18 Months Old

It seems each month I'm more and more behind on these updates. I'm not sure if anyone is even reading them, but I love looking back and reading about how they were at __ months old.

The girls are so much fun these days. I think they're to the point where I consider them to be more fun than work....most of the time. They are listening and following simple directions consistently and both trying to talk and communicate quite a bit. They are so full of personality and W and I are constantly amazed by their different strengths.

Lucy- You are so good at communicating to us what you want or need. You're starting to imitate anything and everything we say or do so we need to be careful around you. You are walking everywhere and just about running now too. You figured out how to stand up in the middle of the room without holding on to anything but first figured it out in the tub. We couldn't understand why you were so proud of yourself standing up until we saw how you managed it. You are such a great eater these days. If you told me that a year ago I would have laughed at you. One of your favorite foods is carrots. You are sleeping through the night about 50% of the time. The other nights you are up usually once and daddy sometimes has to climb in your crib with you to calm you down. This is the best way we've managed to keep you out of our bed. You now have 12 teeth including 4 molars. The only teeth you are missing for now are the canines. You're still wearing mostly 12-18 month clothing. Everyone keeps saying how much you are looking like your sister and I think it's because you're eating so well and gaining weight. You still love Elmo and seriously zone out when we turn on the T.V. We joke you get your love for T.V from your daddy because he was the same way as a kid. You love playing with the magnets on the fridge and puzzles. It's so fun watching you learn and grow.

"Cheese"

Playing with her Sesame Street cards

Getting ready for Mexico. 

Clara- You are getting so much better at walking. The physical therapist noted your balance was a little off and your right hip looked to be lagging behind the right when you walk, so we are seeing an orthopedic next week to check it out. Most likely it's nothing as you are improving so much every day, but we just want to be sure. You are walking all over the house with your sister and love carrying things with you. You love the little tins we have of pretend food (pineapples, peas and carrots, tea) and also the jewelry we have for you to play with. You finally got a molar and did so great with it. It didn't affect your sleeping at all but you're eating hasn't been great. You love your fruit but don't really like to try new things. I think you'd just eat fruit all day every day if we let you. You're trying to talk more and more but the accuracy is still lacking for sure. I love that you're trying more and gaining confidence in doing so. You are so thoughtful, kind, and sweet to your sister and you are always bringing her things. You always think of her and it's so incredibly nice. You love throwing things out in the trash and will walk 3 rooms away to do so if you have to. You are getting more and more brave in public. In music class you love picking up the instruments and strumming the guitar. You're venturing out more away from me and with the other kids. You're getting so big and smart!

Lovey on her head and fast asleep. 

Love that little face

The girls took their first trip to NYC this month and we had such a fun time at a children's museum. They are so much happier now that they are able to walk everywhere and get a little space from each other. This really helps with the fighting. They still have their moments, but the fighting lately has been much better. They are so into imitating everything the other one does and it's seriously so cute (and also seriously annoying at times, lol). They've discovered the dogs water dish and toilets so we are always on the lookout for water play around here.

In matching outfits with their buddy Jack. 

Helping Mama making guacamole

Passing out in the car is a regular occurrence with only one nap a day. 

16 Months Old

Another month has flown by and Lucy and Clara are another month older, bigger, and smarter. This month we celebrated their second Christmas and the girls really got into it. I made them a felt tree with ornaments that they loved decorating it day after day. They also loved the Frosty the snowman singing stuffed toy we have. They got into opening presents and loved all of their new toys.

The girls are still napping twice a day. Their typical day is something like: get up around 7 and nurse. Around 8:15 we go downstairs for breakfast. They take a morning nap from 9:30-11ish and then get their sippy cups with milk after. We do lunch around 12:15 and then they take an afternoon nap from 2:30/3-4:15ish and then have an afternoon snack when they wake up. We do dinner around 6:30, baths at 7:15 and then it's a story, nursing, and bed. I'm not sure when we'll go to 1 nap a day but I know the girls still need their morning nap so it might be a while. Lucy seems to need less sleep than Clara regularly. The girls definitely went through a growth spurt and are growing out of their clothes left and right. Things I just bought already don't fit. They're in mostly 12-18 month clothing. 

15 Month Pediatrician appointment

Going for a hike on a semi-warm day.

Lobster dinner on New Years Day. 

Early morning with Daddy. 

Everyone is working hard in the kitchen. 

Looking for our Christmas tree

Eddy helping the girls with their snack

The girls weren't a fan of Santa

Watching Daddy hang Christmas lights

Lucy and Clara are fighting and loving each other more and more. They both will try to bite and hit each other when frustrated but then will also comfort one another by sharing toys or giving the other one a lovey or paci. It's seriously so sweet. I would say they play nicely together about 80% of the time. If there's ever 1 of anything they will find it and fight over it. I guess that's what sisters do though. 

