ONE

Esther turned one year old last Friday. I still can't believe how fast the time has gone by. It seems like yesterday that we were FLYING down the freeway trying to make it to the hospital, rushing inside, almost delivering in triage, and then three pushes later, out she came. Her life, much like her birth, has been a whirlwind. It has all happened so fast. Here's what she's up to...

- She LOVES to eat. Brian lovingly refers to her as the garbage disposal. She literally will eat ANYTHING. She already eats a wider variety of foods than Noah. And if you are eating something and not sharing with her, get ready for the screeching. She eats all table foods, no baby foods or formula. She is getting to the point where she doesn't want to be fed anything becasue she wants to do it herself (aka applesauce, yogurt and anything else that requires a spoon and is very messy). She eats breakfast, lunch, and dinner with a couple snacks in between. She does not like to go very long between eating sessions, and she will let you know when she is ready for more. In almost every other aspect of her life she is very laid back and not in any rush to accomplish new things, but when it comes to food... She is quite advanced. :)

- She is pulling up. She started doing that over Christmas. In the last few days, she has started letting go and standing on her own for a brief time. She can also walk, very slowly, behind our little push walker thing or with someone holding her hands. Slowly but surely she is getting there. I think she at least has a taste for walking and seems to want to do it.

- She takes two naps a day most days. Some days, she will scream or play through her morning nap, but most days she sleeps at least for a little bit. I am not ready to let go of the morning nap just yet. I just keep thinking about life in May and know it will come in handy then. She goes to bed at night around 7:30-8:00. Once she decides she is ready to go down, SHE IS READY. She does not want to play, she doesn't want to read books, she doesn't want to rock. She just wants you to put her in the bed and walk away. She has always been very good about going to sleep. She sleeps with her pacis. She likes to have one in her mouth and one in her hand. She seems way more attached to them at night than Noah was. Should be fun to take them away some day. :)

- She says a few words. I think she says Mama nad Dada, but it is never on command. She definitely says "Uh-Oh," "Go," and "Yea!" I think she says something that means banana also. We have been told that she also says 'ball,' ' hey,' and 'book,' but we have not witnessed these. Apparently she becomes much more talkative at my friend's house. I guess she figures we are stuck with her and there is no need to try to impress us. :) She also is very good at pointing to what she wants.

- She is very shy around people she doesn't know and large crowds, which is very different from her brother, but around us and those she is familiar with, she is pretty animated. It kind of makes you feel special when you see how quiet she is around others and know that if it were just you, she would be talking up a storm.

- She loves her family, but especially, her brother and her Daddy. She prefers me over others, but if Brian is around she does not want me at all. We were in a restaurant the other day and I was holding her. She saw him across the room and started fussing, pointing at him, and trying to get down. It is pretty sweet to watch her with Brian and see how excited she gets when he is around. Her other favorite person is Noah. They love each other so much and love to antagonize one another maybe even more. Esther seems all sweet and innocent, but the first thing she does when Noah wakes up, is go after his prized toy and act so proud of herself and victorious when he is screaming and crying that she is taking his stuff. It is a tiring but funny battle to watch.

- Her favorite toy right now is a purse that she got for her birthday that plays music and has a phone, mirror, bracelet, and credit card in it (starting her off early). She loves to pull all the pieces out and put them back in. Her favorite one is the phone and she loves to take the bracelet on and off too. She LOVES to dance. Anytime music is playing, she is dancing and when it stops, she will scream to let you know that she wants it back on.

She has been such a joy to have in the past year. She has always been sweet and kind of quiet, but in the last few weeks, we are really seeing her personality emerge which is so much fun. She makes us all laugh. So far, she is not nearly as strong willed as her brother, but she definitely has a mind of her own and is not afraid to let you know it if you are doing something she doesn't like. I love this stage where they are developing into their own person and can't wait to see what she will be like. We love you so much Esther and can't wait to get to know you even better!!!