eleven months

I cannot believe this little girl will be one in just a month!  Lately, she is just picking up on new things all the time! I am amazed every day by something new!  Here are a few fun facts from Elaina this month...

She moved  up to a size 4 diaper due to those adorable thunder thighs!

She came down with a nasty virus this last month.  She had a fever for 5 days and was quite the grump.  Poor girl and poor mommy.  It was a long week. It was some virus with flu like symptons - fever, yucky poop, a little puke, no appetite, achy, and just plain old exhausted. It took her a while even after the fever was gone to get back to her normal, happy self.  After the fever, she was pale and exhausted for a couple days.  I couldn't figure out where she caught the virus; none of her little friends had been sick!  But, when I went back to work the next week everyone was asking if Elaina was ok and what had been wrong... that's when everyone began telling me "oh, my son had that!" "oh my grandkids had that" "oh my friend's kid had that" and even another therapist had been home with a sick kid at the same time I had been.  So, I'm pretty sure I brought it home from work somehow. :( Sorry baby girl.  But, she is fully recovered and my sweet happy girl once again!

Just in the last week she has shown more of an interest in walking.  I didn't really think she would walk any time soon (I still don't really, since she is still pretty wobbly) but she is really enjoying cruising around the house holding onto my hands now.  We just make laps around the kitchen and the living room and she just laughs and laughs!  She also loves her activity walker now.  It goes SUPER fast on the hardwood floors so it is hilarious to  watch her trying to walk with it and keep up with it as it starts to get ahead of her.

She has started talking! For real talking! She has said mama a handful of times (always when she is distressed or is following me around the kitchen and wants me to pick her up), she says daddy a little more often, she likes to give you a toy so that you will say thank you and when you give it back to her she says thank you back ("ay too"), and she says quack quack ("kah kah") and ducky ("duh-dee") in the bath tub when playing with her rubber duckies.  But, she is obviously obsessed with Harley!!  Mom and Dad don't even rank compared to the dog!  She says doggy ("dah-dee"), Harley ("hi-yah"), and puppy ("puh-poo") ALL DAY LONG!  Oh she loves that dog.  Harley usually follows me into Elaina's room when I go get her from a nap.  Now, when I walk in Elaina will smile at me then immediately look behind me at the open doorway to see Harley.  If Harley didn't come for whatever reason she says, "doggy?!" over and over until Harley walks in the room. And, then she just lights up!

She loves Mickey Mouse Clubhouse! She has never really showed an interest in TV shows until this last month.  I would put Disney Junior on some times and she would watch for a second and then move on, not really caring.  But, while she was sick she loved watching Mickey Mouse.  It was about the only time during the whole day that I got to see a big smile!  While I'm sleeping, my brain incorporates the Mickey Mouse songs into my dreams somehow... can you say Mickey Mouse much?