18 Months of Fallon

It's hard to believe that, not only is my baby a year and a half old, she's going to be the big sister in just a few short months. I look at her some days and cannot understand how she grew up so fast and other days the newborn phase seems so long ago. Fallon has become such the typical toddler, throwing tantrums over just about everything, tornadoing through the house and embarrassing mommy in public. She lives life in the fast lane, going 60mph with all of her emotions. But she can be the sweetest the little thing, giving out bear hugs, snuggling on the couch before bed and blowing kisses to daddy when he leaves. 

We just had her 18 month appointment and she now weighs 23lbs and is 32.5 inches tall, slightly above average in both categories. She says so many words I've lost count and we've really had to learn to watch what we say because she's in the parrot stage and will repeat things we definitely don't want her to! Forming short sentences, playing mama with her babies and mixing us up all kinds of creations in her kitchen are all in a days' work. The daytime sleep thing still isn't her strong suit but she's so busy all morning she usually submits to at least some kind of nap, even if it is for 15 minutes in the car. 

She still looks far more like her daddy than me, and I adore those big brown eyes. Her hair may be long enough for a ponytail one day but it's at least visible enough now to show a strawberry blonde color. She loves to wear boots and hats and if it were up to her that may be her entire everyday outfit. Her dance moves are always on point and food will probably forever be the way to her heart. Girlfriend could eat grown men under the table. Washing it all down with mama's water of course, because milk just isn't her thing and why drink your own water when you can steal mom's? Fally girl I cannot wait to watch you grow this year and take on your new role of big sister! Big adventures are in store my dear. Big adventures. 

Like Father, Like Daughter

Fallon is 13 months old now and doing the Frankenstein walk. We kind of think it's cutest thing ever. She's understanding so many concepts that I never even realized she was taking in, like when I grab my keys she says, "bye, bye" because she knows we are leaving and points to the TV when she wants to watch Mickey. She's as wild, curious and stubborn as ever with some drama to top it off but we couldn't imagine her any other way. Seeing how excited she gets when she sees a "dog, dog, doggie" out in public is definitely my newest favorite thing she does. 

Yesterday Chris was talking about how some days he still cannot believe that this is his life. If you had asked him even just 7 years ago (we've been together 6) where he saw himself in 10 years he would have laughed sarcastically if anyone mentioned marriage let alone living in the suburbs with a little girl. But now he can't wait to come from work and see Fallon light up when he walks in the door. I can almost see his heart melting every time she says "dada" or hugs him. And she is so much like him it's uncanny. 

Fallon's Chair

Anyone who knows Chris will immediately say how much Fallon looks like him. She did when she was born and she continues to more and more each day. There are certainly ways you can see me in her but she is most definitely her daddy's little girl. Dimples and big brown eyes like none I've ever seen. The similarities do not end with looks though. Fallon has a very intense personality and puts her emotions fully into every situation. When she is angry there is no angrier kid but when she is happy she is the happiest baby on the block. There's that strong will, determinamtion and stubborn streak running through her that she gets a bit from mama but the level she can crank it up to is all daddy. Sometimes I just sit back and watch them together smiling like a fool, feeling that little flutter in my heart just thinking about how special their bond is. It will be a privilege to watch their relationship grow over the years. The apple did not fall far from the tree and I don't think anyone is prouder of that fact than my husband. 

12 Months Of Fallon

It has been harder and harder to keep up with these monthly updates but I am so glad I stuck it out. These are like a virtual scrapbook that I already love looking back on to remember what Fallon was doing each month. I'm lame and never got around to doing an actual baby book so these blog posts will have to do!

Fallon's one year checkup was this morning and she weighed in at 19.5lbs, 29.25 inches tall. A thirteenth tooth is coming in so she has a mouthful of teeth to chomp all the food she gobbles up. Her hair is finally getting a bit thicker but it is far from being ponytail length. One day it will happen! 

The scoot is still her favorite way to get around but she has been cruising across all the furniture and the baby pool for a few weeks now. She does stand on her own for short periods and has a taken a step on a few recent occasions. But she has proved to be the kind of kid that does things when she wants, whether she is capable is irrelevant. She loves stuffed animals, dolls and blankets and cuddles them up to her chest melting us into puddles. It's the best ever though when she hugs us and says awwww. 

We still haven't found a food she won't at least try and she's eating things just like we do now. She can wield a spoon but prefers to dive into applesauce with both hands. I can't say I blame her. But even though she eats all day long and still nurses 3 times a day, she remains petite, save for the little thigh rolls and belly. So many people have asked if I cried on her birthday and have begged her to stay little but I could not be happier about my baby turning one! The more she is able to do the more fun we have. It is exhausting chasing her around and ensuring that she isn't doing things she's not supposed to, but I just love that she's becoming my little buddy. Watching her learn to do things on her own and seeing her interact with her world on a higher level is so amazing and joyful for me. 

Fallon Lynn you have turned our whole world upside down this past year in the best possible way. Every day we learn as much from you as you learn from us. We are so very excited to see what this next year has in store and can't wait to watch you grow!

11 Months Of Fallon

So this is the very last monthly update before we hit the big 1 year mark. Can you even believe it?! I've said before and I'll say it again, I adore my daughter and of course have loved her through each month. But the more she grows and learns and is able to do things on her own the more fun it gets!

We all thought Fallon would skip crawling since she seemed so against it for awhile and never liked the all fours position. Well, girlfriend is still scooting along, dragging that left foot and avoiding the traditional crawl like a pro. We call her the spider monkey because she moves so flipping fast! She is also now cruising around furniture and the side of the baby pool and even taking steps while holding our hands in the water. It's only a matter of time before she decides to just go for it. That's how she does just about everything! 

