Eating: More solid foods are becoming acceptable to our little girl! We've learned that the trick is to give them to her first, before filling her tummy with baby food. Now that I type that, it seems rather obvious. But Chance and I were definitely giving baby food first, and then getting frustrated when she didn't want to try the finger foods. How we have already raised one child is beyond me :) Annie's favorite finger foods are mac and cheese, strawberries, peaches, pears, banana, and cheese quesadilla. Her favorite soft food is definitely Greek yogurt. Meals are a messy adventure, and we are so proud of her for growing up and feeding herself! Unfortunately, sometime Annie feeds herself things that are not food. Over spring break, I tried some outdoor finger painting with Adventurous Annie. After holding the brush for less than 2 seconds. She tasted all of them and liked blue the best (and don't worry - I used 2 recipes for edible paint!
Sleeping: Again, we've had a few fleeting nights with only one waking. While her nursing sessions during the day are pretty quick because she wants to get back to playing, she is very content to have lengthy "bonding" sessions at night. However, a great achievement is that Annie does a good job of putting herself to sleep at night, as we put her down at about 7:15 when she is drowsy but still awake. Naps are a bit of a struggle at home and at school, but her mood is much better if she takes one short and one long nap during the day. Since we are on the go pretty often, she has gotten better at sleeping in various places; most recently, the zoo and the bowling alley!
Growing: Oh my goodness, our girl is growing so much! She is wearing almost all 12 month clothes, and I think she will outgrow things in length before in the waist. Most of her pants are now worn as capris, and I'm learning that girls can extend the life of dresses by wearing them as shirts. How handy! She weighed right at 20 pounds at her most recent doctor appointment.
This is usually the spot in these monthly updates where I include a lovely picture of Annie taken on her month-birthday. This month was a little crazier than most, so I took a pic of her at the birthday party we attended at the bowling alley. At least we will have much better photos taken next month for her birthday!
Enjoying: One of the biggest accomplishments this month was WALKING! Annie took her first little step on February 27. For about a week, she was very hesitant, and then she officially took off! One day during Spring Break, Cade counted that she took 100 steps in one day. She still crawls if she is in a hurry, but she is definitely proud of herself when she walks. So far, she does not seem to be affected by wearing shoes, and only stumbles a little if she is outside on the grass. She absolutely loves being outside, so we've started playing on the back porch after school/ work if there is time before dinner. Time outside is good for all of us! Here she is right before she took her first steps!
Nana took Annie on her first wagon ride this month and she loved it!
Annabeth has brought so much joy to our lives in the past 11 months, and we cannot wait to see what all the next month holds before she turns one!
