Oh baby...!

Well, if you would have asked me a couple of months ago how I would feel when I was officially done nursing, I would have said "thrilled"!  After all, our now 1 year old never really took to drinking a bottle and I was sure I'd be nursing her until she went off to kindergarten.  But, she really took a love to drinking whole milk from a sippy cup, and we were able to make the switch nicely!  Well, then last week, when she went to bed for the first time without me, I was brought to tears.  Now, we're done with the morning feedings as well, and she's officially 100% whole milk!  I thought I'd feel a sense of relief and freedom, but I'm really just left with sadness and guilt.  Why, though?  After all, I did nurse her until she was officially 1 year and 1 week old...MUCH longer than I had originally anticipated!  Aaahhh...just one of the times when I feel that my job as a parent is just slipping by too quickly and one phase of childhood replaces another!

Speaking of phases of childhood, though, here's Amelia's 1 year report...

*   23 pounds, 14 ounces (84%...a drop from the 98% at her 9 month check up...way to work off  those rolls baby girl!)

*  32 inches (100%)

*  cruising right along furniture, walls, people, anything she can get a hold of

*  taking a few steps on her own, but pretty apprehensive and would rather crawl at lightening  speed

*  touching anything and everything (see picture above...that's what happens when she's left  alone in a room...we didn't really need that Kleenex anyway)

*  using "more" in sign language

*  figuring out how stuff works (putting keys in doorknobs, turning pages in books)

*  making the sound for a monkey (Daddy was so proud to teach her that one)

I just had to include this picture as well!  For those of you who didn't know, Amelia was not a great sleeper during her 3-6 month age range.  God bless the inventor of the baby swing, as that was her location of choice.  We even had her sleep in her car seat (which was placed in the crib for my own sanity), which I swore I'd never do!  We swaddled her until I thought she'd burst out of the swaddler!  Once she was asleep, she was OK, but the trick was getting her there!  Anyway, at 6 months, she discovered that sleeping on her tummy was the way to go when she randomly flipped over during one of the 30 minute "let her cry it out" episodes that our doctor recommended.  Ever since then, she has been a tummy sleeper and has totally rocked the whole night sleeping thing!  So, whenever I happen to peek in on her and see her sunny side up, it it so heartwarming!  It's still a rarity, but it does happen, and I love to see her sweet sleeping baby face!