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.