16....and 17 Months!

We've been so busy and having so much fun, I didn't get to blog about Natalie's 16th month!  Enjoy this double edition of Natalie's growth!

~Natalie continues to want to be a big kid.  She often imitates her siblings and wants to do what they do.  They are great with her and help her join in!
~Her gross motor skills are great! She's now running and climbing into just about everything. She also enjoys climbing the ladder to our backyard swing set is able to climb independently.  Thankfully, she'll climb the first rung and call out for Mommy or Daddy to stand by before climbing further so we can be there, just in case.
~We're suspecting she may be a lefty.  While she has plenty of time to establish a dominant hand, she often colors and uses her left when feeding herself with utensils.
~Natalie now only naps once a day.  We had several days of her napping fine in the morning, but fighting her afternoon nap after a few minutes of playing in her crib.  She transitioned easily and is going great!  We're all enjoying more flexibility with our mornings, as we don't need to work around her nap. Upon waking, she'll call for Mommy and/or Daddy.
~She loves walking around in dress up heels with a purse or phone in one hand and a baby in another.
~I've said it before, but I'll say it again.  I LOVE language acquisition!  Her receptive language skills are great and is able to understand a lot!  She is able to identify and point to her/our nose, eyes, mouth, hands, hair, belly, fingers, feet and toes.  Natalie is able to repeat many words with clear articulation--although she makes it sound extra cute in her sweet little voice.  We've been working on a list of her spontaneously spoken words, which grows every day! Here's what we came up with, in no particular order:
~~Hi
~~Hello
~~Bye bye
~~Go-go
~~Shoes
~~Ball
~~Flower
~~Car
~~Mommy
~~Daddy
~~Abby
~~Abigail (Abby-gail)
~~Brennan (Benn-nen)
~~Gavin  (Gag-gin)
~~Natalie (Na-ne)
~~Book
~~Bed
~~Bite
~~Please
~~Thank you
~~Plate
~~Bowl
~~Done (said while handing us her plate after a meal)
~~Minnie
~~Cupcake
~~Room
~~Tracy
~~Kacey
~~Doggy
~~Bath
~~Cheese
~~Cracker
~~Cookie
~~Box
~~Bag
~~Beep
~~Baby
~~Eyes
~~Hand (usually when she wants to hold our hand)
~~Hair
~~Belly
~~Juice
~~Cup
~~Potty
~~Yucky
~~No
~~Yes
~~Yeah
~~Barley (pet dog at the babysitter's house)
~~Grandma
~~Grandpa
~~Sock
~~Stop
~~Bottle
~~Barbie
~~Help
~~Ouchie
~~Poop
~~Up
~~Hot
~~Yogurt
~~Food
~~Apple
~~Banana
~~Chips
~~Mail
~~Outside
~~Again
~~Stuck
~~Donut
~~Dirty
~~All gone
~~All done
~~Brush
~~Toothbrush
~~What? (in response to her name being called)
~~Guppy
~~Yummy gummy (What we call chewy vitamins)
~~Out
~~Here
~~Here go
~~Cars
~~Come on
~~Milk
~~On
~~Shirt
~~Upstairs
~~Downstairs
~~Blankie

And some phrases:
~~Hi _____! (Mommy, Daddy, Abby, Brennan, Gavin, Baby, Birdie, etc)
~~Love you! (A personal favorite!)
~~More bite
~~Ew, throw away

She is also labeling items - Abby's toothbrush, Brennan's shirt, etc. 

Allergy Testing

We took the kids to the allergist this summer.  Here are the results:

Brennan had another skin test.  He is still allergic to peanuts and will continue to need to carry an EpiPen. Luckily, this test went much better than his original experience.  Last time, he was desperate to itch his reaction spot on his back - to the point of tears and trying to rub his back on anything he could.  This time, they pricked his arm and he did not seem to be bothered by it at all.  The doctor recommended re-testing in 3 years.

