15 Months

To my beautiful girl on your fifteenth month of life,

You are still the greatest joy that I have ever known :)  You are becoming more and more independent as each day passes.  You have developed a love for the outside and for observing all that is around you.  The weather has FINALLY warmed up a little bit so we have spent a majority of the past week outside.  You run over to the neighbor kids but then you won't talk to them.  You just stand, smile and watch.  The shyness phases started about a week ago, it is a phase I never thought I would see you enter.  I don't see it hanging around long.  This past month has been pretty uneventful except for the snow!  You did not enjoy sledding at all and cried the entire time we were riding in the sled.  You were okay if you got to walk around in it but not if you were in a sled. Each month you are saying more and more words, momma is now your favorite, which makes momma very happy :)  It is so cute the way that you say it.  Momma has been trying very hard for the past few weeks to cook when we get home from work so that it is ready when daddy gets home.  I have been doing a pretty good job at it, I am even liking spaghetti now which I always hated.  You love the spaghetti and everything else momma makes :)  You are a food bum, anytime you see us eating you try and take our food.  Of course we give it to you :)  You also always insist on feeding yourself whether it be with an adult utensil or your own.  You are doing pretty good at it too.  Your comedy routine continues to run daily at our house and at the baby sitters.  I laugh at you more and more everyday, I can see it in your eyes how much you enjoy being the center of attention.  One thing I never expected was how much you were going to love baby dolls.  You carry Itchy around all the time and try to give him juice or feed him.  If only you would carry him correctly and not by his feet, haha.  It would also be more comforting to momma if you didn't try to cover him up by placing the cover over his entire face.  Makes momma a little unsure about how well you would do with a sibling.  If momma never had another she would be so content with you.  You are such a great child, growing so fast.  One day you will be in kindergarden and the next out of college.  We love you so much!

--MOMMA!

Bottle Debate

I first started contemplating taking the bottle from Annabelle a few months ago.  She is a pro at a sippy cup as well as a straw.  Her dad has said she could probably have used either of those since birth lol.  She only gets maybe 2 bottles a day since she is still a breastfed baby so I know that it will be very easy on us but for the baby sitter I'm not so sure.  She usually tells Jennifer when she wants a bah because it means she is ready for a nap.  Jennifer tried giving her milk once in a sippy and she wanted no part of that but now that she is a little bigger maybe she would be okay with it.  Even though we use very few bottles they are still a pain to clean.  I used to wash the bottle she used during the day as well as my breastfeeding bottles daily.  I have now started washing once a week.  I always hand wash these and it now takes up less time. 
Since we have been breast feeding for almost 15 months, the other question I get is when am I going to stop.  I'm not quite sure what people have against breastfeeing as Annabelle has never been sick, never had diarrhea, never had an ear infection, etc.  Maybe the breastfeeding doesnt have anything to do with it, maybe her immune system would have been just the same on formula, I don't know.  But I do know that I wouldn't have wanted to take that chance.  Even Jason asks when I'm going to stop, my answer to that is whenever Annabelle wants to stop.  In which he replies she will never stop.  We have never scheduled anything related to Annabelle, naps, feedings, etc.  At almost fifteen months old I'm definitely not going to start now.  I don't think that it is going to last much longer anyway, I do not like to use the word "weaning" but I do believe she will self wean in the near future.  Her nursing sessions only occur now when she is really tired or if she has been away from me for a long period of time.  She nurses every night but it is taking less and less nursing to get her to sleep.  I will be very content when she stops as it will be her time and she will be ready, which means that I am ready.  Of course I'm going to miss our time together but that time will be replaced with other time together just doing different things.   When the nursing stops then we will work on getting her in her bed, that is if her daddy cooperates :)