Catching up with our 13 month olds

I wrote the notes for this post a couple weeks ago, but never got around to writing it.  I've been having a harder time blogging lately because we currently only have one computer that is working and our internet at home has been painfully slow.  For a while the screen on our old computer wouldn't light up, then that started working again and the keyboard quit.  So I think it's time to suck it up and buy a new computer, unless, of course, Michelle somehow manages to win the Macbook Air they're giving away at her conference this week!

Overall these three continue to keep us on our toes. They also keep us laughing with their silly antics.  They have been so much fun lately and are interacting with each other more and more every day.  It's fun to see them trying to make each other laugh just by giving each other silly looks.  There also lots of sibling kisses these days that just melt our hearts.

Here's the recap on each of our kiddos at 13 months!

ISAIAH

 Isaiah thankfully moved out of his super clingy mama's boy phase this month and has been pretty silly and funny lately.  He can stand for over a minute and can take a couple of steps (and has taken as many as six steps).  He really likes to walk holding our hands and can get pretty mad when you stop helping him walk. He is also showing more interest in climbing and has tried to climb the baby jail fence and the crib.  Isaiah has also figured out how to climb the steps at the playground to keep up with his sisters.  He also mastered one of his OT goals of releasing objects into a container and has been really interested in putting shapes in the shape sorter. 

Isaiah also started consistently signing the word "more" and has been relishing the power of that word.  He uses it most at the table where he continues to be the biggest and most consistent eater.  Isaiah has been working soooo hard on eating with silverware and really likes to try eating with a fork or spoon.  We have recently introduced plates and bowls and silverware at some meals and they're doing pretty well with it.  We haven't had too many flipped or tossed plates. Isaiah also really likes to drop things to the floor so he'll take a drink of water and then drop the straw cup on the floor when he's done and then sign "more." (It's a ton of fun...sigh)  Mister man has also been super into books lately and is the most attentive at bedtime.  He has started pointing and does it the most when reading books.

ELLIE

Our little Ellie-belle really wants to be a walker.  She typically falls after 5 or so steps, but it doesn't seem to phase her and she just keeps trying.  She has taken up to about ten steps and is really working hard to master this new skill.  Ellie has been showing her mischevious side lately getting into everything and being pretty persistent about it.  She is using her new climbing skills to expand her ability to get into trouble.  And she's starting to protest things like diaper changes and getting buckled in her car seat.  

Ellie was the last to get teeth, but now has the most teeth of anyone, with six teeth at least partially through. Our best sleeper continues to be the best, but has been having a lot of early wake ups lately.  She has been very talkative, babbling away throughout the day.  Her two most common phrases are "budja budja" and "ohboyohboy."  She is pretty funny and understands the word "silly" and will laugh when she hears us say the word.  Ellie is also our friendliest baby and the most likely to take off and explore when we are visiting somewhere new.

AVERY

Avery is a true toddler now, toddling all over the place.  She is also climbing on everything including the couch, the ottoman, and the windowsill.  Avery is brave but also smart about her exploration and climbing. (most of the time anyway! she is thinking about climbing into the back of the Rav4 when she's climbing around waiting to be buckled...which she hates just like Ellie!) Avery seems to like doing things like us and has gotten pretty good at drinking from an open cup with little to no help.  She likes to practice this skill in the bathtub (yuk!) so I often have a cup of fresh water in there for her to practice with and hopefully decrease the amount of soapy bathwater she drinks. =)  Avery has finally decided that bathtime is actually fun and often isn't the first one out nowadays.

Avery really took off with signing in October. She signs "more," "all done," "help," "milk" & "dog."  She also tries to say a lot of words though they pretty much all sound like "ba" at this point, but it's clear what she's trying to say because she's usually imitating us or pointing to it.  Avery discovered her belly button and loves to lift up her shirt to show it off and to point to our bellies to have us show her ours.  The belly button discovery spurred her interest in body parts and she can pretty consistently identify belly, belly button, hair, ears, and mouth. Speaking of hair, Avery now likes to help brush her hair and brush our hair and loves to wear bows (for about 5 seconds at a time!)  She knows where her birthday bow is and will point to it and then to her head when she wants to wear it.  Once she has it on she gets a big silly "look at me, aren't I just adorable" smile on her face as you can see in the side pose picture above.  

Motor Monday-And we have walkers!!

Well, I have a post already started about pulling to stand and cruising, but have been struggling to get pictures and videos to go with it. And this one just can't wait!  We now have walkers!! Well, to be fair, Avery has been taking steps since October 7th, but she really stepped it up a level today and Ellie is really starting to take off too.

 Isaiah has been working really hard on standing and is getting pretty good at it.  Check out this face when he was standing in the grass a couple weeks ago. He's so proud of himself!

He has taken a step or two, but usually it looks more like this video. In this video you can see him standing by himself and preparing to take a step.  Watch how he shifts his weight forward onto his toes a couple of times and shifts his hips sideways just a bit before he actually takes a step.  Babies have to learn to shift their weight forward and also to the side to be able to lift a foot. That weight shift is so tricky!

Here's one where he only gets the forward weight shift.  Little dude is trying so hard!  He'll get it, but sometimes the process is just exhausting as you can see!

Here's a video of Avery the first day she took steps by herself.

You can see in this video that walking is basically just controlled falling (as opposed to Isaiah just falling).  She shifts her weight, takes a few steps and just dives into me. And that is pretty typical for kids, who are more confident trying something new and different going towards their mom or dad because they know someone will catch them.  Once she is in motion she just keeps going until she falls, never able to regain her balance.

 For comparison, here's Ellie walking tonight before bed.  She took her first step two weeks ago and until today has only taken about 4 steps at a time. In this video, the first time she takes more steps than Avery in the video above, but it still looks fairly similar in that she is just going straight & dives at the end, but in the second one you can see her catch her balance a couple of times before continuing on.

 I think today is the day that Avery crossed over into being "a walker." She has been taking steps to us for close to a month now, but now she will just take off walking whenever she feels like it!  And tonight she pushed herself up to stand all by herself in the middle of the room.  Check this girl out!

Don't get me wrong, she still crawls the majority of the time because it is so much faster for her right now, but you can tell she is really working to master this walking business.  Notice how in the video above she is now able to turn while she is walking!  New walkers are so fun to watch because you can practically see the learning happening.  This last video is a silly one because it is way too fast (it's a timelapse), but it gives you a quick glimpse of the amount of persistence Avery has when it comes to learning a new skill.  Tonight was the first time she pushed up to stand and in this video she did it like six times in a row before she finally got it and took off walking.