She's had 8 teeth fully in for a couple months now but 4 more on top are making their way down. She'll have a nice set of chompers to dig into her first birthday cake next month for sure. Finally I've heard the word mama come out of her mouth but it's usually still dada or garbled attempts at kitty cat doggie and thank you. Not being able to communicate in the way that she wants to is often very frustrating for her and ends in massive meltdowns. Girlfriend is intense about all of her emotions. So on the upside, she smiles with her entire body and when she's happy it's unavoidably infectious. 

We can't get over how sweetly affectionate she is becoming, giving hugs, touching faces and loving on her furry siblings and stuffed animals. She even says "awwww" when she does it! Baby gate is going up because little bit can scale the steps all too easily. And one of her favorite things to do in the house is crawl around from dog bed to dog bed. Ours sit up off the ground a few inches so she climbs her way on and off and on and off and I get tired just watching her. 

Oh baby girl you are just as fun as you are exhausting. And I mean that in the best possible way. We are looking forward to a summer of birthday celebrations, early morning park walks, pool days and catching lighting bugs in the yard. The 1 year countdown is on!

10 Months Of Fallon

It's official, we've got a mover and a shaker on our hands. Fallon is scooting all over the house and she's super fast! She's pulling to stand and working very hard on standing on her own from sitting. Our ten month old has experienced several firsts this month including her first bout of HFM, a double ear infection and an allergic reaction to red dye. She also traveled via airplane for the second time in her young life and went on a cruise that took her outside the country! 

There aren't any new teeth in her tiny mouth just yet but she's showing all signs of hard core teething again so we're betting which one will come through next. Fallon has reached a new level of interaction now and it is so fun to watch her point, wave hi and bye and purposely snuggle us! She continues to sleep through the night, gimme 10!, and naps most days at least for a little bit. 

Of course she's still fooling the world into thinking she's the happiest baby on the block because she usually is when we're out and about. At home, well, she's started this new thing. Tantrums. Holy flippin' Mariah Carey tantrums. Girlfriend will scream if she doesn't get what she wants and throw herself dramatically on the ground, kick, flail and throw whatever else is offered to her. It's like a 2 year old trapped in a 10 month old body. Can we all say DIVA?!

But we love her from her head to her monkey toes. And while I patiently (not) wait for her to say anything resembling "mama" she's getting really good at "dada", "uh-oh" and "hi". Because why bother saying "mama" when she's always around and all you have to do is reach for her? Wink, wink. 

9 Months Of Fallon

Fallon's 9 month check-up was yesterday morning and our pediatrician said she's all legs, eyes and brains. Can't ask for much more. Our baby girl is now 17lbs 8oz and 27.25 inches tall. She has 8 tiny teeth in her mouth and isn't afraid to use them! We're still going strong with breastfeeding so yea, the teeth are a little scary. But mostly she just uses them to chomp on all the food she's eating. Green beans are her least favorite but she's still never met a food she won't eat. Whose kid is this?!

She's hated tummy time and being on her back (except for sleeping) for months, girlfriend just likes to be upright. But in the last week or so she's become mobile in her funny little half crawl, half scoot way. She can pretty much get where she wants to go and get there pretty fast! I will take chasing over screaming every single day. She's often trying to push up to stand and pull herself up on, well, everything. Her little voice is so cute and we get to hear it all the time as she babbles away, happy screams and tries to mimic the sounds we make to her. 

Blocks are still among the favorite toys and her activity cube, and she kind of dances to the ones that play music. She waves but almost never if I ask her to and is always smiling at other babies. She's also really into having books read to her and likes to grab them out of the basket in her room. We read Goodnight Moon every night and I Love You Through and Through almost every day. She's so curious and friendly, it would be hard not to fall right in love with her. But I'm kind of biased and I still can't believe this little 9 month old is mine. 

8 Months Of Fallon

Although she's not growing quite as fast as she was in the earlier months, all of a sudden my baby is starting to look more like a toddler. She still has yet to turn down any type of food, but she definitely has her preferences: cheese and PB, just like her mama! So far broccoli is her favorite veggie, she especially loves the trees, and blackberries are her favorite fruit, she will even eat them before her beloved pancakes. We give her flavored teething biscuits and she's recently started offering them to her pups (and occasionally to us) to share. It's the cutest ever and she didn't even get mad when Ares took her up on her offer. We don't want to discourage sharing, there's nothing in those biscuits that will hurt our dogs, and as long as they aren't breaking any house rules, fair is fair. 

Speaking of teething, she still just has her 2 bottom teeth in but she's been working so hard on the top right canine. This week it has finally started to look like it might break through any day now so hopefully she will get a bit of relief. Overall, it's been making her pretty fussy when she's not too busy eating, playing or "singing". She is really starting to use her voice and discover all the sounds she can make. I've finally come to terms with the fact that she's said her first word, dada. I mean c'mon, I carried and delivered her and take care of her all day long and she looks right at him and says dada but just smiles when I try to get her to say mama. Hashtag whatever. I do love seeing Chris light up when she says it although he pretends like it's no big deal. 

Still no crawling going on but she does go forward onto her hands and knees from a sitting position. And then cries. We've even tried to bait her with food but she's too smart for our tricks. Can't blame the girl for choosing a free ride while she can get it. We are trying to teach her a bit of sign language so maybe she will be less frustrated when she can't tell us what she wants. So far though all she does is wave hello or goodbye. It's pretty freaking cute because she uses her fingers, not just her whole hand, and I'm pretty sure she made our favorite Starbucks barista's entire year yesterday showing him her new skill. Next up is her first St. Patty's Day, 9 month appointment and vacation!