Gia has been one year for a week now. It’s crazy. Someone asked me today when she started crawling and I couldn’t remember. That’s when I realized it’s time to start keeping updates. They may not be on adorable chalkboards or unique fabric every month, but at least they’ll be done!
We had her birthday party early in the month in Minnesota, but also had a little birthday dinner for her while my mom was in town. My mom made spaghetti and meatballs, since Gia likes to slurp up the spaghetti. For dessert I made whipped cream over fresh berries and almond biscuits. We got her the radio flyer tricycle!
Gia has reached some milestones and is racing towards others. She says actual words now – when you ask her what a crow says, she says “Caw! Caw!” She says “apple,” “up,” “agua” and “uh oh” in the correct contexts. She also says “hi mama” and “buh bye”.
She’s taken a couple of steps here and there, but she prefers crawling. She crawls at lightning speed. She can open the door to her bedroom and crawl away during bedtime routine.
We took her to the beach for the first time on Sunday. We held her over the water and she loved the waves so much that she cried out in ecstasy as they crashed over and under her. She crabwalked over the sand and right back into the ocean by herself.
She eats everything and yet she’s particular. One day she’ll shove spinach and chicken in her mouth; the next, the same foods will be gently removed from her plate and dropped onto the floor. She usually peers at me while she’s doing this to see if I’m watching. Tonight while we were eating dinner, she rocked back and forth and shook her head to Credence Clearwater Revival. She’s been nursing a lot on weekends and still nurses to sleep each night. I thought I’d finished pumping at work, but J and I have had some after-work dates and wedding meetings, so I’ve had to keep it up.
I can’t talk about her turning a year old without discussing Leap 8. It has been the worst growth spurt so far. All of the leaps manifest in sleep in our household. Two weeks ago, at around 51 weeks, Gia stopped going to sleep on time and started staying awake in the middle of the night for two full hours, sometimes more. This happened for three week nights in a row and it was Hell. She then slept ok for one night, then was up from 11:30 pm to 3am on a Friday night. We tried everything – nursing, bottles, snacks, toys, letting her cry; nothing worked. I’ve called into work and gone in late a few times, and reinstated lunchtime car naps. I think the worst is over. For those of you who have the Wonder Weeks app, the storm cloud passed two days ago and we’ve had one good night of sleep so I’ll keep you posted.
This is a video of how whiny and clingy she’s been during Leap 8:
For all the sleep deprivation, I can honestly say that what comes to mind when I think about the last couple of weeks is just pure joy. Her smile and laughter and antics have changed. Watching her learn and grow is beyond incredible.
reciprocallove 