Ella turned 19 months old on August 5, so here are my 19 notes on my nugget this month!
1. Some new words this month - up, out, snack, eye, cold, down, and jump. Now, when I say these are her new words, I really mean more that she has a sound that she assigns to each of these and says every time. I don't think that anyone else would hear 'jump' but we do and know what she means. Ellanese is definitely still her primary language, with English in second place.
The universal language...
2. She loves to nod her head 'yes'. It is sooo sweet - you'll ask a question and she'll nod to indicate that she understands and agrees. I love how she's able to engage back with us in this new way, and she is so proud of herself to show that she's able to say 'yes'. It's nice because for a while her favorite word was 'no' but now she's much happier to shake her head yes.
3. Ella's newest and most favorite talent right now is JUMPING. She says "jump, jump" and bends her legs and straightens them. Then, we're supposed to hold on to her while she wildly throws herself around and yells "jump, jump." She loves it. She also loves throwing a ball, and is starting to be able to kick them as well. And, with help, she can walk down the stairs facing front.
4. Ella now has 7 1/2 teeth. She has a molar on top that came all the way in, and is getting one on the bottom, both on the left side of her mouth. Other than that, still the 4 on top and 2 on the bottom right up front. Her teeth are in no hurry at all to come on out.
6. Just in the past month one of the several blankets in Ella's crib has become her favorite blankie - when she wakes up in the morning, she pops her binkie in her mouth and then wants her blankie while she gets her diaper changed. Then she throws both of them in the crib with quite a flourish and gives me a high-five to congratulate herself. She wants to hold that blankie when we read to her at night too.
7. Her hair has gotten so much longer and is so curly. I just love it. No cut yet and now I am thinking she doesn't even need one.
8. Shoes are funny little toys for Ella's amusement and no car ride is complete without her shoes being pulled off and thrown somewhere in the backseat...if we're extra lucky we get to fish one or both of them out from under the front seats once we get to our destination.
9. She tells us when she wants her diaper changed by saying "Deee" - and points to her diaper. We say "do you want a new diaper?" and she nods her head, then heads right to the stairs to go upstairs to get changed.
10. I feel like she just absorbs everything. Steve and I can be talking and will say a word that she knows like hair or hat and she'll point to her hair and say 'hair', even though she just picked that one word out of the conversation. She'll laugh when we do, and nods along like she's following the conversation. She's also pretty good at following directions and can follow a 2-step direction (i.e. please go get your milk and then come here) without any gestures. She knows and understands so much more than she can say, it's really amazing.
11. We're still working on the 'gentle' concept and I think we've got a long road ahead of us when it comes to learning 'gentle'. We try to practice 'nice hands' on our faces and she'll do a few seconds of nice hands followed by waaaaay too not-nice hands.
12. When she is asleep she looks just like a little angel. Her face is so sweet and peaceful, I could just watch her for hours.
13. Ella looooves books now. When it's time for bed she picks the book that she wants to read, hands it to me and says 'up' to get in my lap. Or if I'm not sitting yet, she taps the chair seat so that I'll get in it. When the book is over, she signs 'more' and wants to hear it again...and again. I've started reading longer books so that I am not reading one 8 times in a row. She'll also pick them up and pretend to read and point to things. The other night she piled 3 blankets, snoopy pillow and stuffed bunny Trove all on me before getting in my lap to read. I tried to put a few of them on the ottoman while I read but she wasn't having it. She wanted every one of her crib friends to enjoy the story just like she was.
14. She still loves to dance! She has moves where she puts her hands up in air, twirls around, and it's like a switch is flipped - she could be playing or doing anything, but when the music starts, Ella MUST DANCE. I need to make another video clip of it, it's so funny.
15. She is incredibly silly. She hysterically laughs out loud, pretends that the dogs are chasing her, tickles us, tickles her own toes, just has so much fun and is playing every second of the day unless she is asleep. She bops around, kicks her feet, just generally on the move every minute.
16. Ella's favorite foods right now - rice, bananas, strawberrries, yogurt, cheese, goldfish crackers, and of course bread. Oh I can't forget french fries - as much as I want her to eat healthily, and do think we accomplish it most of the time, she loves french fries (but really, who doesn't??). She eats with a spoon although sometimes she will hold the spoon in one hand but will eat with her other hand. If you forget to give her a spoon, she will remind you.
17. She's going through a really clingy phase where she sometimes wants to be held for what seems like hours, even around the house. She's clever and if I try to put her feet on the ground, she curls them up so that there's no way to put her down. She can sense when I'm about to lower her, and she squeezes my neck so tight. "Up" is definitely one of her most-often-said words.
18. BUT...There are also times when all she wants is to be AWAY FROM MOMMY AND DADDY. She runs in the opposite direction when she knows we want her to do something, or yells "Noooo". She can play somewhat independently and color, play with blocks, or her wagon for a little bit although most of the time she wants us to be sitting with her while she's playing.
19. She is so good at giving hugs and kisses and I think I give her about 100 kisses every day. Sometimes when you ask for a kiss she'll just lean in and give you her cheek, but other times you get a big open-mouthed (sometimes TOO open-mouthed) kiss right on the lips. The best is when she, completely unprovoked, runs up and gives a big hug (which we call a 'giant hug') and a kiss. It is the best.
My 19-month old babydoll
It's really amazing what a little person Ella is becoming. She is a sweet little lady, fiercely independent at times, and completely clingy at other times. She can be a huggy little princess, or a wild screaming banchee. She can be very trying at times, especially when she is frustrated that she can't tell us what she wants to, or when she's pulling the dog's tail for what seems like the 99th time of the day, but such is toddlerhood. Overall it is a really fun age, and I am certainly enjoying her 20th month!
