9 Months (a little late) and 2 1/2 Years
MerrillMerrill had her 9-month check up a couple of weeks ago. She is doing great. She weighed in at
17 pounds even and was measured at
27 inches. After looking back, she is exactly the same height as Millie was at her 9 month, and they have the same head circumference. Merrill weighed a pound more than Millie (give or take a little since Merrill was weighed with clothes on and Millie was weighed naked). It's pretty amazing how closely she is tracking Millie in her growth. I credit her "extra" weight to the fact that she got a better start to breastfeeding than Millie did and didn't have to play catch-up after coming home from the hospital. Not that Merrill is a big baby by any means, in fact I'd say she's just perfect -- just like Millie was :).
Merrill continues to be an absolute sweetheart. She has a wonderful smile that lights up her whole face, she loves to wave "hi" and "bye," she attempts to blow kisses, she loves the dishwasher and all things electronic (e.g. the camera, cell phones, the coffee maker, the microwave -- yeah, all the things you want your 9 month old to play with ;) ), she loves shoes and bags almost as much as Millie, she tries her best to keep up with Millie and do all the things she does, she loves to clap and drum, she loves music class and always gets comments on her good rhythm.
Language: Merrill "talks" up a storm everyday. I'm almost ready to qualify "hi" and "mama" as real words (it's really no fun having a mom who is a speech-therapist!), she points to everything in a communicative way -- generally to say "I want that!" but sometimes to ask "what is that?!" Merrill's personality is definitely starting to come through and she's making her opinions, wants and needs well known. She protests clearly when she is removed from something she wants (including mommy) and absolutely lights up when she attains her goals.
Motor: Merrill is the fastest little crawler I've seen -- that girl can move! She pulls up on EVERYTHING and is definitely cruising around now, but has not yet made attempts to walk on her own (which is just fine with me! That will happen soon enough!). She's great at going up the stairs but doesn't quite have the concept of going down yet. She does like to wiggle down off of furniture (couch, bed, etc.) when we put her in the right position to do so. This week she has started putting things in containers -- she's a pro at taking them out and even better at dropping them on the floor :).
Teeth: Merrill's two bottom teeth are fully in, but we're still waiting on the top ones. I think she's going to pop about 6 new teeth all at once when they do finally come in!
Eating: Like Millie, Merrill has been slow to take to "real" food. I'd say that breast milk still makes up 90% of her daily nutrition, but that is slowly changing. Last week was the first week that she really eagerly ate the food offered to her. Prior to that, she put on a nice little show every time food was presented to her. (see video below). So, we do pureed veggies and some cereal, but we've also moved on to some finger veggies and fruits which she seems to enjoy. She likes to feed herself and she's doing well with both her
sippy cup and her straw water bottle (the same one that Millie and Mommy have of course!)
Sometimes dinner time just isn't that exciting:
Now, we do
not have the kind of children who spontaneously and independently fall asleep at random times ... so this was REALLY surprising (and funny)
Social: Merrill loves to follow Millie around and do whatever she is doing. She loves to laugh at Millie and to make Millie laugh too :).
We are SO blessed to have Merrill as part of our little family -- she has definitely found her spot and it's a perfect fit.
MillieAt two and a half, Millie weighs in at about 25 pounds. We haven't measured her recently, so I'm not sure how tall she is, but she's definitely grown a lot in the past 6 months. Her 2T clothes finally fit length-wise :)! Millie is funny and sweet and super affectionate and kind and full of energy. People often wonder how she is our child due to her out-going nature ;). Millie makes friends with everyone she meets and always makes the people she is with feel special. For example, when my sister was here watching the girls the other day Millie said to her "Did you get a haircut? Your hair looks SO pretty!" She really is good for one's self-esteem!
Making friends with our friend Ryan -- somehow she knew that he also loves books!
Millie loves books, singing, bouncing, playing in the dirt, snuggling, swinging, spinning, running, laughing, shoes, purses, and life in general. She really does bring a smile to the face of everyone she meets. Pink is her "best" and her favorite, though she likes to wear a variety of colors and often picks non-pink things. Most days she picks out her own outfits and does a good job of getting herself dressed with minimal help. She is completely independent in using the potty to pee -- she goes in, pulls her pants down, does her thing, wipes, dumps the pee in the big toilet and even washes her hands! Sometimes all in the dark 'cause she can't reach the light switch (if one of us isn't immediately available to turn the light on for her).
Language: Millie REALLY talks up a storm! She talks about everything, has an active imagination, "reads" her books with amazing accuracy, negotiates constantly (she's got the lawyer genes for sure!), she helps Merrill learn the rules, talks to her baby dolls, and pretty much acts as the life conductor -- guiding the rest of us in what we are supposed to do :). Millie still loves letters and words. She loves to talk about words rhyming, though she doesn't quite have the concept of rhyming down yet, but she's close :). She is great at figuring out what letter words start with from the sound and just recently it seems she has acquired the ability to recognize numbers in print. She follows directions (well, she has the ability to anyway!) and has a fabulous memory! She still talks about our trip to Chicago and Michigan back in November and she still sings the "Leo" song almost everyday. Like her mother, she has a tendency to sing her life -- making up songs and singing our songs from music class. She's starting to be able to sing in unison with the radio and asks for our music class CD every time we are in the car.
Motor: There isn't much Millie can't do. She climbs on everything at the playground, she attempts to skip (and does pretty well), she jumps on two feet, basically she's a little monkey. She doesn't have a lot of fear, but she's also not reckless -- which I am very thankful for. She likes to dance and has already surpassed her parents in her ability to do so :).
Teeth: She's got 'em all :)
Eating: Millie is still a pretty good eater. She enjoys her carbs a LOT -- but since bread and crackers are not things that we keep in the house on a regular basis she also has a good repertoire of other things that she eats. She loves to eat berries and will always ask for them when she goes to Lainie and Grandpa's house. She LOVES to go out to restaurants too :).
Social: Millie seems to love all people. She goes to the playground quite frequently now that the weather is nice and I'm told that she almost always makes a friend while she is there. Initiating is still difficult, but that's to be expected at her age. She talks about her friends often and really likes to be around other children. She likes to talk about going to school and I think she will really enjoy it when she goes (probably in the fall, though I have a minor panic attack every time I think about that...). She is an absolute "ham" around new people but is much more calm and reflective when she is home with us. She loves her little sister; she brings her toys and gives her hugs and kisses all the time (as well as the occasional whack on the head...). She loves to make Merrill laugh and loves to laugh with her.
There is nothing about this child that doesn't make me smile. The amount of love that she showers on her family is amazing and we couldn't be happier with the little girl that she is quickly becoming.
