Life is Wonderful: 20 Months

Another month has come and gone. I am so glad that I have been keeping this blog. It has been a nice reference and it makes me smile from the memories when I go back and reread older posts. My original plan, before Sophie was born, was to keep a journal of all of this information. With a baby to take care of and sleep deprivation, that didn't last long. I started posting information here instead, and eventually started this blog. It is much easier/faster to type everything out than to write it out. Plus, I can add photos that I have taken of Sophie that I love. Hopefully it will mean just as much to Sophie in the future as it means to me now.

Joe took Sophie to the doctor's office a few days ago to check on her ears due to all of her ear infections a few months ago. Her ears looked fine and she grew some more. Sophie now weighs *drum roll, please* 16 lb 3 oz! Pound party time! (She is also 29 inches tall.)
We went to the Opening Day parade for the Cincinnati Reds. Sophie was antsy for it to start, but was really excited by everything. She kept pointing and things and "oooohhhh"ing and "aaaahhhh"ing at them.

Go Reds!

She was excited when the parade finally started.

Sophie loves peanuts! We let her try one (watching her closely so she wouldn't choke) and after chewing on it for a minute or two, she demanded more. I probably wouldn't have let her try these out, but she has always been good about chewing her food. I'm glad that she has something else that she likes to eat now.
Sophie is becoming quite the helper. I love being able to ask her to grab a diaper or to put clothes in her hamper. One day I asked her to take a stack of her towels to Joe. She stuffed them all in her arms, walked to the next room to find him and handed them to him without dropping one. Nice!
Sophie's vocabulary has really improved the past few months. Joe and I decided to list all of the words and phrases that she says. We only would count the words that she has said on multiple times and on multiple occasions. As of right now, Sophie can say 110 words! Wow! I knew that she said a lot, but I didn't realize how much. I keep looking over the list, thinking that there are words on there she doesn't really say, but I can't find any. She has also been linking words together and saying short phrases. (I will put all of the words and phrases into another post.)
Sophie is identifying more animal noises this month. For a few months now Sophie has been able to tells us that lion and tigers roar (she makes the cutest roar sound) and that a dog arfs. Now she will tell us that a sheep baas and a cat meows.
Sophie really thinks that she is bigger than she really is. She always wants to carry/drag big and heavy items around and will push and pull at things to move them. She is quite determined and doesn't let her size get in her way. Sophie's babysitter has said that Sophie is like a little ant, and that really is a great comparison. She is our little ant who doesn't realize just how small she is. I hope she always keeps that frame of mind and doesn't back down from challenges when she gets older.
Sophie is running all over the place. Those little legs move fast! While she still falls down at times, it is becoming more rare. She is also squatting more, walking backwards, and kicking balls around. What a difference a few months can make!
For the past few months, when Sophie gets frustrated or just throws a fit, she will lay down on her back and kick her legs. Usually she will bring both legs up together, slam them together down on the ground, and repeat. It is an impressive ab workout. Now when I see her getting angry, I tell her to go ahead and throw a fit. She gets down on the ground and does her normal leg slam. When I tell her to have another fit, she slams her legs down again. By the fourth time of doing this she is normally giggling and happy again. What a stinker.
Sophie can identify even more body parts this month. In the past she was able to correctly show us the location of her eyes, nose, ears, mouth, hair, head, fingers, toes, teeth, and belly button. This month she added her tongue, arms and legs. She will also point out where these things are on Joe and me.
Sophie is showing some signs of potty training readiness. Sophie often will tell us that she needs a new diaper or that she pooped (sometimes she has just farted though...) She has also gone to the bathroom on the potty once. Just a fluke so far, but it still makes me hopeful. I want to try working with her on potty training this summer. Then again, I have no idea how I will find underwear or pull-ups to fit her!
Sophie's dancing is improving. Before she would just bounce up and down and shake her hands. Now she will turn in circles and bounce around. It is pretty darn cute! I see a future star for Manyet Dance. haha
Sophie's favorite word is "No!" It can be pretty darn adorable at times. She will scrunch up her nose and say, "Nooooooo." She did this about 20 times to my sister when she tried to take Sophie away from my dad. Other times though, it is not so cute, like when I am trying to put clothes on her (or back on her when she takes them off) and she runs across the room (or all the way to my room) giggling and repeating, "No!" If she is on the changing table during a "no" moment, she will kick her legs repeat "no" until I have finished dressing her.

She wasn't saying "no" here, but this is generally the face she makes as she is running away from me when I try to put clothes on her.

Sophie is obsessed with babies. Small babies or toddlers who are older than her, it doesn't matter. They are all babies to her and she loves them. She will excitedly shout, "Baby!" She usually puts her arms out, too, as if she wants to hug them. She loves looking at pictures of babies as well as videos of herself (which she loves). She doesn't seem to understand that the videos are of her though.
We are raising quite the little sweetheart. She loves giving hugs! Sophie has always loved Cosmo and constantly wants to hug, kiss and lay on her. She gets the same with with certain stuffed animals. If you ask her to hug or kiss them, she will. When she sees her favorite people at her baby sitter's house, she will go straight to them and hug them. It is the same way with family members. She does this to my friends' kids, too (though most of them don't like it and pull away). It is so sweet. When she is sad or upset, she holds her arms out for Joe or me and hugs us tight when we scoop her up. For me though, the best is when she calls out, "Momma!" and runs up to me to give me a hug. I love that. It really warms my heart to see what an affectionate daughter we are raising. We must be doing something right!