Twelve Months Old

I'm about two weeks late with this post, although I did take the photos on time.  One of my goals over the holiday weekend is to catch up on the blog... I still need to share all the birthday details with you!  But here's a quick look at what our girl is doing at one year old.

- Walking.  She finally figured it out (on Big Daddy's watch; he really wants all the credit, so let me be clear about that) one night while mama and daddy were both away.  She's never looked back.
- Waving.  At everyone, all the time.  It's adorable.
- Talking.  Still no real words besides "Dada" maybe "Mama" (I'm not sure she really means me) and "Ruff Ruff" for puppy.  But she's babbling constantly.
- Eating.  March wasn't a great eating month for Clara; she cut a tooth and had her first cold, but she's been exited from feeding therapy with the speech pathologist and has learned how to drink a measurable amount from her cup (with a straw), so those are huge celebrations for her.  By the way, she weathered that first cold beautifully.... it never really got in her chest or became a respiratory issue.  She just had a runny nose for about ten days, and not much of an appetite.  Then she bounced right back!
- A third tooth.  Her top left tooth popped through on Big Daddy's birthday - March 5.  Still waiting on the top right one...
- Sleeping. She's still taking two pretty good naps (1.5 hours each) most days and sleeps well through the night (11-12 hours).  I'm thankful for that sleeping, because when she is awake, she never stops moving.
- At twelve months old, she still loves books, and push toys and loves to be outside, especially on her swing.  She seemingly never tires of pat-a-cake or peek-a-boo and knows "what's coming" and likes skipping to the end of the rhyme.  She loves opening and closing doors, cabinets and gates and is very curious.  The "distraction" method doesn't work very well for Clara.... she never forgets what she was trying to do/go after and is back at it as soon as she can.  She's not afraid of strangers and loves being social and is especially interested in other children.  We look forward to allowing her more and more time around them as cold and flu season comes to a close and she can be out and about a bit more. When we eat out in a restaurant she flirts with all the other customers (but shows a preference for old men.... ha!) She loves roughhousing with Daddy as he throws her around and likes to ride on his shoulders.  She loves pulling her hairbows out of her hair and her socks and shoes off of her feet.  She also loves pulling on grown ups' hair, jewelry or glasses.  She likes taking objects OUT of things (buckets, stacking rings, toys, etc.), but hasn't figured out how to put them back IN yet.  She is happy in her stroller and we take a lot of walks together.  Clara is developing more personality every day and makes some of the funniest faces.  Most of all, she's the happiest baby I've ever known.  I might be a bit biased, but Clara just seems so joyful all the time, smiling and laughing and soaking up this precious life.  It's a wonderful reminder to all of us how to live in God's presence with a full heart.

It's remarkable to us that by one year Clara is developmentally "typical" in every way.  She shows no signs of gross motor, fine motor, speech/communication, or cognitive delays.  Given her medical history, this is a lot to be thankful for.  We're so grateful to have avoided a semi-permanent feeding tube for her and thankful that we have managed to help her gain enough weight with only oral feeds.  She is getting better with a straw and drinking while awake, so we are hopeful that dreamfeeds will continue to be weaned in the coming weeks and months.  She's come a long way in a year.

Thanks Be To God.