GO!

I haven't done a Jilly post lately and since she is now 17 months old I thought it would be a good time. Since Jillian is our fourth child it is very difficult for me to not compare her to her older brother and sisters. I recognize that this is very unfair because not only is each child unique, but our family dynamic changed with each new baby and as everyone has gotten older. But I still compare her all the time, and I always say that Jillian is our CRAZIEST! I'm still not sure if she really is the craziest OR if the craziness is due to trying to keep up with older children and a toddler at the same time OR maybe I'm just getting old, but this baby wears me out!

Recently we have become concerned because Jilly still isn't really talking very much. She can babble mama and dada, but very seldom does she say them as labels for us or to get our attention. She mostly just grunts, yells, screams to get what she wants. But the week before last, she did finally learn a new word that I would say is her first word......GO! If you say "ready, set...." she will fill in a very emphatic "GO!" I can't remember what anyone elses first words were, but I will never forget Jillian's. It is so fitting because all she wants to do is GO!




Some other interesting tidbits about her at 17 months old:

TRICKS: (I've been trying to get some of these on video but I'm still working on it)

• if you ask her what a dog says she will pant and stick out her tongue


• she knows where her tummy and her "pretty hair" are


• she can sign "eat", "more", "baby", and "please"


• loves to blow kisses, clap, and wave bye-bye


• puckers her lips when she gives you kisses and make a kissy noise

FAVORITES:

• favorite foods (read the ONLY things she really eats) are chicken nuggets, yogurt, baby food (STILL), grilled cheese sandwiches, and french fries


• OUTSIDE - if there is a door open she will go through it and if you stop her she will throw a huge tantrum, she is SOOO much happier outside swinging, sliding, riding bikes (she loves Grace and Sabrina's bikes), or pushing her stroller all over the neighborhood
  she still has her binky and she is an ADDICT, we will probably need a 12 step program to take it away (for her and US)


• BINKY - she is an ADDICT, we will probably need a 12 step program to take it away (for her and US). The rule right now is she can only have it in her bed but she usually has one in her mouth and one in each hand while she is sleeping.


• BABY EINSTEIN - does a happy dance every time she sees that silly caterpillar


• BOOKS - we find her sitting on the bean bag chair reading books a lot lately when she is quiet, so much better than finding a mess
  

PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT:

• weighed 21 lbs, 10 oz at the doctor last month (16 months old)


• has 9 teeth fully out with 10-12 imminent


• has had several hair trims to get rid of the baby mullet, her hair is thin like Sabrina's with CRAZY cowlicks like Grace's


• has the LONGEST tongue, we laugh every time she sticks it out

OTHER THINGS OF NOTE:

• she is a horrible sharer and toy stealer - I know I'm not helping when I tell the older kids to give her what she wants so she will STOP screaming


• she has started to bite to get what she wants


• loves to snuggle and will pat your back and say "oooh" when you hold her


• LOVES Benson, Grace, and Sabrina. They are so good to play with her and sing songs with her and hold her and she loves (almost) all of it.


• RUNS as fast as she can the other direction when you say "come here" or try to pick her up when that's not what she wants which makes taking her places DIFFICULT


• some recent messes/disasters - dropped a bottle of nail polish on the tile floor which ruined 2 tiles, dumped out a bag of powdered sugar all over the kitchen floor, falls in the bathtub fully clothed on a regular basis, pulls the tablecloth off the kitchen table along with anything else on the table

There is never a dull moment with Jillian around!