Gavin had a skin test on his arm.  Previously, he had blood work and a skin test that indicated a reaction, but not to the degree of needing an EpiPen. We've avoided peanuts, but wanted more specific and updated information.  His first skin test was inconclusive, so we repeated the test the same day. Based on the reaction, and since he's never consumed any peanut products, the doctor requested blood work for additional information and to rule out a false positive.  Gavin did amazing during his blood draw and didn't even flinch, amazing the phlebotomists. Results indicated a positive reaction to peanuts.  He was also prescribed an EpiPen. The doctor recommended re-testing in 1 year.

Abigail had a skin test and did not react!  She's still getting used to the idea of eating peanut products, as she's used to hearing that the boys cannot eat things that have peanuts.

Natalie did not come with us during the original appointment, but the doctor recommended testing for her due to the boys' reactions.  She had a skin test when we received Gavin's blood work results.  She was tested for peanuts and milk, as her face sometimes becomes red in spots where yogurt may have gotten on her face. She did not react to dairy.  The peanut test was repeated due it becoming slightly red.  After another prick on her back, it was determined that she is not allergic.  We're now suspecting that her face reacts to dyes in foods, but it will quickly fade after she is cleaned off. Gavin had similar reactions at her age.

Happy 5th Birthday, Gavin!

Happy 5th Birthday, Gavin!

Our sweet, goofy Gavin is 5 years old!  He's an intelligent, hilarious and inquisitive young man.  We're so proud of him!  We celebrated Gavin's birthday with a roller coaster themed  party at a local park.  We followed up with gifts and more sweets at home!

~Gavin loves to be goofy and make others laugh.  He has the best belly laugh!

~He is extremely observant, noticing even the smallest details of his environment.  He'll comment or ask about these details later.  For example, he'll talk about locations we've been at by describing the color of things he saw (e.g. the park with the blue slide that is twisty and the stairs that are green).  While drawing roller coasters, he includes small details (e.g., A red light at the top of the hill).  Also, while shopping, he'll inquire if we're going to particular aisles to get desired items (e.g., Can we go to aisle 8 to get cereal?). 

~Gavin is enrolled in the Pre-K classroom at Wee Care preschool in Fremont 3 days a week.  While his academic and social skills are strong, he still naps daily.  With his late August birthday, he could attend kindergarten this year, but he would be very young. This year will be great for him to further develop his skills and he be all set to go for kindergarten next school year!

~Speaking on academics, Gavin is doing great! He can verbally identify and write all upper and lower case letters.  He is able to write his name and his siblings' names without a model. He's also working on identifying letter sounds.  He can count well over 100.  Gavin is also doing great with math and is able to answer applied math problems (e.g., If I make 2 more baskets, I'll have 10!  If I give you two crackers, I'll have 3)

~Gavin continues to love gross motor/ball games.  He rarely walks by a ball without throwing or kicking it.  He's able to throw very far and drop kick small and large balls.

~He loves roller coasters!  He enjoys going to Cedar Point and riding the rides.  While he sometimes needs a little encouragement to ride new rides, he quickly loves them!  At home, he can turn just about everything into a roller coaster (blocks, cars, forks, books), complete with noises - clicks of the chains, cars rushing by, screams of riders, air breaks, and operators ("Enjoy your ride on Maverick!" Welcome back, how was your ride?")

~While Gavin knows how to push his siblings' buttons, as any brother would do, he's also extremely kind, sweet and considerate.  He loves to give hugs and hold their hands. He praises them often and speaks in a sweet mother-ease to his littlest sister. He's a great kid!

Stats:

Height: 43.5" 58th percentile

Weight: 37lbs 21st percentile

15 Months!

Little Miss Natalie is 15 months old!

~Natalie is becoming quiet the speed walker!  She's a girl on the go!  We anticipate that she'll be running soon. 

~Her top molars are finally completely cut through. We suspect that her bottom molars will soon make an appearance. 

