The biggest change for Nora Kate this month was being mobile! As I mentioned in her 10 month blog post, she was doing what Dawson called "booty scooting" to get to toys, but she was not officially mobile and crawling. Well, at 10 days after turning 10 months, she started crawling on June 24. And once she figured it out, she became a very fast crawler in no time! The day she started crawling, we had been at Dollywood all day, so she hadn't had much floor time. When we got home, I sat Nora Kate down on the kitchen floor while I prepared dinner. A little bowl of decorative pears caught her eye, and she crawled to these shinny pears! She was so proud of herself, and she hasn't stopped crawling since! The boys love that she is mobile, and they "play" with her more now-maybe it's just because she wants to be right with them and won't leave them alone!
Another change for miss Nora Kate this month came just a few days after she started crawling, she started pulling up to things really well! Her very favorite thing to pull up to is the train table because it's the perfect height and there are always fun toys there for her to see! She is also enjoyed her musical table more now that she can pull up to it!
Then right after pulling up she mastered the art of cruising! She cruises the train table, coffee table, couch, and now she has gotten stable enough on her feet that she has pulled up along the wall a few times too!
With all of this cruising we knew it was time to go to Stride Rite for her first pair of "real" shoes! On Friday, July 11 we took her there and she measured in at a 4 wide! I was excited to get to pick shoes from the girls side of Stride Rite-and to have more of a selection than silver, blue, or brown which is what we always end up with for the boys. She seems more sure footed in her shoes, and cruises even better and faster in them!
In the last week before she turned 11 months, she was even trying to let go and take steps on her own, but she hasn't officially taken her first step yet...although I know it is not far away!
She absolutely loves being mobile, and it is certainly keeping me on my toes! Now more than ever we have so many little pieces-thing lego pieces especially-in our playroom, so it's not as baby proof as it has been in the past. Nora Kate is soooo fast too, we have to keep our eyes on her all the time. Luckily Carter and Dawson, LOVE telling her "no mouth, Nora Kate!" every single time she tries to put anything to her mouth...so we have a couple extra sets of eyes ready to set her straight haha!
Nora Kate is doing all these big girl things, but at the same time she is still not sleeping through the night. She has had a few days this month when she only got up one time (YAY!), but she usually still gets up 2 times a night to eat. For most of this past month, she's been nursing 5 times in a 24 hour period, but in the final week of this month she cut back to just 3 times.
Speaking of eating, Nora Kate is a fabulous eater! She LOVES veggies and meat and fruit...IF she can feed it to herself! She isn't a fan of me feeding her anything off a spoon right now! That's completely fine with me because she actually eats a lot feeding herself! Her favorite breakfast food is pancakes, favorite veggie is carrots, favorite fruit is banana or apple, favorite meat is chicken, and favorite cracker is graham cracker (of course, because they're like a cookie!). We also offered her yogurt this month, and she LOVES it!
She's become quiet the little food shark though...if the boys have any kind of snack she crawls over and tries to take it from them, or opens her mouth, or just smiles sweetly until they give her some. She especially does this if they have fruit pouches or yogurt! I think she already has her big brothers wrapped around her finger!
Nora Kate is signing "more" more and more this month, but she doesn't sign it as often as Dawson did. Someone told me that generally girls don't do the signs as much as boys, but I wasn't sure...and it actually seems to be true. She will sometimes sign "all done" but really just prefers to dramatically shake her head when I offer her more food or ask her if she wants more.
She loves to clap and wave and she's started pointing her round little fingers at things lately. I absolutely love it when she clasps her hands...those sweet little hands!
Nora Kate celebrated her first 4th of July this month with a cookout, fireworks, and swimming. Speaking of swimming, she has had a lot of pool time lately! She enjoys being in her float in the pool and is usually pretty relaxed and just floats around in the water. She's attended a couple Mommy and Me Yoga classes this month with me and the boys. We've been to the zoo, Dollywood, several playdates, a couple of friends' birthday parties, and more during her 11th month.
A couple of days before her 11 months birthday she cut a third tooth on the top! It's not through very far, but it has cut through the gums! She acts like she's still working on another tooth (chewing her fingers and pushing on her gums), so I'm still on the lookout for a 4th tooth! Along the same topic, I'm not sure if I ever mentioned how much she LOVES when I brush her teeth! She loves it!
One more new thing for her, is the past 2 times we have left her in nursery at church, she has started to cry as I've left the room. This, of course, breaks my heart! I always go back to peek in the window, and she has cheered right up very quickly after I've left the room though!
Nora Kate is our precious little princess. She's such a happy, sweet baby! John, her brothers, and I could not love her any more! She has brought us so much joy! Preparations for her 1st birthday are well underway, and it's going to be super girl-y (but all boys invited will have fun too!). I'm excited for her party, but I dread her turning one! Nora Kate's first year has flown by even faster than Dawson and Carter's first years, and it makes me so, so sad! All the more reason to focus on treasuring each day of this final month of her first year because I will be back here posting her 1 year update before we know it!
So, here are her 11 month pictures:
"Hey Mommy, now that I can cruise, you don't really expect me just to sit in this chair for pictures, do you?!"
11 months
These month cards are so fun!
These three make me so happy!
Carter 2 years, Nora Kate 11 months, Dawson 5 years.
