One Smart Cookie!

The birthday countdown has begun! It's 48 days (or 6.8 weeks) until Sybilla turns one! Yay! She's definitely come a long way so far and to recap some of the things she's accomplished in 2008, here is a short list!

1. WALKING. She doesn't even bother to really crawl anymore. Before you know it she'll be driving. Eek!
2. DANCING. Sybilla has started to dance to music! The baby doll stroller that Uncle Zander and Aunt Sarah gave her has a little bear that has "sweet strolling tunes" (as per the package) and she bounces up and down to them when she hits the button. She now does it when we play music from iTunes or on the radio and even in stores! I'll have to get a video if I can and post it…
3. BABBLING. Ok, she's done this one for awhile, but now it's starting to take on more meaning. We're working on trying to improve her vocabulary (read: say mama!) and I know she totally understands me when I tell her no because she proceeds to do it anyway with an evil grin on her face and then laughs hysterically over it. [sigh] I'm doomed!
4. PROBLEM-SOLVING. I noticed this when she started pushing everything across the carpet. If it slides on carpet, she's behind it pushing as far as she'll go. But then she gets stuck against the couch or the bar or something else. Then she tries to pull an Austin Powers and moves it around until she's unstuck. She gets tired of it after awhile though and then begins to screech at me, which leads to number 5…
5. THE SOPRANO RANGE. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree and Sybilla's vocal range definitely applies. Like her mum, she too is a soprano, as evidenced by the screeches, howls, and squeals that she emits. Yes, they are ear-piercing. Yes, she enjoys them. And yes, I am praying like hell she finishes this phase soon before my ears bleed and I stab my eyes out with a pencil.
6. CHOWTIME. Sybilla has now decided that SHE wants to hold the spoon when we feed her. Since she can't scoop things out on her own yet, I load it up, hand her the spoon, she slurps off food particles, then hands it back (or drops it, whichever suits her devilish fancy). She also LURVES her some tamales and enchiladas and can eat a whole one of each on her own. I mastered an awesome chili gravy which she and her daddy just adore, so we'll be having enchiladas quite frequently. And some day I will master tamales, but I digress! She is also drinking almost exclusively from a sippy cup which means that don't have to buy any more bottles! Woo hoo!
7. MILK. We've started her on lactose free milk, and she occasionally has some juice, although she loves milk more, thankfully! She had the lactose free at my parent's house a couple of weeks back and ever since, she hasn't wanted formula. Since it's so close to her birthday, we're slowly going through the last of the formula and will then move her completely to whole milk by B-Day. They say you're not supposed to do regular milk until AFTER the baby's first birthday, but Sybilla is 23 pounds, she gets a VERY well rounded diet, and she is drinking lactose free milk, which doesn't have the allergen in it. She's had regular milk before with no issue, but I figure I'll play it safe on this one. My mom is lactose intolerant, so it wouldn't surprise me if Billa is too, but I don't think she is.

So there it is! It wasn't nearly as short as I thought it might be… but oh well! I'll post some more videos and pictures soon!

Love,
K& Co.