~Until recently, Natalie nursed 4 times a day - morning, brief snacks before naps and at bedtime.  Throughout the summer, we weaned her down to only nursing at bedtime. Her nap time routine consists of reading a few books while drinking a sippy cup of milk and singing a few songs.  She's done very well with the transition and goes to sleep easily.  She seemed to indicate wanting to nurse in the morning for a few days after being weaned from that feeding.  She would point to the recliner in her room and the boppy pillow while stating "Dis!" and make a sad face when we left her room.  She was content with a sippy of milk instead. 

~Natalie is very observant and enjoys mimicking her siblings.  Some of our favorite examples: Wanting to spit in the bathroom sink after brushing her teeth; Prepping and successfully launching a stomp rocket; Brushing her hair; and Wanting to have a bowl/plate and utensils at mealtimes.

~ We believe we're at the beginning of a language explosion!  Natalie is adding more words, speaking very clearly, and is more likely to repeat words and sounds. She very clearly labels "Daddy", "Mommy" and "Abby".  She enjoys making animal noises, including sounds for ducks, sheep, cats and horses.  She says "Beep! Beep!" in response to the microwave timer going off.  She also says "Beep! Beep!" while playing with cars.  Other commonly heard words include "ball", "car", "mine", "help", "up" and something that sounds very similar to "thank you". 

~Natalie's receptive language is awesome!  In addition to understanding requests/etc., she also understands associations.  For example, she goes to her room when we talk about changing her diaper, she gets her shoes when we mention leaving, she goes to the bathroom when we mention bath time, and goes to her highchair when we tell her it's time to eat.
~Natalie is able to identify her belly, nose, eyes and hair.  She also says "belly" and "eyes" when pointing to them. 

~Natalie is a bit of a Momma's girl.  She often gets jealous if one of her siblings sits on Mommy's lap.

13...and 14 Months!

We were too busy having fun, playing and watching Natalie grow and learn to actual blog about it!  Here's a review of what's been going on in Natalie's world in the past 2 months!

~Natalie is a full-time walker.  She rarely falls, can walk on a variety of surfaces, and is gaining speed every day.  She enjoys being chased and thinks it's hilarious when we attempt to catch her.  She's easily able to transition from sitting to standing without needing to pull herself up on something.
~She often "dances" by bouncing up and down and nodding her head when she hears music.
~In addition to her front 8 teeth, she has cut two top molars. They are taking their time coming in completely.
~Natalie likes to be independent and just like her siblings at mealtime.  She wants her bowl/plate on her highchair tray and wants a utensil.  She's doing well feeding herself with utensils, including scooping food with spoons and stabbing food with forks.  She's often hit or miss with eating food, but enjoys playing with it.  Her favorite foods include yogurt, cheese, grapes, blueberries, pickles, pasta and canned pears.  She is guaranteed to chow down on these foods.  She enjoys drinking from sippy cups. She also loves dessert and will get excited when we bring out the sweets!
~Natalie continues to nurse several times during the day - when she wakes up, before naps, and at bedtime.  We're starting the weaning process for daytime feedings.  She's done well with the transition!
~She often "reads" books by turning pages while babbling.
~In addition to enjoying her freedom with walking, she also loves to climb.  She climbs onto the fireplace hearth, Brennan and Gavin's platform beds, and their Tow Mater chair.  Thankfully, she's also able to safely crawl off.
~Natalie appears to be another Mommy in Training.  She enjoys carrying around babies, giving them kisses, snuggling them and pretending to feed them with bottles or spoons.
~Natalie seems to have mainly focused on motor development during the past two months, although she has gained some words.  Most commonly heard words including "Bup" (Up), "Ni Ni" (Night night), and "Bye Bye".  Additional words include "Mama", "Dada", "No no", "Boo" (Book), "Uh Oh"and "Baby".  She often babbles with varying inflection.  Natalie frequently says "Ba-Gak!", which her siblings find hilarious and think she is making a chicken noise. Her receptive language is blossoming and she appears to understand a lot of what we say to her.  She also shakes her head for "no" and has an upper body nod for "yes". 
~Natalie likes to tickle!  She repeats "Ticca, Ticca" while tickling with her fingers.
~She also loves to give kisses, especially open mouth kisses!
~Natalie's play now includes pretend play.  She puts phones to her ear and says "Hi!", she pretends to feed and snuggle babies, and she also pours drinks and drinks from play cups.
~She loves to take clothes out of drawers and baskets.  Thankfully, she'll usually return them when requested.  She often seeks out her siblings' underwear.
~Natalie enjoys bringing us items.  She often claps her hands in celebration after handing them over.
~She is such a happy, smiley, giggly girl! 

