HAPPY BIRTHDAY, KYLIE!

Happy Birthday to my Kylie Bean!

One year ago, we got the biggest (and best) surprise of our lives. My water broke as I was teaching 8th grade boys's health, and 6 hours later our baby girl arrived. She was 8 weeks ahead of schedule! I still remember that day like is was yesterday...It was scary and amazing and crazy all at the same time. When I close my eyes and think about it, I can bring back all of the emotions, the conversations, the shock, and the way Kylie looked (pink and crying) when she made her arrival. I remember praying with Jon that she would be healthy and big (that one was answered). I remember calling Molly relentlessly with questions about what to do. I remember telling my parents that we were going to try to keep her in for a few days, and then calling back an hour later to tell them that she was actually coming that night. WOW! How was that a whole year ago!

Last year on this day, I had a 4 pound 13 ounce teeny baby. Today I have a 24 pound almost toddler! Last year, Kylie was in an incubator in the hospital for Thanksgiving and many days after that. This year, Kylie is a thriving, room-air breathing, big girl who gets to spend Thanksgiving at her Grandma and Grandpa Barlow's house. What a difference a year makes. Last year, Kylie was sleeping 22 hours a day. Well, I guess not everything has changed! Just kidding, she only sleeps 15-16 hours a day now! :)

At one year, Kylie is still a very happy, sweet girl. She loves army crawling around and exploring her environment. Her favorite place to crawl is onto the shelf under the coffee table. She really enjoys her new toys, especially her musical table and her Elmo doll! She enjoys hanging out with mommy and daddy and other little kids. She is a social baby. She is still an excellent eater and sleeper, which we really appreciate. Her favorite food right now is apple sauce! And she still sleeps with her bunny...She gets so excited when she see him!

Her biggest dislike right now is just not being able to communicate. Recently, she has gotten a little whiney, and I think it is because she wants to communicate her needs but doesn't know how. I'm trying to employ the ignoring technique, but I must say that I am failing miserably. I'll keep working on it!

Kylie has met a couple significant milestones in the past month. She has finally started pulling up to a stand! It's exciting for me, but I can tell it is exhausting for her...She is carrying around like 24 pounds on a short, little frame afterall. I imagine it would be similar to me trying to stand up from a laying position if I weighed 300 pounds. I think that would be hard. I am also convinced that Kylie is now saying actual words. Her favorite consonant sound is still "da," but I am pretty sure that she is saying "dada" with purpose now. She says it a lot more when Jon is home, AND she always says it when he walks in the door. I also think she said "dog" today, although it sounded more like, "dob." Huey barked, and Kylie said, "dob." I said, "Yes. Dog." She proceeded to say, "dob" three more times. I tried to get her to say it again later, but she ignored me so who really knows. But one can hope! She is still army crawling...And she claps, wiggles, clicks her tongue and smacks her lips on command. Her sleeping and eating schedules are basically the same as last month, although I have started to let her feed herself more often now. She likes to feed herself bread, puffs, bananas and mandarin oranges. She is getting much better at the sippy cup...We're going to switch one of her bottle feedings to a sippy cup feeding soon. She is also still wearing 12-18 month clothes, size 3 shoes, and size 4 diapers.

It's with mixed emotion that I say, "Happy 1st Birthday, Kylie Bean!" Jon and I have been blessed with a wonderful baby, and the best year of our lives! I hope next year goes more slowly than the last!