29: 11 months

Wow. One more month and my baby's going to be a year old. Time has flown by so quickly I can still remember the day I had her and the long hours of labor. I remember just how tiny she used to be. How she would curl up on my stomach and fit perfectly. Now she just sprawls on top of me, her legs hanging from either side of my hips, toes almost touching my knees and her face shoved into the crook of my neck.

She hasnt started walking yet, but today she stood up by herself without the help of my legs or the couch or coffee table. She toppled over a few seconds later, but at least she's trying. She's such a brat sometimes. She knows when things please us, and she knows "no" very well, but she does things just to piss us off on purpose. She's been testing her boundaries and my patience for a while now. It's so funny sometimes that I have to walk away so she can't see me laughing. She's now "talking back" (it's a high pitched grunt and a mean face) and she bites her hand or slaps her face when she's very angry. She gets so frustrated sometimes that I'm worried she's going to hurt herself.

When she wants something she's a pro at kissing ass. She'll crawl up to you and give you a bunch of hugs and kisses while trying to get the thing that she wants. She usually does this when I have my cellphone and she wants it. A lot of times, she'll just give us hugs and kisses because she wants to. She is so smothered with love. The first thing Justin does when he wakes up is pick her up and hold her and she hugs him in return. She loves the attention. If Justin and I are hugging each other there she is tugging at our pant legs wanting hugs, too.

She's now in the habit of going to bed by herself. There are still times she throws fits but now they are very few and far in between. She just needs a snack or a bit of milk before going to bed to relax her and she's good for the night. I may read her a story or sing her a lullaby if she's still a bit fussy. She wakes up happy and very talkative. She's such a chatter box. Most of the time she's talking to herself but when she wants us to talk to her she'll just keep saying "Mama" or "Dada" repeatedly until we respond.

One night while we were organizing the closet, Lily and I are sitting on the floor while I folded clothes and Justin was standing next to me putting clothes away in the dresser. Lily starts yammering like she normally does and then goes, "Mama!" I respond. She smiles and goes, "Dada!" Justin responds. Then after a small pause she suddenly goes, "Bawoom?" Justin goes, "Balloon? What balloon? Did you just think one would suddenly appear?" Lily went "ya" and nodded her head. I'm quite sure it was all just coincidence how it played out, but it was still amusing just the same.

I can't believe my baby is growing up so fast.

28: (audio post)

Click the following link to hear the message:

Voice Post

NEW PICTURES AND VIDEOS ARE UP ON LILY'S SITES!! GO CHECK THEM OUT---YOU KNOW YOU WANT TO!!