14.5

I missed Kate's 14-month update, so here's a catch-up post.

Kate's one-year molars have all arrived.  Ouch.  Her poor gums look awful.  Combine teething with the inevitable diaper rash and the one-nap transition and a fall cold and...ouch.  Poor baby.

Kate is way too active to be sick and miserable, though.  She's an explorer and a thinker and a doer--a super busy toddler--but she's so happy.  She's completely delighted with herself when she climbs onto the chairs or the table.  She squeals and giggles when she makes it into a laundry basket, on top of a bed, or onto the couch.  She is just so proud of herself when she wrestles open a cabinet or drawer and empties the space of its contents. Splashing in the toilet fills her with joy, as does emptying the wipes container and dumping out the goldfish crackers. If you wonder why so many of these photos are of her backside, it's because she won't hold still long enough for a face shot.  (And her ruffle bum is cute.)

  

Kate is happy.  She laughs and grins and crunches her nose and claps and waves in the most darling of ways.  She's friendly; she says "hi" to everyone we see.

  

Kate is a cuddle bug.  She loves blankets and pillows and snuggles and stuffed animals and baby dolls.  She adores her binky and her bunny (we have enabled the poor child). She likes to sit in the little rocking chair in her room and look at books. She does not like me to read to her, however.  She prefers her own space and her own pace.  Sometimes she'll shut herself in her room and sit with her books.  Kate is also spending my get-ready-in-the-morning time in her crib with books and toys, since I can hardly trust her to roam the house at will.  She's just fine with that, and she tolerates the YMCA child watch again.  Bonus.

Kate clearly doesn't miss a beat around here.  She can follow instructions and runs around with a clear sense of purpose.  She knows what we want, and she knows what she wants.  The frustrating thing is that she can't SAY what she wants.  Kate is slowly moving out of the screeching stage, where she shrilly screams whenever she needs something.  When she shrieks, I ask her to use her soft voice--and she does!  We are working on words and signs with her, but so far, no luck.  I have a feeling that when Kate's words show up, they'll start pouring out and never stop.

Kate's hair is really growing.  I think her pigtails are really fun.  Her hair is much thicker than Lexi's (and mine), mostly straight, and much darker than her towheaded siblings. She lets me do stuff with it, and she likes standing on the toilet and looking in the mirror while I play with rubber bands.  I'm not really a "cute hair" mom, but I do prefer that my girls' hair doesn't flop in their eyes.  And rows of pigtails work on toddlers with mullets.

Kate's favorite place is outdoors.  Her favorite things in our yard are the trampoline, the ladders on the play structure, and the wagon.  And balls.  She LOVES balls.  She rides in the wagon to the mailbox nearly every day, and on days when we walk around the block (or two), she is content to ride for a long time.  She grunts and points to the big kid bikes and scooters and boards and sticks, but it'll be a while before she can use those.  In a house full of big people, it won't take Kate too long to catch up.