Sophia Is 11 Month Old Today!

Proud mama with both babies


Standing up by herself


Learning to stand up using the bed in the guest room


Sitting on a potty chair


Bath time with brother Gerritt

Sophia is 11 months old & I am starting to think about her 1-year birthday celebration. We had a big 1-year birthday party for Gerritt, complete with cake & professional photos while wearing traditional Korean clothes. I want to do something as special for Sophia, just because her 1st birthday is the first of many milestones to come.
She is now trying to stand up, usually while reaching for something she is not supposed to have (e.g., a TV remote control or one of Gerritt's books). Sophia stands for only a few seconds before plopping back down, but the standing episodes are becoming more frequent. She has discovered Spike's water & food bowls & has already spilled the water twice. She was fascinated with dry dog food & my husband & I caught her eating it a few times. What a face! :-) Sophia's crawling has gained speed & she is able to follow us around the house with ease. Sometimes we get panicky because it is too quiet & we realize Sophia is not in the same room with us. After frantic, "Where is the baby?," we usually discover her quietly playing in the bathroom with a plastic tub full of bath toys or in Gerritt's bedroom pushing the buttons on the radio-clock.
Sadly, Sophia too has a preference for Mommy. She will put up with my husband, but if I am in the room, she wants to be held by me. Sophia doesn't really like to be held for long periods of time since she is always on the move. She has learned to be more independent since Gerritt is still so young & needs his "Mommy fill" often.
Sophia's loves to take baths & has been bathing with Gerritt lately. They play surprisingly well together. Usually when I give Sophia a bath, Gerritt wants to join too, so I just decide to "kill 2 birds with one stone."
Sophia likes to read books, however, is more interested in eating them. So our reading selection has to be limited to the books with thick pages that can withstand Sophia's sharp teeth. She loves the Baby Einstein Mirror Me! book, but is terrified of the textured book about animals. She just looks at the lion's face on the first page & starts to scream in fear.
I've started to put Sophia on the potty chair, usually after her naps. I've had mixed results, but was really encouraged when she pooped there once. Only my husband's loud protests have kept me from taking a photo & posting it on the blog. I guess, after working in the healthcare field for almost 10 years my boundaries of what is appropriate to share are blurred. :-)

"My daughter is everything I never knew I always wanted." ~ Tim Sentner