Elyse Love ~ 15 Months

Last Wednesday we went to the doctor for Elyse's 15 month checkup.  The appointment came at the perfect time because Elyse has started pouring fluids from her face again...drool & snot seem to be the fluids of choice, but the first few days even her eyes were watering!! 

Yeah, waiting was fine in the beginning...with her Cheerios & pacifier..

Weight/Height: Elyse weighs 20 lbs, 11 oz & is 31" long which puts her in the 20-25% for weight and the 75% for height.  We knew that she had grown quite a bit in height because she is reaching things that she hadn't been able to reach before...the world of child-proofing never ends! 

Clothes: As predicted, she is outgrowing clothes because of their length, not the width.  She is still wearing mostly 12-18 month clothes unless it's a one piece item; which we then move on to the 18-24 month size.  My mom went on a shopping spree last week & then I went on one yesterday with my MIL...a lot of what we bought was 18-24 months so she can wear it all through the summer.  She's also still in size 4 diapers & holding steady.   

 

Food:  Thank goodness for a great eater!  Elyse loves her food, and will at least TRY anything we put on her plate.  That doesn't mean that she won't promptly spit it out if she doesn't like it, but she also will reach for more if it's something that pleases her.  Breakfast normally consists of a scrambled egg, half a piece of toast, and fruit or if we're in a hurry we go for yogurt and some Cheerios.  Lunch just depends on the day, but normally she has a cheese quesadilla, grilled cheese, turkey/ham with cheese, or peanut butter & jelly.  She also LOVES chips so I have to really watch what kind of sides I eat with my meal.  For dinner she eats mainly whatever we are eating but still steers away from meat.  She's a green bean & pea lover so those are normally the veggies she eats.  She also has 2 snacks a day with Cheerios, Cheddar Bunnies, mini graham crackers, yogurt, banana, grapes, etc. 

We took LOTS of blurry baby photos!

We've also quickly learned that her hunger trigger is fast & furious...if Elyse sees you start working in the kitchen, she is READY to eat.  We're trying to use distraction to keep her satisfied until we can get a meal on the table, but unfortunately she sometimes just has to fuss awhile. 

Her hand is blurry, but I feel like she's pointing at herself and saying..."Who, me? What'd I do?!?"

Sleep: Elyse is a great sleeper, as long as she has her pacifiers.  On a normal night she goes down sometime between 7:30-8:00 and sleeps until 6:30-7:00; for the most part she is an 11 hour sleeper but occasionally she likes to wake up early (6:00 or so) and finishes her sleeping in bed with momma & daddy.  Yeah, we're softies but cudde time with her won't last forever!  She is also still taking 2 naps a day for a total of 2 1/2-3 hours.  We thought she was going to give up that first nap a week or so ago, but that was thankfully just a fluke! 

Activity:  This girl is BUSY!!!  She is everywhere and into everything and it brings me such joy!  When she's awake she just goes, goes, and goes some more; which is really why I think she sleeps so well for the most part.  She practically runs across the house sometimes, only tripping on a few occasions.  She is starting to want to crawl up on things so I'm thinking we'll have a climber very soon!  Ughhh!!  She's also a TOUGH girl, running into door frames, falling down...doesn't seem to phase her. 

Hey mom, how about I slide down off this table and get in the floor?!?

She loves to push around her cars and go VROOM, VROOM, VROOM; she loves to dance & twirl, &  she LOVES to go outside and see the puppies.  I can see A LOT of time outside in our future. 

Personality:  We are honestly so blessed.  Elyse has such an amazing personality & we just love to see it blossom and change each & every day.  She smiles & grins & giggles and it just fills our hearts with joy.  She also doesn't seem to know a stranger, and after a few moments will warm up to practically anyone.  We're so thankful that she hasn't dealt with much separation anxiety & actually LOVES going to play in the church nursery; makes us feel so much better about leaving her. 

Communication: Along the same lines as personality, Elyse is a TALKER!!  Someone asked me a few weeks ago if she was talking much, and I responded "Yes, but we don't understand much of it."  This person responded with, oh yeah, I bet she just jabbers all the time.  But honestly, it's not jabber.  And I know I'm her momma, but she speaks with such purpose and such intent some times.  She knows EXACTLY what she's saying, it just isn't perfectly clear to us.  She is saying Momma, Dadda, Papa, BoBo (Bogey the dog), Dog, Ball, Drink, Llama (For the book Llama, Llama) Book, Read, Bye Bye, Hi, Uh Oh, Gorilla (for Good Night Gorilla) and lots of other words that she's only said once or twice.  I fully expect her to just start piping off full paragraphs anytime. 

 

She still LOVES to read, and will even turn the pages & have the right rhythm when she reads certain books.  I love to see her sitting in her chair just reading away--it's absolutely precious. 

Inching ever so close to the forbidden cabinet...

 Likes:

~books. Llama Llama books are a favorite at our house, as are any book with flaps.  At Gigi's house she LOVES Goodnight Gorilla, and at Mamaw's house she goes straight for 8 Silly Monkeys!  It's so funny to see which books she's partial to each day...we definitely do a LOT of reading at our house! 

~Peek-A-Boo/Hide-N-Seek.  As she's gotten older and quicker on her feet, this game has become even more fun.  She is also definitely getting smarter & doesn't always fall for it when we try to run around the other side of the island.  She also loves to pull towels, rags, etc. out of the drawers, put them on her head and play peek-a-boo...as long as it doesn't involve running into door frames (which has happened once!)
~lap-sitting.  She is so adorable when she turns around and starts to back her little booty up so she can sit in your lap.  She's missed a few times, so now she's a little more careful as she backs it up!   
~food. See above...if you're eating it, she wants it.  

What do you mean this is off limits?!?

Dislikes:

 ~being tired.  When we're at home by ourselves, she seems to hit a wall and it's all over.  It's nice because we obviously know when it's time for bed, but I hate that sometimes she gets overtired. 
~hunger.  See above...don't make this girl wait for dinner, otherwise a full melt-down may ensue.  Of course, when she's hungry she'll eat almost anything!

Passed out after shots and no morning nap!  I just LOVE a little baby butt in the air! 

12-15 Month Milestones: 

 ~Molars...I think we've got 3/4 all the way in, and we're still waiting on the 4th...which will make 12 total teeth. 

Happy 15 months baby girl, you are becoming a little person before our eyes...and it's so exciting to watch you learn & develop!  We love you to pieces!