Clara's First Set of Wheels

It's cute to see how proud Clara is of each and every new discovery she makes.  Working on her "walking" these past few days has been a highlight for her.  When she gets fussy, I stick her behind her walker and she's all smiles!

The one requirement for her forward progress is that I'm standing in front of her.  Otherwise she doesn't make it anywhere because she's too busy stopping to turn and grin at me.  She wants to make extra-certain I'm seeing her accomplishment.  She's impressing herself.

So fun.

10 Reasons Why Babies are like Puppies

Let me start by saying, babies are people and WAY cooler than any pet.

But, some of the baby/puppy behavior similarities are pretty entertaining.  I don't currently have a dog, but I know a thing or two about them.  Here are a few of the similarities I've noticed.

1. They both travel on all fours.
2. Both carry things around in their mouths
3. Both beg for treats (when I'm eating something in the living room Clara pulls up on my knee and looks at me imploringly with her big eyes.  I share)
4. Babies and puppies eat things off the floor (I can't wait for the end of this phase)
5. They know their names and simple commands
6. Both enjoy going for walks
7. Both chew things up (thankfully babies don't do too much damage, usually not anyway...)
8. Both whine to communicate what they want or need
9. They will both pee on your floor if you don't take preventative measures (it's happened)
10. Babies and puppies both go in a pen (playpen, dog pen)

Has anyone else noticed this?  Any that I missed?

Little Friends

It's been fun to see Clara taking more interest in her little friends lately.  So far she plays well with other babies and really enjoys having a friend around.  Who can blame her, considering she's alone with me most of the day.  I think it's cute, so I've been collecting pictures.

Clara's so excited to play with her friend Jacob.  She shows him her wooden activity tower.

Clara and Jack raid a cabinet.  Jack shows Clara his secret stash.  He also taught her how to get in the cabinets at our house.  

Will loves to give Clara hugs and kisses.  He can also say her name.  Clara loves to follow Will around and involve herself in whatever he's doing.  They're buds.

Clara and Owen, riding in the airplane together.

Playing with cups at Lucas's birthday party.

Wow.  All of Clara's friends are boys.  Not sure how I feel about that...
Zoe, Izzy, where are you?!

Clara's First Love: Froyo

Clara, my almost-one-year-old, is acting so different lately.  Much less "passive baby"--Much more ...personality.

And she's figuring out how to do more physically, like flushing the toilet just 'cuz it's so fun, walking with her walker, opening a door that's shut but not latched, trying to squeeze through tight places and getting mad when she can't, crawling up the steps on the playground equipment, etc..  Even as I write this, she has climbed into her toy box and gotten herself stuck.  She's intermittently whining to be rescued and playing with the toys in it.

Earlier this week we met some friends at Froyo for frozen yogurt.  It was a beautiful evening.  Clara pulled up on my leg "begging" for a taste, so I began to give her little bites of this treat.  She loved it so much that she proceeded to whine and cry and bounce herself up and down in between each and every bite.  As soon as one was in her mouth she began "complaining" for her next bite.  She's never reacted that way about any food or treat before, so it was humorous.  We're going to have to be careful not to spoil her and reinforce whining-tactics too much with froyo!

Clara with her other first love: dada.

Clara at 11 Months

Weight: 22 lbs. 8 oz.

Height: 29.5"

What she can do: She can crawl really fast.  It's getting more difficult to catch her these days.  She can also transport an object with her by holding it in one hand while she crawls (clank, thump, clank, thump, clank, thump) or by putting it in her mouth.  She balances herself while standing for several seconds in a row, plays alone for extended periods of time, has climbed up on our fireplace hearth, can do a variety of babbling noises which she will repeat back to you when asked, and drinks "store-bought" milk once per day.

What she likes: Grapes, animal crackers, cheese, pulling her bows out of her hair, the "Sittin' in My Highchair" song, playing with her little friends, swinging at the park, laughing, and "typing" at her personal keyboard (re-purposed as a toy for her by Erica).

"Sittin' in my highchair, Highchair. My chair. Sittin' in my highchair playing with my spoon"

Sleep: She still wakes up 1-2 times per night.  Her sleep is irregular right now as she's been sick for the last five days, but thanks to Benedryl it's not completely screwed up.  She has switched to taking one longer nap during the middle of the day.

Other information: She does not like her stroller, which makes me sad, because I like to take her out in her stroller.  She'll do it for a while if she has snacks though, so that's something at least.  Unfortunately she also does not like being given medicine (!) which has been quite trying with her recent sickness, between the Benedryl, Tylenol, and the eventual antibiotic she was given.  It's a screaming battle every time we have to give her something, usually involving holding her down and pouring it down her throat.  Poor baby.  She winds up spitting most of it out somehow anyway, so I'm not even sure this torture is really helping her.

It's hard to believe she's closing in on her first birthday!  I love being a mom!