Happy 3rd Birthday, Abigail!

Happy 3rd Birthday, Abigail!

Our sweet Abigail is 3!!  We celebrated her birthday with friends and family at our home with a Minnie Mouse themed party.  On her actual birthday, we celebrated by going to the park, playing at home, and playing in the rain after dinner!

~Abigail is quite the chatterbox!  She's a talkative girl and has a great vocabulary!  She also loves to sing.  Some of her favorite songs include Mommy Finger, the alphabet, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, and Jingle Bells (...the "Batman smells, Robin laid an egg" version). 

~She continues to be a "girlie girl".  She loves wearing skirts and dresses, having her nails painted, getting her hair done, reading "girlie" books and her favorite colors are pink and purple.  She has recently started to "look at myself in the mirror" after getting dressed, which includes doing a cute little dance/jump in front of her mirror. 

~Around Christmas time, Abigail randomly announced that she wanted to "use the potty".  We had not previously introduced potty training with her, but followed her interest.  She very quickly became 100% day and night trained!

~Abigail is our Mommy-in-Training.  She loves babies--real babies and baby dolls.  She enjoys feeding, hugging, carrying and playing with them.  When playing with toys, she often creates a family of dolls/animals/etc. 

~Her imaginative play is wonderful!  We enjoy watching her play and joining in on the fun!  She's content playing independently, although she and Gavin often gravitate towards each other. 

~Abigail is a happy, sweet, caring young lady!  She makes us smile every day and we're so proud of her!

Current stats:

Height: 3 ft, 1 inch  (47nd percentile)

Weight: 31 lbs (52nd percentile)

Happy 1st Birthday, Natalie!!

Happy 1st Birthday, Natalie!!

Our adorable little Natalie is 1 year old!  She's such a sweet girl and is an absolute blessing!

~Natalie is walking!  She has taken up to 13 consecutive steps and is getting sturdier every day.  She's quite determined...she'll keep trying, even after falling down.
-Natalie is talking!  Current words include: Mama, Dada, Bup (Up), Ni-ni (Night Night), Uh oh, Bye bye, and More-more (More, accompanied by the sign for more).
~She is very affectionate.  She enjoys giving hugs and LOVES to give kisses.  Natalie often smothers us with open mouth kisses, complete with a "Muuuu-waaah!" She wants to give her siblings kisses at bedtime every night.  She also often gives her baby dolls hugs, kisses and snuggles. 
~Natalie is doing well with eating. Her preferences vary between wanting baby food and wanting table food.  Her desire for sweets is constant, though.  She is well aware when dessert is available and makes it known that she wants to partake!
~Living in a ranch house, Natalie doesn't have many opportunities to climb chairs.  At a recent trip to the library, she tackled 2 stairs in the play area without hesitation.  Shortly after, we gave her the opportunity to climb the basement stairs.  Natalie climbed them without a second thought!
~Natalie loves her siblings...and they love her!  She thinks their silliness is hilarious!  Brennan, Gavin and Abigail love to make her laugh and try to teach her new tricks.
~Unlike previous monthly pictures, Natalie's 12 month picture was not taken on the baby chair.  Little Miss Wiggly immediately squirmed her way out of the chair each and every time, thinking it was a funny game!

