sixteen months old - 06.27.2013

emery annabelle is sixteen months old!

emery jabbers a lot and i'm starting to understand more and more. she also tries to fit conversations in to what she knows. this week, when emery was eating quickly and swallowing food whole, i said to her: "emery, you need to chew." and she said: "ah choo!" and a few weeks ago, i was reading the names of the runners in a track meet on the tv and i said: "elinor" [kirk of UAB]. and emery made the trumpet sound of an elephant. when i was changing a very messy diaper, i said: "shoot!" and emery said: "shoes?"

it's getting hard to keep track of all the words she knows now. i think she's starting to put words together. in the morning, when we come out of her room, she says: "daddy?" and i say: "daddy's at work." and she says: "buh bye, daddy" complete with waving. she repeats herself a lot and will continue to say, buh bye, daddy, for the next several minutes and every time she notices blake's picture on the bookshelf. she also stands at the ottoman (the blockade to her play area) and says: mama! mama! mama! mama! mama! mama! even when i'm only 18 inches away at the table. so i sit on the floor with her, thinking she wants to read a book or do a puzzle with me, but really she just wants me nearby while she does those things herself. and (most of the time) i'm happy to oblige this little cutie.

for a while, her favorite lovie Peter (Rabbit) was called "paw-puh" but this has since changed over to "pee-pee." thankfully, she only talks about him at nap/bedtime. haha. and now when she prays, she says: "tee-too, jee ju" (thank you, Jesus). we're working on "amen" which sounds like "ah-ma." this week she's started to say "uh oh" more often, although some times it sounds like "oh oh."

her favorite things are dogs, cats, and balls. she can spot any of those three things anywhere. even a quick commercial on the tv for golf balls: "bahl bahl! bahl bahl!" or a little dog on the bulletin board at the doctor's office: "pup pup! ruh ruh ruh!" (over and over). at church softball games, she can see the softball being used in the game, the balls in the dugout, the guys playing catch warming up for the next game, and the guys playing basketball at the next court -- and she'll point out each and every ball she sees every time she sees it. last week, even the moon was a ball. :) so, tonight, we brought our own balls and she carried one in each hand and even shared one with her little friend (a third ball, not one of her two. haha.)

all four molars have come in and now she has a grand total of 10 teeth. i suspect the two on the bottom next to the middle two will be coming next, but i haven't notice the buds yet. her hair is finally starting to get longer - today i realized i could actually clip a bow in it - and it's definitely red. in the sunshine it's much more red than it looks inside.

i discovered a few weeks ago that she enjoys (prefers) to feed herself at mealtime. so i've been cutting up food and putting it in a bowl in front of her at the table, and she does great. for a while, i was concerned that this method would result in an upside down bowl on the floor (for good reason) but she actually (usually) keeps the bowls upright and on the table. i start with her least favorite and when she's made a good dent in that, i bring out the next course. i think she prefers to eat at her own pace (shovel shovel shovel) and all on her own.

at her fifteen month visit at the end of may, emery was 19lb 1oz (5th pctl) and 29.75in (25th pctl).