Behold, a mosquito bit the 13-month-old Allie’s cheek!
[[image:allie361a.jpg:Mozzie bit me!:center:0]]
Allie was 13 months old last Saturday August 22nd, also the first day of Ramadhan. She’s had another month of a full-time Mama since I am still in-between projects. And today, Allie is 13 months and 6 days old and it is the last day of my “summer break”. Both sad and glad about it. 🙂
Anyway, another action-packed month has passed by! I can’t believe that even without work, our days are so full and busy, and time still flies like nobody’s business! Allie has been busy growing and exploring her world. She is a pretty fast crawler, and is pulling herself up on furniture, and especially loves to run around the house holding our hands (which is terrible for our backs!). She’s still a little scared to try standing and walking without support, but we think she is close! She loves to read and is finally learning to drink out of a cup! Woohoo!!! Her throwing skills have greatly improved – she can hurl balls forward and they go pretty far now! One of her favorite games is to crawl to the (open) door to the garage with balls or other small objects in her hands, and then she throws it into the garage. We play a lot of “oooooo-chak!” (peekaboo) and chase each other around the house for fun. There is a lot more interaction between Allie and Lily these days. Lily is a total sweetheart, allowing Allie to crawl to her and touch her. So far all interactions have been gentle on Lily’s side, and we really have to watch that Allie does not pinch Lily or pull her tail or fur, and try to teach her to be as gentle as the cat. Allie still has two teeth and sings all the time. We even recognize at least one of the tunes that she sings (Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, by Elton John). Seriously, you can hear portions of the chorus hummed by the girl quite distinctively! She is very social and loves to talk to people at the grocery store, etc. But alas, still no real words!
Foodwise, she has had a far more productive month than last month. She’s tried a bunch more foods and has been regaining weight lost during the Twelve Days of Poop last month. The following are the foods Allie tried and her rating of them:
1. Whole milk mixed with peaches (thumbs up)
2. Strawberries (thumbs down!)
3. Egg (hardboiled, scrambled, etc. thumbs down)
4. Wheat in the form of acini di pepe pasta with beef and veggies puree and nutless basil pesto (thumbs up)
5. Cheddar cheese in the form of macaroni (acini di pepe pasta) and cheese (only thumbs up if mixed with item 4)
6. Spinach and basil nutless pesto mixed with beef and veggies puree and acini di pepe pasta (thumbs up)
7. Cottage cheese mixed with fruit (thumbs middle – she seemed ok with the taste but the texture did not seem to make her happy)
Interestingly, she hated strawberries! Even when mixed with one of her favorites, plums, she refused to eat it. And she wasn’t too keen on the egg either. Oh well. I’ll just keep trying. On the plus side, she didn’t seem to have any allergic reactions to any of the foods so far, so we can at least let her eat things like cake now (since she has now had wheat, eggs and milk). But she does love her pesto/beef/pasta mixture. We’ve been adding whole milk and grated parmesan cheese to Allie’s savories to boost her calorie intake. Really, I’m just psyched that we are having some success with this new cup, and one step closer to weaning! (She still nurses whenever she likes since she’s refused all bottles and cups). Oddly enough, where all the sippy cups have failed, this little cut-out cup that is almost like a normal cup (e.g., not a sippy spout but a normal cup opening) is the one that she seems to be taking to!
Enough with the yakking, let’s get to the pictures to show how Allie spent her 13-month birthday which fell on the 1st day of Ramadhan. She started her morning ritual with Papa, having breakfast and keeping him company. Then she came up for some susu (milk) with Mama, and a little nap. After that she was full of beans!
[[image:allie346a.jpg:Doing the wave!:center:0]]
[[image:allie347a.jpg:Giggle giggle! Again, Papa! Again!:center:0]]
When we got downstairs, someone had taken over the stroller:
[[image:allie348a.jpg:Sleepy kitkat:center:0]]
Now, even though Allie is now a big girl, what with being over a year old and whatnot, she is of course not old enough to observe Ramadhan so she got to eat lunch:
[[image:allie349a.jpg:Lunch! Woohooo!:center:0]]
[[image:allie350a.jpg:Mangos are yummy:center:0]]
After lunch, she was wiped clean with a warm wet washcloth which she then appropriated for a rowdy giggly game of peekaboo:
[[image:allie352a.jpg:Oooooooo:center:0]]
[[image:allie351a.jpg:Chak!!!!:center:0]]
There was general activity around the house:
[[image:allie353a.jpg:Flying on Papa’s head:center:0]]
[[image:allie354a.jpg:Little dogs go ruff! ruff! ruff!:center:0]]
[[image:allie355a.jpg:Intently reading Moo Baa La La La:center:0]]
[[image:allie356a.jpg:Again! A cow says mooooooooo:center:0]]
Allie is learning to negotiate the steps:
[[image:allie357a.jpg:Feet first down the first step:center:0]]
[[image:allie358a.jpg:But now what?:center:0]]
She plonked down face first after that, is what. Allie comes down the first step OK, but then she doesn’t continue feet first down the second step which results in gentle faceplants into the carpet. But she never complains and a baby’s got to do what a baby’s got to do to go places! The kitkat, in the meantime, has been sleeping in the stroller all day:
[[image:allie359a.jpg:Curled up and sound asleep:center:0]]
And Allie’s day continues:
[[image:allie360a.jpg:Pensive:center:0]]
[[image:allie364a.jpg:Catching a breeze at the a/c vent:center:0]]
[[image:allie362a.jpg:Let me out! Let me out!:center:0]]
[[image:allie363a.jpg:Walking in the garage – Hello Lily!:center:0]]
[[image:allie365a.jpg:Striding in her shoes:center:0]]
[[image:allie366a.jpg:Petting the kitkat – gently, Allie!:center:0]]
Her nighttime schedule had to be adjusted a little because sundown was at 8:24 PM ET that night. So she had her bath at 8 PM but came back downstairs so we could break our fast first.
[[image:allie368a.jpg:Papa and a nice smelling Allie:center:0]]
[[image:allie367a.jpg:Wheeeeeeeeeeee!:center:0]]
A little extra playing time for Allie, drinks and a snack for the adults, and then off to bed for little girls! A little later than usual, which is a sucky thing about the sundown time. But she’s a trooper! All in all, another fun-filled day for us all. The adventure just keeps getting better and more action-packed! Anyway, Ramadhan Mubarak to all! To close this entry, here is my favorite picture of Vin and Allie taken a few days before her 13-month birthday:
[[image:allie345a.jpg:Wave! Wave! See you in a month!:center:0]]
