13 months

Maybe I'm not supposed to keep this up, this monthly documentation of the sweet Critter Girl's growth and changes. But I love reading back on the old entries, and remembering what she was like month-by-month, and its my blog, so I'm doing it! We'll see how long I can keep it up for...

13 months old today!! You look less like a baby and more like a kid, a toddler, every day. Your hair is really beginning to come in, and it looks like it might have some curl to it. You have Daddy's coloring for sure, light brown hair, rosy cheeks. And the curls are all Daddy too.

No walking yet, still. You are better and better at standing without holding on. You can clap, wave your arms, play with something in your hand, eat - all while standing. But if Mama asks you to come to her, you gently sit down and crawl on over. Not interested in trying to walk. Oh well, it will come. Like the rest of your development so far, you will do it when you are damn good and ready.

You have become so much more social. You smile, laugh, clap at everyone. You are no longer afraid of Grandpa, and happily sat in his lap the last time he visited. He was so happy! And you are suddenly the life of the party at your Crawlers class. You go up to all the other kids and parents and smile and laugh and clap and just spread your happiness around. You love the music and even "dance" which is so cute. You can play perfect patty cake with me, rolling and patting at exactly the right parts. And chasing! Oh how you love to be chased by me or Daddy! There is nothing more fun, or funnier to you, than being chased by us. And blowing kisses! And giving kisses! So very cute.

Your language continues to blossom. You understand so much, it sort of surprises me sometimes. And you love nothing more than to watch the digital picture frame so you can name everyone you see (Baby! Cat! Mama! Dada! Nana!). You say Mama-understood variations on some new words - cheese, blueberries, crackers, books, spoon.

You are off formula! It was a rocky transition onto milk, it turns out you have the same milk-fat intolerance as me. So after any trials of whole milk, lactose-free whole milk, both of which made your tummy sick, we finally found 2% works. And you seem to like it too. Next task, ditching the bottles. Given how much you like your sippy cups for water, I don't see a big issue here (knocking on wood).

You continue to grow and change and amaze me every day. I'm so lucky you are my sweet Critter Girl.