Getting Taller

Every day that I see Eliza playing with her ball maze, I just think, "Look how tall you are getting!" I love watching her grow, but some days it hits me that it is going so fast. Before I know it, she is going to be walking around it and talking.

Papa Walt got her a glockenspiel for Christmas and up until now, she hasn't really paid much attention to it. I have been learning songs from YouTube and today, when I handed the mallet to her, she started to bang on the keys. Once I heard her play sounds and would praise her, her beautiful little face would light up. By the end of the night, she was really getting the hang of it. Every time I sing or play music, she starts dancing and smiling. I hope she will continue to love music as she grows.

Swimsuit Edition

Eliza's first class of swim lessons were yesterday and I was totally unprepared! I ordered a swimsuit online because I wasn't having much luck in the Arctic finding one in her size. By 3pm yesterday, it hadn't been delivered! Swim lessons started at 4:30. So, I rush to a few stores and none of them have any bathing suits or swim diapers in her size. We finally went to Toys R Us and they had swim diapers that fit her. We rushed to the YMCA and were a few minutes late.

They won't let a baby in the water in just a swim diaper, so I had to talk them into letting me use a clean onesie over the diaper. Finally (10 minutes late), we get into the water and there was absolutely no crying! She was very calm and playing all the games of splashing and kicking. The only time she looked a little worried was the first time that we "looked under the water". Because she is such a little thing, by the end of the class her little mouth was chattering. Next time, the instructor said we can put a little sweater on over her suit to keep her warmer. The swim suit finally showed up at 6:30 pm last night. So, this morning, we did a little swim suit fashion show to make sure it fits. It will fit much better with a swim diaper, rather than a big, bulky cloth diaper.

10 Months Old

 How is my little Blueberry ten months already?! It seems like just yesterday, we were making sure her nursery was put together, her bag was packed and we were ready to meet her. As I told someone the other day, I feel like she should be turning 10 months and 10 years all at once. I can't remember not having her, so it feels like forever!

This little bundle of energy is so much fun to be around. She never sits still, is always finding something to get into and trying desperately to walk. She cruises around the ottoman, the couch and the cabinets with ease these days and watches dreamily at other babies that can walk.

She is a big have of making the 'uh-lul' noise with her tongue (sticking it out and back in while humming). I know you just tried it ;) She loves to play with any electronics that she sees me or Michael using. Her favorite right now is the Play Station controller and the remote. In the rare chance that she can get close to our laptops, she goes crazy!

The last few days, I have been calling her Tornado Eliza because our her destructive abilities on this house! As soon as I get all of the blocks put back in the tub, she hurries over to dump them out. Not to play with them, just dump them out. Once they are laying in the floor, out of the bin, she crawls on about her way. She loves to pull all of the baskets of the shelves in her room and pull out the blankets and burp cloths. As soon as she sees me put them back neatly, we start over.

Her favorite game right now is chase! She will crawl to the corner of the room, sit up and stare at me. When I notice what she wants to do, I stand up and say "I'm going to get you!" She then turns on the turbo boosters and crawls as fast as she can, giggling along the way. I catch her at the end of the hallway and we repeat the process. Today, she was giggling so hard, it woke dad up! Thankfully, it was time for him to get up

More and more I notice traits that she has of ours. She crinkles her nose when she smiles like Michael and she stands on her tippy toes like I did. She is a mess, but I am having the most fun of my life! <3

Little Body, Big Personality

 "Hey, Eliza. Whatcha doing?" She answers back, "Nothing, mom!" This is how alot of our days go. I sit back and watch her experiments. Nothing gets past this little one.

In the above picture, you can tell it was taken early in the day. Her hair is tamed, she has both socks on, and her pants are still relatively down. As the day draws on, her hair reflects that she has been playing, she takes off and loses her socks, and her pants tend to look like shorts! She is full of energy and loves to explore new parts of the house.

