two weeks ago – to give up crawling altogether. She was clumsy and slow at first, but she has become amazingly quick and balanced in a short period of time. She isn’t running, yet – but that’s probably not too far behind. (Yikes!)
The other big change involves her level of comprehension. She now understands – and even responds to in non-verbal ways – comments and commands. If we ask her if she’s hungry, she often starts heading for the kitchen. During bathtime, I ask her if she’s ready to get out of the tub, and she stands up and put her arms out. And a few days ago, I asked her to bring me a book so we could read, and she walked over with one. A few other fun examples:
-If you ask, “where’s your foot,” she’ll lift up her foot.
-If you ask, “where’s your dog,” she’ll go find (and then kiss) her stuffed white dog.
-If you sing, “if you’re happy and you know it…” she’ll clap her hands.
-If you say “jumpie, jumpie,” she’ll start bouncing up and down.
This might not sound that exciting to the average reader, but it all seems pretty groundbreaking to me. It feels as if all our talking and teaching this past year has paid off; she’s finally digesting and understanding – and letting us know that that’s the case.
Speaking of talking, Zoe still does a great deal of this. So far, she has a small vocubulary of “real” words – mommy (and mama), daddy (and dada), good, hi, uh-oh, dog, baby – and she often babbles in her own toddler-talk. She also knows two (important) baby signs: one for milk and the other for food, or hungry. For the latter, she puts a few fingers to her lips – and she always does it when we ask her if she wants to eat.
Like most kids her age, Zoe loves to grab and explore – everything. Her favorite things to play with are (still) cell phones, remote controls, socks and – strangely – wet washclothes. Needless to say, she is NOT happy when any of these objects are taken away from her.
In terms of day-to-day stuff, Zoe still eats (a lot) four times a day and sleeps for 11-12 hours at night. She hasn’t completely abandoned her morning nap, but she’s starting to… There are days when she just won’t sleep (and instead bounces up and down in her crib).
Zoe hasn’t been weighed in awhile, but my guess is that she’s around 25 lbs. A lot of the clothes she wears are size 18-24 month (vs. 12-18), so I know she’s a bit chunkier, er, bigger than the average 14-month-old. I’m a big fan of her round little belly – though that shouldn’t be a big surprise to anyone!
-M
