Calla Update!

It's been awhile since I've done much more here than post photos. Believe me when I say that Calla keeps me very busy! I thought I'd take a moment, though, and quickly mention what she's been up to...

She is two days away from being ten months old!

Growing! You may have noticed by the photos. She's now 25 pounds and at least 30.5 inches tall. She wears 18m and 2T clothing, and size 3 shoes are starting to get a bit tight. I think her growth rate is slowing a bit, but I'm not sure! Her hair is still red, maybe a bit strawberry blonde, and getting longer. The ends are curling in the back and above her ears. Darling!

Signing! Her signing vocabulary continues to expand. Most signs she does rather sporadically still. The signs she uses most frequently are Potty, More, and Milk. She also frequently uses a sign she created herself, a combination of Come and Milk, that seems to mean GIMMIE! Other signs she uses include: Bird, All Done, Where, Hurt. She's occasionally signed Daddy, Mommy, and Eat. In addition to the ASL signs I just listed, she also claps her hands, waves hello and goodbye, and points.

Eating! Breastmilk remains Calla's primary source of nutrition and it will for at least the first year of her life. We take breastfeeding and its benefits very seriously in our household. But Calla loves to eat solids, as well. We skipped the rice cereal and pureed baby food and went straight to table food when she was about six months old. We've always allowed her to self-feed. Nearly four months later, she is quite a sophisticated little eater. Her current favorite foods are peaches, tofu, and turkey. She also enjoys english peas, veggie dogs (sliced into safe shapes), Cheerios, yogurt, and beans. I discovered a few days ago that she loves my spicy lentils, too! She is getting pretty handy with a spoon. She can work a sippy cup with ease, and she loves to drink from a cup or water bottle with a little bit of help.

Talking? She has been saying Hi/Hey for a long while now. She used to call me Uma, but now I'm usually called Ma. She calls her father Daddy (Dada or DaDeeee). Though she rarely hears the word No, it has passed her lips a few times, as has the word Go, which she hears frequently. I thought I heard her say Toy once, but I think it was a coincidence. Same with Toy. She definitely understands lots of words, though. Really amazing how quickly babies learn this stuff!

Moving Around. Is she walking yet? No! She doesn't even crawl yet really! Our pediatrician says that technically she is crawling, but by my definition (she can get where she wants to go without frustrating herself), she is not crawling. She scoots around on her bottom, she rolls around, she pushes backwards, she gets into a weird squatting position and moves around, but no crawling. She does pull up on furniture and is beginning to try to cruise a bit. She can stand unassisted for a few moments, too. She may skip crawling and go straight to walking. One thing's for certain... she can cover a LOT of ground. When she hears music, she immediately starts bouncing - she loves to dance!

She's waking from her nap, so I'll cut this short. For all her friends and family who enjoy reading about her and seeing her photos, just know she is doing great and she is a very happy baby and I'm a very happy mama.