Lucy- Your little personality has really started to come out and it appears you're a sneaky little devil. You think it's funny to do things you know you aren't supposed to do and then have this great fake laugh that accompanies it. You've really gotten into walking and can take about 7-8 steps consistently before falling. This month was crazy for you with teething. You got 6 new teeth including 2 molars on the top popping through that I had no idea were there until I felt them the other day. I was so excited and surprised to find them there. For some reason when you're teething you get constipated so that's been a challenge recently. We refer to your little frequent poops as "butt nuggets." You're so much better for your physical therapy sessions and we're seeing real progress. This month was tough with eating because of all the teething, but you seem to be back in it. You love new foods and are a much more adventurous eater than your sister (for now at least). Your sleep was really bad at times this month but the past few days you've finally gotten back to going longer stretches. Your speech and language really took off this month and you are consistently saying 5-10 words and using about 10 signs. You are imitating like crazy and love to tell me my food is "hot" right before I take my first bite. You and your sister love to act silly together. You really got into Elmo this month and will try to sing the Elmo song yourself. You often will find one of our phones and start to try to sing the song as a way to tell us you want to watch/see it.

So many teeth coming in!

Clara- You're such a silly little girl. If we ask you, "where's silly Clara?" you'll tilt your head back and roll around on your back. It's so cute and funny. Your sister loves to join in on the fun. You're getting better at walking and give in to the peer pressure of your sister doing it so decide to join in. You can take about 4-5 steps consistently without falling. You definitely have to be in the mood though. This month you got 3 new teeth so now have a total of 8. You're working on molars and almost always have a finger in your mouth. Hopefully they will pop through soon and give you some relief. Teething seems to make you cranky and kills your appetite. This past month you also got sick for the first time and I think that also affected your appetite. You aren't very into new foods but love fruit, especially strawberries and pomegranate. You're more interested in using your silverware and will try hard to use a spoon or fork. You still slept pretty well this past month despite teething. There were a few nights that you woke up, but most nights you went your solid 11-12 hours. You have 2 words you say "yum-yum" and "hot" and you use about 10 signs consistently. This month you learned the signs for "up" and "help" and you are great at using them. You're also understanding so much more and following directions more consistently. You aren't really imitating consistently yet but hopefully Lucy will influence you there. You still love to play and are so focused during play. You have a great attention span and persist when frustrated. You're getting better at puzzles and love doing them with me. You also love Elmo and will try to sing the Elmo song with your sister.

I can't believe how fast time is going by. The girls really are changing from babies into little toddlers with personalities and preferences. I love watching all of the changes.

Fluoride

Now that the girls have teeth I've started thinking about fluoride. Our first pediatrician prescribed a multi-vitamin that contained flouride to use around the time the girls turned 6 months. I never gave it to them because they didn't have teeth so I figured there was no rush. I do know that our water isn't treated where we live, hence the supplement. 

I went to a baby expo around the time we were prescribed the fluoride and there was a pediatric dentist there. She highly recommended using it and said you can tell the difference with children who have had it. She also have us some really cool baby toothbrushes for free that we've recently started using. 

I read a few articles this morning about fluoride use and I think we will likely use it. I have horrible teeth and have had 2 root canals and really need to get a second crown. I don't want my girls to have to get as many fillings as I did as a child, but I'm pretty sure my mom hadus fluoride, so that's not the reason I had so many cavities. It was probably my lack of consistent and good tooth brushing and flossing. I did read though that flouride is linked to neurological damage (although not significant). 

So, I ask you, what's your take on fluoride? Do you give it to your children or is your water already treated? Are you skipping it altogether? 

Things are Changing Quickly

Lucy got her 2 bottom teeth in the past 24 hours. Yesterday I felt the bottom right front tooth and this morning the other front one had come through. She was amazingly well and didn't complain much. You can just barely see and feel them, but they are there. So, we will be celebrating their first birthday with teeth all around! So far they both have the bottom2. Clara's have really started to come in and I noticed the other night that she's learning to bite with them. 

Clara also started really crawling the past few days. She's been so close for so long and now she's officially on the go. I feel badly that Lucy is stuck in a cast while her sister is able to move and explore so much more. I've been debating making a referral for a physical therapy eval for when she gets the cast off. Both girls aren't exactly advanced physically and I know it wouldn't hurt. I'm thinking she might qualify if she hasn't yet relearned some things she was doing prior. 

We also have an appointment scheduled for an ENT next week for Clara. Her upper frenulum on her top lip is very tied. I want to get it looked at because I don't want it to affect her dentition. So, we'll see how that goes.

 Lots of exciting changes around here!