Official 1 year stats:
Height: 31 inches (96th percentile)
Weight: 21 lbs 10 oz (77th percentile)
Head circumference: 18 3/4 inches (99th percentile)

11 Months Old!

How is it possible that our little Natalie is already 11 months old?

~She's talking!  There was plenty of friendly debate over her first word, causing a bit of boys vs. girls within our household.  The boys thought her first word was "Dada", while the girls thought her first word was "Mama".  We had many post-dinner competitions to see which word she would repeat.  While she says both often, she's most likely to repeat "Mama".  Without prompting, she has said "Up" while getting out of bed, getting out of her highchair and wanting to be picked up.  Also without prompting, she'll say "Ni-Ni" (Night Night), accompanied by a sweet wave and/or blown kisses.  We've determined that her first repeated word is "Mama" and her first spontaneous word is "Up".  She continues to babble often with quite a bit of inflection.  
~She's standing! Natalie is able to stand unassisted for several seconds and is quickly increasing the amount of time she's able to remain standing.  She's quite determined and will typically pull herself back up and try again after she falls down.  Natalie is also increasing her cruising speed!
~Natalie has 8 teeth--4 on top and 4 on bottom.  She's chewing on her fingers often, so we suspect molars may be coming soon.
~Natalie is a sweet snuggle-bug. She loves to snuggle with us and will give kisses, either open mouth kisses or blown kisses, and hugs upon request.  She loves to snuggle toys/objects also by pulling them to her chest/shoulder and leaning in her head.
~She quickly mastered sippy cups and loves to drink from them. Initially, she just wanted to chew on them, but is now able to drink water from sippy cups and straw cups.
~Natalie's hair is growing fast!  It's growing the most on the back and top, and not so much in the front.  We'll be ready for bows soon!

10 Months Old!

Miss Natalie is 10 months old!

~Natalie is a very quick crawler!  She pulls herself to standing on just about everything.  She has also mastered cruising along furniture!
~Natalie has been through a series of ear infections. Starting at the end of January, she's had 3 nearly consecutive ear infections or double ear infections.  After 2 rounds of Amoxicillin and 1 round of Augmentine, she seems have to beat it!  Our fingers are crossed that she's in the clear for a while.
~Natalie is a chatty girl!  She babbles often and is combining syllables.  We commonly hear "Mama", "My-Ma-Ma" "Dada", "Aba-Aba",  and "Gaga".  She also says "Yeah", which she sometimes states after we ask her a question.  She also signs "more" (clapping) and "all done" (waving both arms in the air).
~She enjoys navigating her environment and has a few favorite to-go's.  She enjoys digging through a drawer in Mommy and Daddy's bathroom that stores travel size toothpastes, toothbrushes, etc.  She also likes to look in bathtubs.  She loves to investigate her siblings' toys and dirty laundry baskets. She often looks at us before reaching for items, such as items on the coffee table, as if to say "Can I have this?"
~Natalie is the proud owner of 6 teeth!
~She is such a love bug!  She loves to crawl up on us for hugs, snuggles and kisses.  She waves and blows kisses, especially when we say it's time for "Night night".  She recently started going in for hugs when verbally asked.  Natalie likes to snuggle her head on our shoulders and occasionally packs our backs while snuggling.

~She loves to dance!  She immediately bounces up and down when she hears music!
 ~Natalie likes putting clothes, etc. over her head.  We are thinking she may be trying to put them "on" or playing peek-a-boo.
~Natalie is full of smiles and giggles!  She's such a happy girl!

9 Months Old!

Miss Natalie is 9 months old!

