k r i s t i n a k a y e: Farrah's 11 Month Update

These eleven months have been perfect in every way. The sleepless nights have faded to many hours of sleep for everyone, disrupted occasionally by our little baby just needing a little touch to go back to sleep. The worries of watching the clock to breastfeed on time has gradually changed to us just knowing how to do what we do. The concerns of baby led weaning vs. traditionally feeding rituals have worked out perfectly and led to a very non-picky, food loving, healthy eater. The inconsolable infant cries have turned into loud bursts of laughter. The tiny baby learning to roll over and scoot has grown into a crawling, hand-holding-almost-walking, cruising, mobile baby, who is not scared of anything.

Farrah loves to be tossed up in the air and spun around. She loves cheerios and strawberries. She likes helping mommy stir the tea and she loves splashing in water (i.e. the cat's water, usually). She found her coat the other day and got her arm in the sleeve correctly. This made me so proud. She finds clothes and tries to put them on over her head. She is really starting to play well independently coming up with little games (like putting kitchen utensils into a cereal box) to occupy herself.

Farrah loves to hide behind our recliner chair and slowly peek out at us. She enjoys going down to the farm to see Daddy and Grandpa and all the lambs and other animals, including the big sheep dogs. She loves to walk around holding our hands and is getting stronger and faster and sometimes she is able to walk well by holding one hand. She has been climbing into her walker and every time she gets her little leg stuck in the air and she needs help back out, but she just does it again and again.

She can moo like a cow, baa like a sheep, pant like a dog, growl like a bear as well as say bear, meow like Lenox, and she says uh oh everytime something is dropped, even when she does it on purpose. I bought her some animal toys from Orscheln, a puppy, cat, cow, and sheep, and she enjoys saying all the noises they make, as well as her new favorite activity of putting items into a container and taking them back out.

After Farrah had hand food mouth disease last month, she had another fever a few days later. Looking back now, I think now it may have been from teething (her fourth tooth). For a week or two she slept terribly, but otherwise she sleeps great. I had to take a night or two to stop waking up with her, and she was able to get back into her good sleep schedule.

We've been dealing with terrible tantrums where she gets bored or frustrated when her wants are greater than her ability to express them. The car rides got terrible, and caused terrible stress for Keane and I, but toward the last week this month things have had a turn-around and although I'm practically holding my breath, Farrah has been tolerating the car seat much better and acts like what I would consider a normal behavior in the car. Very, very exciting.

She is jabbering more and it's really adorable when she tries talking to us in her little voice.

I do not want to forget our times nursing. She kicks back relaxed with her legs draped over mine. She flips her crocheted lamb around, sometimes tossing it onto the ground. She knows to switch sides one time, and after the second side, she is done.

She has been snuggling when she first wakes up, laying her head on our shoulder and just staying content.

(Lap's full, heart's full)

Her daycare teacher, Miss Amber, had a baby and will be out until August, and I think the adjustment has been hard on her as she has cried several times as we leave her at the daycare, but we always get positive reports that she has had a great day! Every day with Farrah is a great day!