Leah at 18 Months

Today our sweet little princess turns 18 months. 18 MONTHS! I, for one, can't believe that this little gem has been in our lives for a year and a half...it has gone by way too fast.

• She has a little obsession with shoes. In fact, she LOVES them and spends a good portion of her day in the closet pulling them out and bringing them to us. When it is time to go somewhere, she will go and pull hers out and bring them to me to put on. I love her face when she finally has them on and is all ready to go. She definitely a girl!
• Lately, she has been incredibly clingy to either me or Doug. Seperation anxiety has definitely entered her world and she does NOT like to be around people that she doesn't know without her mom or dad. There are certain people that she is comfortable with, but all in all, she pretty much stays by my side when we are somewhere unfamiliar and won't let anyone hold her who she doesn't know. Otherwise she will cry, cry, cry.
• She is SO strong willed! Oh my...I've never seen someone so small be so strong willed. If she doesn't get her way, then watch out! We're working on it.
• She used to be a really picky eater, then she hit a point where she ate pretty much anything and everything, and now she is back to being a picky eater! It can be so frustrating sometimes when we sit down for a meal and she doesn't eat anything that we give her. Or she will grab her food and throw it on the ground and give me this look...a look that says I just don't care what you do, mom, but there is no way I am going to eat that. Again, we are working on it.
• She and Noah have such an amazing bond with one another. Noah looks out for her and they really play so well together. Noah is starting to share with Leah, and Leah is all over this because she would much rather play with his toys than her own. I love it when they are playing and chasing one another around all while laughing so hard that they can hardly breath. It makes me smile every time!


• She is starting to say so many words and copies us when we ask her to say words back to us. I am amazed at how well she has been communicating with us lately. If we ask her if she wants something, she will either say "no"or nod her head for yes. Other things that she can say: I want more, I want down, bubbles {which is so cute!}, shoes {of course}, Mom, Dad, Noah {sounds like No-nah}, banana, hello, Elmo, cup, bowl, etc... I love hearing her cute little voice say actual words...love it!
• She knows all of her body parts, and I especially like it when you ask her "Where is your belly?" and she pulls up her shirt and sticks her little finger in her belly button.
• She is still and amazing sleeper, and I love her for it!
• She takes after me, Doug, and Noah and absolutely LOVES music! We pretty much listen to music all day every day, and I love it when she hears a song that she likes and she stops what she is doing and comes over to me and dances. I think I have a little dancer in the making!
• She has discovered the garbage can is puts everything in it...not good!
• She has a GREAT sense of humor and loves to do things that make us laugh. Whether it be walking around with a basket on her head, or putting the bubbles in the tub all over her face {this is a good one!}, or making funny sounds at the dinner table...she loves to get a smile out of us, and we love to see what she is going to do next to get that smile!

Leah ~ You have changed us all for the good and we couldn't imagine our lives without you. You make us all smile with all that you do and you have each of us wrapped around your little finger. You are so, so, so cute and we really can't get enough of you!