Our Little Baby Blog

18 months

For so long I’ve been recording Anna’s firsts. There were so many. First solid foods, first steps, first words. It seemed like the firsts would pop up and then we’d marvel at them and record them on the blog and talk about it for days. And it was great, it was great waiting for them and wondering when they would occur. I still get excited for other mothers when I hear their children just pulled up for the first time or finally said a new word.

And, yet, as wonderful as those “firsts” were, I find myself growing more and more in love with this new phase in Anna’s life where there are far fewer firsts and yet so much newness. I’m witnessing the emergence of the person she will become and it’s blowing my mind. Anna is developing into a little girl with a personality and determination and wild curiosity. Her words are tumbling out at such a furious pace, we can’t even keep up with them anymore. She answers our questions and mimics everything we say (including the word crap – um, the word police are now in full patrol at our household).

Anna, do you want to get down? Yes. Get down. No buckle. Pleeez.
Anna, what did you do today? Play, play, play. Wheeee. Harper, Bada (Byron).
Anna, do you like your snack? Yes, more please, more please.

These days Anna is following fearlessly in the footsteps of her two best friends, two-year-old boys named Harper and Byron. After months of watching them, she now takes slides and ladders by storm (okay, I’m still hovering and helping make sure she doesn’t lose her grip) and she even likes to hang on the monkey bars. She can hang for, like, 5 seconds, flexing those little baby muscles of hers. It’s a little surprising. Anna is so much fun, it’s hard not to light up when you think about her. This stage is just full of heartwarming days. I wish I could continuously tape every moment so I can play it back twenty years from now. How can I already be having those “where did my baby go?” moments.

Anna’s nature is still unbelievably sweet. One of her favorite activities is giving hugs and she gives them so generously that my heart melts thinking about it. Probably 10-20 times a day she yells “hug” and runs to hug our legs. It’s even become a little trick she uses to help her get out of doing something she doesn’t want to do. Anna, is your diaper stinky? “HUG” and she bolts for Mike’s leg in the other room. Uh-huh. Hug all you want, that diaper is still getting changed. Fortunately, Anna is so excited by the idea of doing everything herself, usually to her babies, that I can still change her diaper without a total meltdown. I just throw out the possibility that Raggedy Ann may also need a diaper change and Anna bolts to her room, crying Ragee ann, Ragee ann, dipuh dipuh.

Yes, my friends, we have taped a few diapers on Ragee Ann. And she looks good in a size 4.

I know that everything is taking off a rapid-fire pace now. That her speech, her curiosity, her determination to put on her own shoes and go down the big slide will be replaced by even bigger feats. And I can’t wait for it. I can’t wait to see her try to dress herself (Lord, help us). I can’t wait for it all.

(editor's note: Anna is actually 19 months right now, I'm just a little slow to post sometimes :-)