16 Months

Dear Elle,
This is your new word. More. And this is how it sounds coming out of your beautiful little rose bud lips: Mower. Moooow-er. MOOOOWWWER. You say it loud and you say it proud, and it applies to everything. If you would like to eat some more raisin bread, "mower" you say. If you would like Daddy to keep throwing you up in the air so high that you have time to grab onto your toes and do a straddle split, "mower" you say. You also say, "again" but you use it for times when someone is doing something to entertain you and you want them to keep going, like reading books or singing songs. Amoung other things, new to the list of words are Uncle and Auntie, towel, bebe, ball, blue, milk (nilt), elephant and iPad. You can also identify lots of body parts when asked; head, hair, teeth, belly button, toes, ears, nose.

You are seriously obsessed with the iPad. You have more apps than mommy and daddy combined and you know exactly what each one does. You slide the pages over until you get to your page and then with your little finger on your chin and your brow furrowed you carefully consider which one you would like. You look just like Daddy when you do that. You can say "elmo" (Elm) and "Grover" (Groder) and "Dora" (Dorda) and sometimes you play with their apps but lately you are falling in love with animals. You feed the frogs by dragging bugs into their mouths, you help the monkeys get their bananas (which you can also say and it comes out like this "ba-labl-abla") you sing along with old MacDonald and you know all of the animals on the farm and most of their sounds. You have this app of a zoo scene and when you touch the animals something silly happens and when you touch the camel, he pulls his head back and spits directly into the face of a man who is just walking by, who turns red and makes a silly surprised noise. You think this is the funniest thing that ever happened. You made that camel spit in that poor man's face at least 40 times before breakfast. You laugh and laugh. You have your daddy's sense of humor.

A few weeks ago we went to visit Nana and Papa and all your cousins and your aunties in Massena. You were running the show up there, that's for sure. You showed all your cousins your Grover app and they were all gathered around smiling which was very sweet of them because they are older and therefore know that Grover is actually the monster at the end of the book. You took lots of naps on the boat on Mary's shoulder and you played in the sand and we went on morning walks and saw a little fox. You got some time with Nana and Papa and you liked to splash in the dog's water bowls and put on Papa's sneakers and walk around.

This month you got your first pet! It's a goldfish named, "Dorothy" just like Elmo's goldfish and she lives at Grandma's house. She lives in a little glass bowl with hot pink stones and a little sign that says, "no fishin'". Grandma says they can live for 17 years and that they keep growing and growing so when you leave for college Dorothy can move into the swimming pool.

You are taking a nap right now, all cuddled up in your crib. When you wake up, you can have a pear or a rice cake (your favorite) and then we are going to go to the beach nearby to gather some items from outdoors like rocks and leaves and sand for a sensory box that we are going to play with in the little pink tent we got at the craft store this morning. I am having so much fun with you, getting down to your level, looking at things like you look at them, exploring the world through your eyes. Thanks for letting me.

Love,
Mama

mama

Dear Elle,

Yesterday you said "mama". It was so awesome! I asked you, "can you say mama?" and you just looked at me with those big beautiful eyes and said, "Mama" in this tiny little bubbly voice. Grandma and Grandpa heard it and they were so excited! We cheered and you said it again! Your little voice is so cute and you reminded me of a baby bird.

You are so beautiful.

Love,
Mommy

12 Months

Dear Elle,

Yesterday you turned one year old. You are certainly growing up fast but when I think back to all the things you have accomplished in one year, it's been an amazing and very full year. Last weekend we moved over to the house on the lake and what a day that was. You learned to walk in almost the exact moment that Daddy threw out his back and couldn't get off the floor. For two days he laid on his back while we moved around him and while you walked and walked and stepped over him and kept walking because you weren't about to let him get in your way. A few days before that you started taking a few steps at a time and then you would fall or grab onto the couch or coffee table or our bench seat at our old house. And within 2 days you were fully walking, taking 15 or more steps at a time, and shortly after that you adding clapping and talking while you walk and then just yesterday you were looking at pictures on my Iphone while you were walking around. World, lookout.

On your birthday we had a huge birthday pizza party for you at a restaurant and all your little friends and family were there. Nana and Papa made the trip down from NY just for your special day and it was a pretty big deal. Grandma played some songs for you and your friends on her guitar and Uncle Paul and Auntie Traci put on a little show with puppets and helped to make a band by handing out some tambourines and drums to all the little kids. You thought it was pretty fun to see your very own Grandma up there singing songs just for you guys. I heard you telling Amanda and Jilly in your own baby talk, 'Yeah, I totally know her.' Amanda was into shaking her sillies out at the time but she smiled and nodded letting you have your moment of glory, I mean, it was your birthday and everything.

We got you some big balloons (which you love, by the way, and the other day we were out shopping and i let you hold a giant bunch of them which you promptly let go up to the ceiling of the store while yelling woooooooo and then we just nonchalantly pushed our cart away, fleeing from the scene while we giggled but then you realized that you lost your purple balloons so you were kinda mad so i got you some for your birthday.) Yesterday at your birthday party you had your very first cupcake and you really didn't love it like I thought you would. Apparently I don't know everything. I had imagined you would go face first into the hot pink frosting, eating up all the sugary goodness and squealing about this fantastic baked masterpiece but you just rolled the cupcake from hand to hand examining all the different surfaces of this strange little ball of cake with the very sticky top and then I thought I would help you by cutting it into a few pieces so you could taste it, but Noooooo, that was the very wrong thing to do and you let me and everyone know by screaming and screaming at the fact that I broke your very special cupcake. World, lookout.

You are saying a few words pretty clearly now, like Dada and Night Night and socks. I think you say ball and sometimes you say something that sounds like ut-oh. You don't say mama yet but that's okay. I'm waiting for it.

The other day you were saying goodbye to Grandpa and I told you to blow him a kiss and you did for the first time and he almost fell down and let his heart pour out like maple syrup onto the sidewalk. He was so happy, i could see in his face that he loves you so much and his heart had just melted and was all gooey inside his chest.

You have brought so much love into our lives and into our hearts in a way that I could never imagined before I met you. Every time you reach out to me for a hug or take my finger to take me on a walk or giggle because I said something silly that you think is funny I know you were meant just for us and I was meant to be your mommy. We didn't realized how much we were missing, until we had you.

Happy First Birthday, Elle!
Love,
Mommy