18 months

Tessie is 18 months old! I can’t believe that she has been around for a year and a half. She has grown up so much. As we had expected, she is really understanding and using language now. She now has the following in her (speaking) vocabulary: hi, buh-bye, hat, mumma, dudda, apple, more-more, thank-you (duckoo), ball, shoes, socks, juice, upstairs (uppee), dog, sit (ish), train (choo-choo), boat, banana, bubble, kitty, trash (chosh). She has also added more signs: cat, helicopter, boat, cracker, and cookie, which she uses relentlessly until someone (i.e. daddy or grampa) gives in.

She is still running everywhere and climbing very well. She has become more independent in her play. She doesn’t need an adult on the floor with her all the time. She is happy enough to tinker around with her toys on her own and bring a book over to us once in a while. Her favorite book of the moment is “A” You’re Adorable (based on the song). She loves to sing and dance. She would give Jonathan Papelbon (Go Red Sox) a run for his money. You have to see the video. Hopefully I can figure that out for the next update

The biggest thing for me right now is how on-the-ball she is. She understands so much now. She follows directions (when she wants to) and even learned to be shy and/or embarrassed. It’s so cute. Her head drops down and she looks at her hands in her lap. I’m hoping we can bring her back out of her shell by touring her around again to visit lots of people. She wants to do everything on her own. She gets frustrated when I try to help her with things (like eating, wiping her nose and face, washing her hands, going up/down stairs, etc.) because she wants to do it by herself.

Tessie had lots of fun this fall. We picked out our pumpkins at Parlee Farms and had fun feeding goats. We had (toddler) friends over for a mini Halloween Party. My friend Liz took a bunch of fabulous photos of Tessie in her costume. We went to Brooklyn, New York this past weekend. She was a really flexible about adjusting to city life and being strapped down for the 4.5 hour ride each way. We visited with college roomie Karin (and cat Joey, whom was terrorized by Tessie all weekend). Tessie got her first ride on a train to Coney Island on Sunday. Tessie loved the New York Aquarium. She was a little freaked out by the giant walrus, but loved the fish, water fountains, and the general freedom of running around. We topped the day off by walking the boardwalk (seeing the Coney Island Polar Bear Club take a dip in the ocean) and getting none other than a famous Nathan’s Hot Dog. Take a look at the pictures.

I have changed the way you look at photos now. Instead of attaching huge files, I am sending you to Kodak or Snapfish (you choose) so you can see a whole slideshow rather than just a few pictures. It won’t take up space in your email and you can even have the photos printed locally if you want (Nana Sally). Let me know if you have a preference of a site because it’s tough uploading to two different sites. So look for emails immediately following this one from Kodak and Snapfish.

17 months

Tessie has been doing great at daycare. Everyday that we pick her up, they say she had a wonderful day. When we accuse them of saying that to all the parents (or of lying), Miss Shanell swears that Tessie truly has great days everyday. Along with daycare fun, she has gotten the daycare viruses. She has missed 4 days of daycare already. I keep telling myself that it’s good that she builds her immunity now rather than later when the learning starts to happen. Sick days are also a good excuse to stay home with Tessie or go Apple-picking! She loves to suck the juice off an apple core and says “appa” when she wants/sees one now. She even said “appa-sahs” too. Stephen and I keep trying to get her to say it again, but she’s not as inspired. Tessie is babbling up a storm. She is so sure of what she is saying, but we still don’t know. We think she’s right on the cusp of breaking the language code. Maybe soon…and then we’ll be telling her to be quiet.
On a sadder note, Tessie had her first BIG bump. She climbed up and over the back of the couch and bumped her head in the sweet spot that gives you a shiner. Avoid looking at the first picture if you don’t want to see it. I had to take a picture of it to remind her of the stress she put us under when she was a toddler. That’s what parents are supposed to do, right?
Maybe the next update will include Tessie in a RED SOX jersey… Everyone send your good vibes!

10 months

Wow. Tessie is walking everywhere. She is all over the place. She is walking so well that when she is headed for something she shouldn’t be (e.i. Toilet, cabinets, wires, stairs) she able to walk at a pretty good clip almost running while looking over her shoulder to see who is giving chase. We have trouble on our hands.
Tessie is saying lots of words. We still don’t know what they are, but she seems to be sure of what she is trying to say. She is pointing to let us know what interests her. She waves and blows kisses. She kisses/slimes our faces.
We have been starting to give her table food, but we are very limited because she hasn’t grown any teeth yet. So far we haven’t really found many foods that she doesn’t like. But she loves vegetables and even tofu.
We have done a lot of visiting this month. Tessie and Mom went to Long Island, New York for 4 days. With Dad traveling for work and snowboarding, we have gone on other day trips and visits locally. We also have gotten into a project of creating a playroom for Tessie to contain the clutter. (“Good Luck” you’re thinking. Right?) But we are trying. Swim class has ended but we are still staying in touch with friends from class. We have been getting together with other friends we have made at the library too.