There have been so many developments in such a short time, I feel the need to document so I don’t forget. First of all, Savannah is standing ALL of the time. She pulls up without any hesitation and even lets go on occasion. I wonder if she will be walking before her birthday!
She is also “dancing” a little. Jason saw her moving her little butt to the music. She definitely loves music – both listening to it and making it. She has quite a few musical toys, and she never seems to get tired of them. We put on Pandora and listen to Toddler Radio, Chill Radio, and Jesse Cook Radio. We have fun with the kid stuff. My mommy friends and I are doing a “dance with your baby” workout program. It really is a workout too! However, she actually responds most to the Chill station. It seems to calm her down, and she will play by herself without fussing for a longer period of time.
She has now started waving – although every time I try to get it on camera, she won’t do it. She is also pointing. She babbles constantly. Her favorite word is still “dada”. She hints at “mama” when she is upset. She makes the “ga” sound a lot, and she has recently started making the “na” sound a lot. Mostly, she speaks her own language. I’ve started doing baby signs with her again. I think she will pick it up quickly now that she has better motor skills.
She loves other kids. They seem to really fascinate her. She enjoys playing with Bre, and we recently went to a birthday party where she was able to interact with other babies. It makes me wish she had an older sibling. I guess she will have to be happy with a younger one when the time comes. (No developments there!)
Overall, her personality is really shining through. I think the thing that tickles me most is her sense of humor. You don’t think of a baby as having one of their own. Responding to silliness, yes – but being silly is another thing altogether. She does this a lot, and it is SO cute! Generally speaking, she is a calm, yet inquisitive baby. She explores and analyzes everything. She will still take a toy and rotate it in her hand to see every angle.
As far as eating and sleeping, it has been a bit of a roller coaster. She is chowing down solid food now. Her favorite is oatmeal, but she really digs those chicken & vegetable combos. I am making my own babyfood too. She has cubes of squash & sweet potatoes in the freezer, and I am about to make a big batch of applesauce in the pressure cooker. Because she is eating food now, she isn’t nursing as much. Between that, taking an occasional bottle, and the teeth (oh…the teeth! She has 4 now!), I’m not sure how much longer our nursing relationship will last. I’m not really ready to give it up yet, so we’ll see. I actually thought my supply was about gone at one point, but it’s back. Sleep-wise, she has been having issues. She is finally over her cold, but now she is battling allergies and has coughing fits at night. The doctor told us to give her Benedryl regularly, especially at night. After one particularly bad night, I decided to move her into another bedroom with tile floors (aka the dog room). Stan & Maya got evicted. I did the power scrub from ceiling to floor and moved her crib in there. She also has a humidifier and air purifier. Between that and the Benedryl, there has been a noticeable difference. Last night, she actually slept through her 2:30am feeding. She only had one coughing fit, and that was after she nursed at 5:30. Huge improvement! Jason says he misses having her in our room, and I do too. However, this is going to be good for all of us – except the dogs! They were really confused when I moved their stuff out. Everything was fine the next day though.
Overall, it’s been a busy month for her. I can honestly say that I have cherished every moment with her as much as possible, but I know I will miss these times. This is the most fun we’ve had with her. She is so interactive now. Oh! -And she hugs!!! I knew I was forgetting something important! She has been giving honest hugs
lately. When she gave Daddy one for the first time, I thought he was going to cry. He probably did. He said it was one of the best days of his life. So sweet!!!
Well, I think that covers it for now. The only other topic is her birthday which is coming up in about 6 weeks. We decided on a venue. We’re going to have it at a splash pad. It will be on May 12th, but I still need to reserve the ramada. The birthday party we went to recently was at a splash pad, and the kids loved it. It was simple yet perfect. Now that I have some of the important details worked out, I’m getting excited about it. I can’t believe she is going to be a year old already! I knew it would go by quickly, but wow! It’s definitely been the best year of our lives. It’s hard to fathom that anything could top it, but I know it’s only going to get better (until she’s a teenager anyhow!). 
Filed under: baby sign language, breast feeding - nursing, development, family, nursery
