Septoberfest and a Little Announcement

{14 1/2 months and going way too fast}

The babbling has become very conversational lately, and I often feel like I'm holding a conversation with you, though you're saying nothing coherent. Your repertoire of actual words has grown to include ball, baby, bo (you adorably call all dogs "bobo"s), up, mia, bumpa, go, and juice. There are probably more, but those are fairly consistent. We're working on please and thank you.  ;)

And since we're on the subject of talking, your most favorite expression of excitement right now is the gleeful squeal. Though I am quite certain anyone who is not related to you would call it overkill, you like to let loose a short, piercing shriek when greeting your friends, playing with Hannah, and pretty much any time you're excessively psyched. I think it's perfectly delightful that you and Jake exchange quick scream-greetings when I drop you off, but since it also sometimes incites the other kids to screech and shout, I doubt your teachers find it so cute...

You may be teaching them bad habits, but at least they're helping you drop others. Thanks to daycare, you have also begun relinquishing the paci (save extenuating circumstances—like sleeping at night). You don't even put up a fight anymore when I remove it and send you off to play.

Of course, one of your favorite things to do is eat. Yes, you're still particular about milk and will only drink it once a day in warm bottle form (seriously, I'm just gonna put all the bottles up one day and be like uh-oh where did they go? Mommy and daddy are such enablers), but when you're hungry, it's go-time. I love watching you eat noodles, since you somehow got that 'lady and the tramp' slurp down and they disappear faster than I can twist. Pizza and pasta are high on your list, but your favorite is still barbecue and green beans. My little Southern girl! We know you're done (or bored) when those food- or sauce-filled hands dart up and rub the yummy goodness in your hair. [*shaking head in defeat]. At least it makes for some interesting hairstyles.

We took you to the Dixie Classic Fair in early October, though daddy felt you were still a little young to enjoy everything. Not necessarily, we found, since you downed half the 32-oz lemonade we'd purchased for ourselves and 3/4 of my roasted corn. You absolutely loved the petting zoo, even if you tried to eat the "feed carrots" yourself and kept trying to kiss the goats (I know they kind of look like dogs, sweetie, but they're not). And aside from a 45-minute power nap, you hung like a champ. After your nap, we rode a couple rides and called it a day, but I'm glad we went. You even tried your first taste of cotton candy and funnel cake. Next year will really be a treat. If we don't give you a stomachache...

 "I think I'm gonna like the fair!"

 "It's a bit sunny. Dad, glasses STAT"

 (Maybe you'll like the rides better when you're old enough to go on them yourself.
And you're awake)

 (Feeding the goats. Right before you tried to kiss them)

 

"I'm sorry; what is THAT?"

 "Niiiice alpaca. Sooooft."

You've definitely become more.. sensitive? aware? adult? of late, and when you're hurt or sad it takes a bit longer to calm those nerves. It's clear this is part of growing up, though, since it's hard to understand those feelings at first. Just this morning, something fell on my foot and when I cried out in pain, you got scared and ran to me whimpering. It's really amazing the things you're starting to grasp. You seem to swat out randomly when frustrated, since you can't yet say what you need. Sadly, the dogs and a few brave friends at school receive the brunt of those beatings. We try to curb it by showing you "sweet" and "gentle," but it's a natural part of your development, too, and supposedly quite normal at this stage. Most recently, you've started building up tantrums in the middle of meals. When you've had enough and can shake your head no more, you wind up and lob food away like a major league pitcher. We try really hard not to laugh.

You have a unique fascination with shoes and the act of putting them on, and will often grab one of daddy's large dress shoes and haul it over for a fitting session. Funnily enough, you're also fairly obsessed with your reflection, and must think you look especially good in hats. Every time we place one upon your head, you hold it steady and slowly walk to the mirror to check out the hotness. It is so flipping cute.

You're still as active as ever, which was totally evident at your school Halloween party where all the other kids sat quietly with their snack as you climbed on the table and danced around your chair (let's not practice those two things together in the future though, k?). We spent the majority of the time chasing you round the room to ensure a minimal amount of destruction and flailing.

For some reason, you can't even ride your bounce & spin zebra like a docile child; preferring instead to climb upon its back and "trick-ride"- if you will - whilst standing. Your play has become more involved, too, and your mimicking more accurate. Mommy brought you a cheerleader puppet as a prize when daddy and I went to New York, and the first night we played with it, daddy was holding her up - pretending to talk to you in a lovely feminine voice. You studied him closely for a few minutes, then grabbed the doll by the back of the neck, held her up yourself and started yapping away in a totally different voice than your normal jabbering. I was amazed and quite proud, but it may or may not have been a little more maturity than I was ready for at 13 months.  :)

On Halloween, Meme Kay and Bumpa brought you a giant orange punching balloon and spent maybe two minutes showing you how to use it. Since then you've been picking it up, wrapping it around your fingers and pounding away merrily like it's second nature.



And for your viewing pleasure... a little dance:


You stun me daily with the things you learn, and what you just assimilate. Though you still think brushing you teeth means sucking the toothpaste from the bristles, we're working on modeling that more correctly. You'll get it eventually. And daddy says it's ok for now, cause they're just 'practice teeth.'  (hah. oh my goodness..)

And here are a few more Halloween pics just because you're so adorably precious:

 (Your actual Halloween Eve costume)

(First lollipop ever... that I know about. Could not remove it from your hand until it broke apart and fell on the pavement).

  (Ok, so this isn't quite the smiley happy photo you were probably expecting, but seriously - look at those two faces and tell me there's no resemblance!)

In case you didn't know, you are daddy's absolute pride and joy. I would say you're a daddy's girl, but it's more than an understatement. You have no idea how much daddy loves you. In fact, I think he's been waiting for you his whole life. The two of you romp and play, and you have the most special, sensational laugh that you reserve just for him. You were absolutely made for each other.

Speaking of which, you are going to meet someone else very special who was made for you in May(ish) of next year!

I have utmost faith that you'll be a wonderful big sister (amidst the squeezing and smacking that is sure to occur), but what I really want you to know is that you were a big part of the reason we decided to have another baby. True, we'd always talked about having kids close together because of the bond near siblings can share. But mostly, mommy and daddy adore you to pieces and consider you the most wonderful blessing we've ever received. Our enormous love for you somehow made our hearts grow bigger and brought us to the conclusion that another baby like you would bring double the joy! Amazingly, God saw fit to grant this wish quickly, and has entrusted us to grow and raise another one of His children. It truly overwhelms me to know His grace. And you are going to love having a little.

(See? You're already overjoyed ;)

Preg2 Update:
Mommy is happy she can still fit into a few pairs of pre-maternity jeans, but that will be short-lived. Baby b (you're a; this one's b) is starting to grow and taking me with it! My apologies if I've simply not had the gumption to update your blog lately, but growing a tiny human is somewhat exhausting. And perhaps the thought of keeping this up for two of you is a bit wearying in and of itself.. 

Amazingly, though I've definitely been tired and less-than-energetic, it's not as bad as last time when mommy took naps at least twice a week in the first trimester. This is either because my body is adapting and saying "hey, we've done it before; we can totally handle this," or because there just isn't nearly as much opportunity to be tired with a little Action Ansley scampering about this time around.  :)  Same thing with the smell sensitivity, since I'm positive that at this point last time I was doubling over with a whiff of meat or garlic. This time? Meat: good. Garlic: goood. What's not to like?