18 months

Wow...18 months...Kylie is 18 months old today!  She has come such a long way from this...

...to this...

We don't have official numbers, that will come in a few weeks with her dr. appointment, but Kylie has finally gained a few pounds...probably about 4 or 5, taking her up to about 22-23lbs.  She can say hello (although it really doesn't sound like it) and Mamamamama....when the phone rings, she puts her hand up to her ear.  She can tell you she's one by holding up one finger.  She signs milk/drink, cookie, out, please and her favorite...MORE. 

She can get up and down stairs, although we don't let her do that alone!  She's walking everywhere now but she's still a little unstable sometimes.  She loves to dance and she is pretty hilarious when she does it.

Kylie's favorite face to make (and another one that makes me laugh hysterically) is what we affectionately call "Squinty eyes"...

As far as sleeping, she goes to bed about 8 and I rock her for 20-30 minutes and put her to bed.  Most nights she sleeps through the night and we never hear a peep.  Occasionally, she'll wake up and have to be held in the middle of the night and sometimes putting her down takes longer or several tries.  I'm not sure what causes this as there doesn't seem to be a rhyme or reason to it, but it sure is hard on a body that gets up at 5:30am to get ready for work.

Kylie loves stuffed animals now, just like her Jie Jie and Mama (when I was younger, of course!).  She has learned how to give a "baby" a bottle and burp it.  She has started playing a little more now, but lots of times at home she just wanders around.  I think she really likes to walk now that she's doing it.

She can be a picky eater at times, but generally eats what is put in front of her.  She loves milk and will drink water, but we don't give her much juice anymore because we love that she loves milk because that is what is helping her to grow.  She has about 10 teeth and of those at least 2-3 are molars and they all seem to have come in about the same time.  Kylie really likes to feed herself and because she can't quite do it all by herself yet, that is a huge point of contention for us.  There are some things, like oatmeal, that she just can't do herself because she doesn't yet have the coordination to keep the food on the spoon.  But we are working hard on that since it gives her more control.

Kylie has been going to the church nursery for both hours for the last few weeks and seems to love it.  I am thrilled and think she is learning so much from being around other kids.  And her teachers are the best and it makes me so happy that they are there with her.

In general, Kylie has turned into a pretty happy baby.  I don't want to wish these early days away since we've lost so much time with her already, but I am so anxious to see what she is going to be like as a toddler.

So that's Kylie at 18 months...I can't wait to see what the next few months bring in terms of her speech and development!