Gross motor: After pushing the stroller for support through July, Michaela took her first unassisted steps on August 11, 2008 (~13.5 months old). She was wobbly for a few weeks, but by mid-September she was running. In July she could crawl up and walk down stairs, holding on to the railing.
Fine motor: During this period Michaela waves and says hello and bye bye on her own. She started scribbling with crayons and chalk. She still likes to build block towers now reaching 8 blocks high.
Feeding: During these three months Michaela became proficient, although messy, at self-feeding with a spoon and fork. We weaned her in July…she wasn’t stressed about no longer nursing but she didn’t take to whole milk right away. By August she was chugging her whole milk like a champ. The end of nursing was only slightly sad for me. It was such a huge relief to no longer plan my life around nursing and pumping times, but we’re proud that we made it to a year like the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends. Although Michaela now has a more varied diet of toddler sized bites of healthy adult foods, she is starting to refuse vegetables.
Verbal: During these three months, Michaela has had a verbal explosion. In July she had 12 words (we still counted them back then) including the infamous NO. By September she had 30+ words and could name animals, body parts, household objects, foods, toys, etc (the average kid has ~5 words by 15 months). We have always done a lot of reading and singing, and kept up a running dialogue with her about the day’s activities, so as soon as she could start forming words she was naming everything. She especially likes to identify the pictures in her books. In September she said 2 sentences “Uh oh, I dropped it” and “I’ll do it” (average kid does this by 24 months). We have started saying “stop” or “not for Michaela” instead of no so hopefully she won’t hear it or use it often. Michaela’s verbal skills have made life easier because we can more easily understand what she wants or needs.
Miscellaneous: In July we went on vacation to Denver and visited uncle Kevin and my friend Megan and her daughter Audrey. We hiked, went to the zoo, and did some shopping, along with visiting. In September Michaela got Roseola (which most kids get between age 1 and 3). The symptoms are slight fever, swollen face, and red spots all over the body. It looks much worse than it is, but she looks very sad and puffy in her September pictures. In At 15 months, she measured…
