Brooklyn: 11 Months Old

Our BABY is a month away from being a whole year old!! How did this happen?? This month has flown by (with the holidays and all the traveling we’ve done), but it has been lots of fun…

Brooklyn weighs about 20 1/4 lbs (60th percentile) and is about 30 inches long (90th percentile). If my scale is accurate, she really hasn’t gained any weight this month. This is somewhat surprising given how much food she eats, but I guess she is really burning it all off with her constant exploring. I seriously think she eats as much as an older toddler. She must have gotten her daddy’s good metabolism :) She is still nursing 4 times a day with no signs of giving it up anytime soon. She eats 3 meals a day and might eat more than that if she had the option. She still eats just about anything and everything. New foods lately include black eyed peas, yogurt, tomato, and ravioli. Brooklyn is still a huge fan of sweet potatoes and eats them almost daily. She drinks really well from a sippy cup, although we are still working on getting her to hold it herself. She usually drinks water or really-watered-down juice with meals. Bottles went bye-bye back in October or November without much fuss!

I don’t want to jinx us, but Brooklyn has been sleeping through the night again lately! A few weeks ago (when she was still crying out multiple times a night), we decided to try a little “sleep training”. We didn’t want to get into a bad habit of letting her sleep in our bed every night. It only took a few nights before she was back to her old, much better sleeping routine. She is currently sleeping from about 8:30 or 9 PM to 7 AM. She also takes 2 naps per day (late morning and late afternoon). She usually sleeps about an hour or so each time. I’ll take it!

Another reason that Brooklyn is sleeping better could be that she doesn’t currently have a tooth breaking through. She now has 3 teeth total (two on bottom and the top right). It’s hard to see that tooth on top unless she really opens her mouth wide, and she doesn’t like me prying around in her mouth (wonder why??). I bet that top left tooth will be here soon though!

Brooklyn has gotten so strong this month! She is now primarily crawling around on her hands and knees and doesn’t “army crawl” much anymore. She gets faster every day! The theme of this month has been finding things above her head. She is learning that there are more things to explore than just what’s on the floor! She loves to get up on her knees and check out things on the coffee table. Pulling stuff off shelves is another favorite. Last week, Brooklyn pulled up to her feet for the first time in weeks! She’d done it before once or twice, and then she didn’t try it again until last week. She is getting much stronger on her feet already and can stand (while holding onto something) for several minutes. Her biggest problem right now is that she doesn’t know how to get down from a standing position, so she gets frustrated and starts crying after a few minutes. I’m sure she’ll figure that out soon!

Brooklyn is really enjoying looking at books these days. I’m so excited about that! I’ve been trying to read to her more often, and I can tell she’s paying attention much better than she used to. She really likes peek-a-boo books and books about animals. It’s so neat to watch her study the pictures and giggle when she thinks something is funny. She also likes to turn the pages in the book sometimes. I hope she turns into a little bookworm!!

Speaking of animals, Brooklyn still loves Felix and Gabby. It seems like she enjoys chasing them even more now that she is faster at crawling. Gabby is such a good sport and doesn’t mind when she gets close. In fact, several times I’ve seen Gabby go up to Brooklyn and brush her with her tail. So sweet! Felix (the scaredy-cat) doesn’t get close to Brooklyn, but I’m sure Brooklyn would love to play with him too if she could. Brooklyn also loves dogs (specifically Bo, Toby, and Champ), and they all seem to love her. I guess it’s like having a playmate closer to their size!

Brooklyn is still a huge Mommy’s girl these days (much to my delight!). I know the day will come when I’m not her favorite anymore, so I’m trying to soak it up while I can. I’m not really sure why, but some days she just does not want anyone else to hold her. Then, they’ll hand her back to me, and she immediately stops fussing and starts sucking her thumb. Actually, she won’t suck her thumb unless I’m holding her. It’s the weirdest thing! I guess it’s a comfort thing (being with me and thumb sucking). Poor Travis! Your day will come, I’m sure :)

Brooklyn still loves to be around people (other than me), but just on her terms! She especially loves to go to the grocery store, sit in the buggy, and smile at the other shoppers. Everyone at Publix loves her! She likes babies and kids too. I think she really just likes attention in general. She loves to clap these days, and she will wave occasionally. It’s so cute!

Sometimes, this girl is just a ham! Brooklyn loves to talk, and it doesn’t matter who’s listening. Travis and I just crack up listening to her talking to herself in her carseat while we’re driving somewhere. She can be so loud! One of her favorite things to do is having grunting contests. After she grunts, if we grunt back at her, she’ll do it again, and it turns into a cycle of grunting. It’s so funny! Every once in a while, I’ll say something to her, and it sounds like she’s trying to say that word right back. Mostly, though, she just speaks gibberish. Things like “Loddy-Doddy-Doddy-Dah” and other things like that. I would love to know what she’s saying, but I’m afraid that once she really starts talking, she’ll never stop!!

Right now Brooklyn’s favorite things include getting into EVERYTHING, taking things off shelves, making messes, playing on her activity table, putting anything she can find into her mouth, chasing kitties, clapping, taking baths, looking at books, and eating (edible and non-edible things)!

Brooklyn’s least favorite things are getting ready for bed, getting dressed and undressed, being held by people other than Mommy (sometimes), being “stuck” standing up, getting a “toy” taken away from her, and being forced to sit still too long (like at church).

Brooklyn is still wearing size 3 diapers and mostly 12 month clothes. She’s started wearing some 18 month size stuff, and it fits but is still a little bit big. She keeps outgrowing shoes (sadly!) and I feel like size 3 shoes are fitting the best right now. Her hair isn’t long enough for hair bows yet, so it’s a good thing she doesn’t mind wearing headbands sometimes :)

I can’t believe the next monthly post I write will be her 12 MONTH post. It’s just ridiculous how fast time flies! Brooklyn, you continue to bring us so much joy. We love you so much!!