~Natalie prefers table food over puree and enjoys feeding herself.  We often give her sippy cups, but she typically just chews on them rather than attempting to drink from them.
~She is working on cutting her 5th tooth.  She has 3 bottom teeth and 1 (almost 2) top teeth.
~Natalie is a speedy crawler!  She pulls herself to standing and is working on figuring out how to cruise along furniture.
~Natalie experienced her first double ear infection this month.  After a few rough nights and a runny nose, we took her to the pediatrician with a suspicion of an ear infection.  It was determined to be "resolved" when we took her back for a check the following week.  Unfortunately, it was determined that she had another double ear infection at her 9 month well check appointment.  We were beginning to wonder about this possiblity just before her appointment when she came down with another runny nose.  We're hoping the cycle of ear infections ends soon.
~Natalie typically wakes once a night to eat.  After a few nights of her waking shortly after I put her down, we decided to work on her putting her self to sleep.  She is laid down awake consistently at the babysitter's house, so we knew she could do it!  After going into her room once for a snuggle and the addition of a blanket in bed, she went to sleep after only a minute of two of fussing.
~Natalie loves to talk!  She babbles often, including combining various sounds, such as "Ah-ba" and "Du-ka".
~Natalie signs "more", which currently looks a bit like a clap, when asking for more food.  Her brothers and sisters like to model the sign for her.
~When asked to say "goodnight" or "bye", Natalie will wave!  It may be a wave of her hand, a whole arm wave, or a whole arm wave followed by putting her hand to her mouth (as if she's also blowing a kiss).

Official 9 month stats:
Height: 29 1/4" (95th percentile)
Weight: 20lb 1/2oz (79th percentile)
Head circumference: 46cm (94th percentile)

7 Years Old!

Happy 7th Birthday, Brennan!!

Our sweet Brennan is 7 years old!  He's growing up so quickly!

~Brennan LOVES school.  When asked about his day at school, his answer is consistently an enthusiastic "Great!"  He's doing a fantastic job and is making great academic progress.  He is participating in a gifted math program, a weekly enrichment opportunity.  His teacher explains that he is doing wonderfully in the curriculum and within this enrichment.  She anticipates that he'll be involved in additional gifted/enrichment programs as they become available in later grades.

~Brennan also LOVES Legos!  It's impressive to watch him build sets as he's easily able to assemble the steps with ease.  He also enjoys playing with mini-figure characters.

~Brennan has such a sweet and thoughtful heart.  He also has a wonderful silly side and a great smile and laugh.  Brennan is often inquisitive and loves to learn. 

Interview with Brennan:

Favorite school subject: Silent reading

Favorite school special: Gym

Favorite food: Chocolate

Favorite toy: Legos

Favorite movie: Lego Batman Gotham City Breakout

Favorite color: Green and black

Favorite book: Lego Ninjago
Favorite game: Hangman and Candy Land

Official Stats:

Height: 4 ft 2 1/2 in

Weight: 58.8lb

8 Months Old

Miss Natalie is 8 months old!

~Natalie is a speedy crawler!  She quickly navigates a room, including over obstacles.  At times, she gets ahead of herself and takes a quick nose dive to the ground, but she quickly recovers and is on her way!
~She is pulling herself to standing on just about everything!  She's quite proud of herself and enjoys investigating new, now within reach, items. Her crib mattress is now on the lowest setting.
~While not usually on command, Natalie is blowing kisses and clapping her hands.
~Natalie enjoys eating baby food and is eating a lunch and dinner daily.  She really enjoys puffs and rice rusks and does a great job feeding herself.  She also enjoys playing with and chewing on sippy cups.  We may try small bites of soft food soon.
~She loves to babble and is very chatty.  Within her babbles, we often hear "Mama" and "Dada", leading to playful banter about her first word.
~Natalie is doing well with her naps.  She previously had more difficulty on Saturday, possibly adjusting to napping at home rather than at the babysitter's house after a few days.  She doesn't seem to have trouble with this anymore!  She occasionally wakes once over night, but will return to dreamland after a new diaper and nursing.  She almost always sleeps on her belly.
~She loves baths!  She's been known to crawl across the family room to the bathroom door and pull herself up on the door when she knows that her siblings are getting a bath.  If she's in the bathroom while they are being bathed, she tries to crawl out of our arms towards the water.  She enjoys splashing and playing with toys when in the tub.
~Natalie is full of smiles and giggles!  She's a happy, laid back girl!