It’s not like I didn’t know that it would happen, but it’s so weird to think that she’ll be a whole year old when I write this post next month. Everything is blazing by so fast and I feel like I can’t quite keep up. We are all so excited for every milestone and can’t wait to celebrate Polly, this time next month, but I’m still trying so hard to savor every second that she’s a baby.
eleven months as of august 5, 2019
Height + Weight: We don’t go back to the pediatrician until she’s a year old, but I’m guessing not much has changed since her nine month doctor’s visit. She’s pretty close to twenty pounds and growing fast!
Clothes: Polly is wearing mostly 12 months or 12-18 months clothing these days. It’s hard to buy things too far in advance, because her growth seems to happen in fits and starts. She’s still wearing a size three diaper and I have no idea what size her feet are, because she never wears shoes.
Sleep: I am happy to report that she’s been sleeping through the night, consistently, for over a month. It is such a blessing to us all and it’s hard to know how we were surviving before. Josh and I were talking about how I tried to go back to the gym in January and he said there was no way I could have kept up with the amount of sleep I was getting then. You learn to live with it, because you don’t have a choice, but I’m a much nicer person these days. She’s also getting two two-hour naps a day and sometimes grabs a cat nap late in the afternoon, too. This paragraph is the happiest thing I’ve written all year.
Schedule: Her schedule is pretty consistent these days. Naps aren’t given when she starts yawning any more — now that she can put herself to sleep and we’ve establish a healthy nap routine, we’ve started putting her down at the same time every day. Another super predictable part of our routine, is going outside first thing every morning. This started at the beach, when I would take her outside after nursing, to keep from waking everyone else in the camper up. After six weeks of repetition, we know exactly what she wants when she reaches for the door. We nurse and snuggle for a half hour or so, right after she wakes up, and then we take our yogurt and paci outside to play until it’s time for our morning nap!
Health: Polly is my healthiest kid yet. No ear infections or antibiotics or even a cold (except for that weird bout of RSV in the spring). She still only has two teeth, so even our teething woes aren’t much to speak of. Since I drafted this post, she’s caught her first cold and is working on another tooth?! Surely we’ll be back on track in a few more days. 😉
Crying: She hasn’t ever been much of a crier and that seems to continue as she gets older. She still cries when I lay her on the changing table and she fusses a little when we put her in bed at night, but it’s rare that she cries more than a few minutes at a time.
Likes: Polly’s likes have been pretty consistent over the last several months — she loves bath, dinner, slinging, being outside, and playing in the pool with her big sisters (last month’s answer that remains unchanged). She also loves meal time and can finally ask to nurse, which always garners the biggest grin.
Dislikes: She doesn’t love having her diaper or clothes changed, being left in the church nursery, or riding in the car for long periods of time. She also hates it when I don’t nurse her as soon as she requests it — she is very impatient.
Milestones: Is adding baby gates and child proof locks on all cabinets and plugs considered a milestone? She still isn’t walking, but she has taken a few steps (August 1st!), and she’s the fastest crawler I’ve ever seen. The baby gates are helping to keep her corralled, but we’re having to be super diligent about keeping her away from the steps. She’s moved from clapping her own hands to helping your clap yours, which is just about the cutest thing ever. We’ve been working to identify facial features and she can finally point to my eyes and nose on command. We’ve added outside and banana to the list of words she recognizes (I’m sure there are more new ones this month) and she can say kitty and “what’s that” this month, too. She’s not a big talker, aside from babbling all the time, but she can say lots of things when she wants to.
Places She’s Been: We went back to the beach in July and it was crazy to see how different she was in only two short weeks. She was very into crawling in the sand and did not mind getting rolled in the surf a few times. She’s been staying in the church nursery for a few weeks and finally isn’t crying when I drop her off or pick her up. She’s been staying at my sister’s a few days a week (my mom keeps the little girls there on the days my sister works) and thinks those visits are super fun. She also joined us for date night this month and helped the girls get their school supply shopping done.
Mama, Daddy + Big Sisters: This month is so bittersweet, knowing it’s our last month before her birthday. HOW IN THE WORLD is she already a year old?! I’m not ready to quit nursing and I don’t think she is either. I’m already trying to transition her to a cup of whole milk for her midday meal, but I think we’ll be nursing morning and night for awhile longer. I’m not pumping anymore — it’s been almost a month — and it’s weird how quickly your body adapts. I think I’ve adjusted to weaning really well, since it’s been a very gradual process. I haven’t had any pain and I’m still able to produce milk whenever Polly wants to nurse.
The big girls have been such a huge help to us this summer. I think without the pressure of school work and long days, they have been so much more willing to help out around the house. It helps that Polly is older and more independent, but we’ve let them “babysit” for us when we’re outside or exercising close to home. Polly and Sophie are finally sharing a room and, aside from a few logistical challenges (think bedtime), it’s gone really well. I love opening their door to find them chatting from bed in the mornings. I’m sure Sophie wishes she could sleep a little later, but who wouldn’t want to wake up to that face!