Since our basement is getting very close to being done, and my craft room is done, Eliza and I have been spending more time down there. She has a basket of toys that she can play with. While I was sewing, I saw her playing in her toys. When I stopped, I heard her giggling. She was so proud that she was making a ton of noise!

Along with the big personality, she is developing a big appetite. She is mostly over the pureed foods and would rather have food that she has to chew. Even though she only has two little teeth, they magically eat (very soft) chicken, veggies and grains. She is set on feeding herself most of the time, and since we have been cutting up small things for her, she has wanted to eat more. I love my independent baby!

Eliza Loves her Fur-Siblings

I have always liked animals and feel much calmer when I sit on the couch and pet one of my fur-babies. It shouldn't surprise me that each time one of our pets walk into the room, Eliza's sweet face lights up! She loves the cat best. Thankfully the kitty is very patient with Eliza, and when she's done being messed with, just moves to a different part of the house. Eliza gets so excited anytime the cat even moves!

When we first brought Eliza Bug home, Angel didn't want much to do with her. But now that she moves AND EATS, she is the most interesting thing ever! So much so that Angel doesn't leave her side in the high chair. I am walking a delicate line here. I would like Eliza to learn how to share, but I want to make sure she gets enough to eat and the dogs don't have too much. We have had to start fencing the dogs in the other room while Eliza eats. They are always happy to clean up though :)

Dependent Vs. Independent

 Eliza is currently in a stage where she wants to be on the ground walking while being held...WHAT? It doesn't make any sense to me either. She is being very needy and giving great cuddles, but also has an intense desire to be independent. Right before bed time, she gives the best cuddles because she is getting sleepy. I know I need to treasure every second, because soon she is going to be too busy to give cuddles.

 This picture is a great capture of both of our moods at times throughout the day. She wants to be picked up, but wants to stand. I think she is either getting some new pearly whites or going through a growth spurt. I guess we'll know in the next few days.

 While we were getting dressed this morning, Eliza was being a big girl and 'brushing' her teeth. More than anything she was drooling everywhere and slinging a wet toothbrush. But, hey, habits start early.

 After getting dressed and fixing her hair, I opened the door because Eliza likes to look outside. The door is cool to the touch, so I noticed her licking it! Silly baby.

 After I distracted her enough, she remembered to stand up and look out the door. When I would talk to her, she would turn around and wave to me. She looks so big standing up over there. Throughout the day, she stayed in a pretty pleasant, which I was thankful for. 

 

Last night was a baby food night, so I put Eliza in her walker to keep her contained. She was getting frustrated about it and was fussy, so our friend Sarah was keeping her entertained as best as possible. When I looked over one time, she was doing the 'gansta lean' in her walker". She is just a mess. Look at that little arm slung over and her leg up! So darn cute. 

In other news, both of the goldfish have left the building. So, instead of buying fancy $5 fish, we got $0.15 guys and they are doing perfectly. Eliza has not given them names just yet.

Hold On Tight!

 When Eliza woke up this morning, I should have known she was going to be a hand full. When I sat her down by her toys after breakfast, she crawled into the corner and started being a ham like above.

Where's Eliza?

While in the kitchen, I made the mistake of opening her cabinet (the only one without a lock) so that she noticed there were fun things to play with. When I turned around, she was mostly IN the cabinet.

There she is!

 She had a great time taking everything out of the cabinet. Now for the next trick, I need to teach her how to put it all back! I have noticed lately that all of her toys are lame in comparison to a wooden spoon, a spatula or a plastic bowl. I wonder why Toys R Us is so big! I am saving money from here on out ;)

Here little Bug shows us how fun they are to chew on. You can't see it well in this picture, but Eliza stands and cruises on her tippy toes like I used to do. I am going to have to break her of that stat.

Today was the first day that Eliza showed interest in taking the spoon while I was feeding her. So, based on what I've read, you should let them try to feed themselves as much as possible whenever they show interest. Here are the results.In my opinion, she has a bit of work to do :)