16 Months

I'm a little behind schedule in posting lately.  I have Halloween to cover still, but even before that, I need to chronicle Annie's 16th month here in her online baby book.  Like all the months that have come before it, Annie's second October was full of activities, new adventures, and lots of learning.  She is settling in to her new classroom at daycare very nicely and is showing us every day what a big girl she is becoming.

Annie started out the month with a week-long bought of the yuckies.  What we initially thought was a reaction to her 15-month shots ended up being roseola - a virus that causes a sudden high fever, irritability, vomiting, and then, as the last symptom, a red, non-itchy rash.  After three visits to our pediatrician and a phone call or two to my brother, it was the rash that finally signified what we were dealing with.  And by that point, it was pretty much over.  It was really, in the grand scheme of things, no big deal, but it gave me the chance to get in a few uncharacteristic cuddles while our girl was (unfortunately) feeling less than her best.

As much as I hated seeing Annie sick, I very much enjoyed being able to have moments like this.

The rest of the month was much better, though.  And as usual, Annie learned some new things in October.  I think the biggest advances for Annie this past month have been in the area of vocabulary.  She has added short phrases (I guess you would call them that) like "all done" (which she pronouces as "ah-doh") and "night night" to her repetoire.  She also does a lot of repeating these days - both words and sounds.  And if she hears you singing, she is pretty likely to join in with her own version of a melody.

Our little Raven.  Go AU!

Trying on Mommy's shoes is, apparently, hilarious.

In addition to showing advances in her ability to communicate verbally, Annie is also demonstrating her understanding of sequences and routines.  If you ask her if she needs her diaper changed, she will often either lay down in the floor for you to change it (you know, just in case you already have a diaper in your back pocket) or go into her bedroom and stand in front of her changing table.  If she hears the word "bath" in the evening, she will run to the bathroom and throw back the shower curtain, sometimes even starting to pull off her clothes in preparation for some tub time.  When she is hungry, she will also sometimes go to the cabinet where she knows some of her snacks are, picks out something, and then stands by the kitchen counter reaching for a spoon.  She's growing more and more independent these days...and with that, she grows more and more opinionated. :-)

Being silly with Mommy.

She exerts her independence every day now by insisting on carrying her own lunch box from the kitchen to the front door before leaving for school.

It's funny how much less I worry about Annie doing the "right" things or developing "on schedule" as she gets older.  In the early months, I consulted my collection of "Your Baby's First Year" type books all the time, to see when she was supposed to roll over or get teeth or eat solid foods.  Now, her development is just a fun and amazing thing to behold.  Kids just grow so darn fast.  I'm growing less and less interested in rushing it.

Just in case it takes me a while to get to a Halloween recap - here's a shot of our little pumpkin.