14 Months

I'm late, as always.  This month was full of sleepless nights, picky eating, lots of sign language, testing her limits and she's got two teeth coming in (I can feel the little nubs but they haven't poked through yet!).  Agh, I can't imagine more than a two teeth smile - it is going to be SO WEIRD.

This month was also tough because a week ago I got sick (the worst cold ever), and it hung around for a long time (I still don't feel that great), the baby got it and in the midst of taking two days off of work I had a student die.  Yep, one of my students died.  For the first time in 14 years, I lost a student.  I still don't know how I feel about it but I will attempt to put it into words.

This student of mine, I knew very well because he was in my junior English class last year, failed, and was repeating my class this year as a senior.  I will never understand why they put students back in the same class with teachers that they failed with, and tried to have him removed and put in night school (a place for students to make up credits).  He failed my class last year due to attendance and this year I maybe saw him for 5 days since school started (and we were in our 5th week when he died).  He had so many absences and when he was attacked, at his house (allegedly), it was while he was supposed to be at school, the Tuesday after Labor Day.  Without saying too much more I am saddened by his passing, of course, saddened by the area that we teach in (we are in an inner city school in the middle of a neighborhood where I am the minority) and deeply saddened that our district doesn't have an attendance policy that would have made him take school more seriously so he would have been in class that day.  He was also really successful in an activity outside of school and had the attitude that he didn't need to graduate from high school because he was so focused on this goal - something else that the adults in his life maybe should have worked harder about stressing the importance of.  I miss him every day in my 8th hour and even though he strolled in late, when he did come, and was a huge disruption I would give anything to see him waddle through that door (you know, because he sagged his pants).  Our school, students and teachers were definitely shaken by his passing.

Now, on to Lemon!  Some days of note (and this time I remembered to write things down!)

8.24.13          You wanted a whole cob of corn all to yourself and actually got two of them to gnaw on.  You thought it was just the coolest thing and kept teething on them and wiggling them around.

8.28.13          I let you play with the small change jar that we have in our closet.  I stood right next to you while you were playing and you knew not to eat the change (I taught you that before).  The next thing I know you dumped all of the change out all over our hardwood floors and I had to pick every piece up, before work, one by one!  You sat in the change, loved it, and wiggled your legs around; you thought it was the best.

8.29.13          You picked up a stuffed doll, out of your toy bin, and talked to it and carried it all around the house.  This is the first time you've been into a doll or anything stuffed.  You looked at its face and laughed at it.

Today while we snuggled on the couch and watched Tangled you smiled during the song when Rapunzel leaves her tower and I looked at you, with that huge smile on your face, and I cried because it was just so cute.  A moment I've waited a long time for.

You didn't cry when I left for work today when Ashley came over.

You said "hot" today when you touched a hot french fry while out to lunch with your Nani and Ashley.

You said "bye bye" for the first time when we waved to Tom and Judy at the end of your Pat the Bunny book.

8.31.13          You started signing "please" for everything.  It's hard to figure out just what you want because everything is "please" but you don't know any other signs that go with it.  (You can sign please, milk, bath, more and water now.)

9.1.13            You said "water" when we were trying to teach you the sign for water.

9.2.13            You are super dramatic when you take a tumble or fall down.  You cry and make sure that we know that you bumped your head.  You have had some great face plants but you are also getting really good at catching yourself.  The best is when you fall and then do a sort of roll, that really makes you mad but it is oh so cute!

She hates the part in Tangled when Maxiums (the horse) kicks Flynn Rider in the stomach.  She cries every time!

Video:

When we tell you "no" you make a scrunchy face, you scrunch up your whole face and your nose and throw your head back and let out a cry (more like a long whine) and sometimes I tell you "no" just so I can see you do it.

You are super ticklish under your neck and when we kiss or blow raspberries there you laugh out loud.

The last two nights I've fed you and then handed you to your Daddy and you went to bed earlier (than 9) both times.  Maybe it's me keeping you up so late?

9.3.13          You went to your first movie with us, Monster University.  You were so good, you just sat and watched in the back row of a super crowded theater.  You started getting antsy at the end and wanting to talk but we just fed you snacks and you were quiet.  Snacks are key for 1 year olds at the movies!

 

For the past three days you've gagged yourself at the end of dinner, shoving your whole hand in your mouth and almost throwing up.  It is so gross and we've told you to stop but you have done it for three nights now.  I had to google it to find out if it's normal (it is) and luckily you haven't done it since.



9.4.13          When I see you in the morning or when you pause from climbing all over me and you turn and say "hi" in your sweet, little voice it is my absolute favorite.

9.6.13          When you want to see something, or when we are looking at something that you want to look at, you climb up or walk over to us and look really closely at whatever it is and furl your brows.  You also do it with little characters in your books (like a mouse off to the side) and sometimes you say "heeey," smile and point at whatever it is.

Today I watched you follow Zipper around and when she stopped you smacked her a couple of times (pet her).  You also said "hi Zip" (hi Sip) and "hi Sinus" (Linus).  Cutest thing ever that you go up and pet the dogs.

9.9.13          Today you couldn't find the plastic, pink flag topper that goes on your Little People princess castle so you took one of the pink chairs and put it where the flag was supposed to go instead, just because it looked similar.  You are so smart.

You hate stringy stuff like hair, yarn or cords.  You always pick them up like they are so icky and toss them aside.
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Sleepless nights make for cute pictures:

 

 

Still nursing, STILL nursing (and asks for more milk when there isn't more in my boobs, at the moment, and I have to give her a bottle).

 bed time music

We try to keep her busy after school (and after her second nap, before dinner):

 

Hot, summer walks

 

mall walks

 

 This little straight leggies, I die!


Impromptu swim session because she wanted to just walk right in while Ian was cleaning the pool!

And bath time with Ian has become her favorite.  She runs down the hall as fast as she can (walks really!) and tries to climb in with him before he lifts her.  She can even sign "bath!"

And, splash pad Fridays (I will be so sad when it gets too cold to go!):

 

 

 

 

Ashley, our nanny, and Lemon are becoming besties and Lemon doesn't cry every day when I leave now.  I love it and we are SO lucky to have Ashley, I don't know what we'd do without her!

 

Two teacher nerds at work.

At Gymboree, not our nanny's arms - this is another mom!

Sometimes Lemon gets a bath in the sink after breakfast (yogurt is messy!).

 

And on Fridays we get a lunch visitor!  I LOVE it!

Weekends and holidays are still my favorite: 

 

 

Trips to the mall, Target and the grocery store . . .

 

 

This girl must have gone through this sign over 30 times.  She was SO proud of herself and we clapped and said, "Yay" every single time!

 

 

 This little fish is getting better and better at swimming!  We let go of her now, when we dunk her, and she swims to the surface and finds the wall herself!  It's AWESOME and she's almost ready for the level 2 class!

 

 

 And impromptu zoo day with some of our IG friends!  Lemon didn't want to leave the splash pad and we stayed until it closed!

Even had a chance to get together with some of my favorite people!

We had our first real monsoon rain here so of course we had to take Lemon out to play in it!

Labor Day fun after the movies:

 

 

And right after we were recovering from this stupid cold (that I swear lasted for 2 weeks) we got a chance to play a family looking for a house on a "sizzle reel" for my besties, the twins' reality show!  It was fun!

 

Oh Lemon, you are growing oh so fast.  Every day you look, and act, more and more like a big kid than a baby and I'm starting to forget the baby version of you.  You are so spunky, independent and entertaining - we are loving every minute we have with you, even if you still haven't gotten this sleeping thing down.  We love you, little Lemon, stop growing up so fast!