16 month newsletter

Dear Beatrix,
Today you are 16 months old! To celebrate we went to the mall and bought you some new shoes. Apparently you now have the same sized foot as your average 12 month old. We're very excited! It's actually getting easier to buy you shoes. When you first started walking the shoes you fit were crib shoes which aren't so good for playing in playgrounds and such. But now you are firmly in walker shoes, hurray!
Your vocabulary has exploded. You have about 30 or so signs that you use on a regular basis and another handful that you know, but don't use. You've also started to speckle your signs with some words along with a lot of babble, which is quite adorable. In general I think you will be a really vocal baby. When you want something and I am not there to get your water, milk, snack, toy etc. you will just yell until I see what you're shouting about. It's kinda funny, but I think it might get a little weary after a while.
You are still cosleeping with me and your daddy, and we continue to love it. My hair is still your lovie and you will push my face out of the way so you can play with my hair, so I often have to sleep with my back to you, to save the hairs around my face, which hurt the most when you lovingly stoke them. I also really appreciate how you use your feet to play with my hair too when you're sleepy. I'm starting to wonder if you are perhaps part monkey. Also also my sweet Love, I don't like your feet in my hair. I would love it if you would stop that!
During the night you still wake about once for a bottle. We still give you one. I am sure that many people would disagree with that, but oh well. You're a growing girl and you need all of the nutrition that you can get!
Speaking of nutrition. You are not much of an eater. Most days I can get you to eat a few bites of a meal, and one meal a day you'll go at with some gusto for 5 or 6 bites, but then you sign that you're all done and you push yourself away from the table. I see that you're still growing, but I wonder how. I guess there really is something to the air and love diet! It's always a guessing game to see what you'll like each day. What you love on Monday you'll hate on Tuesday. It's amusing and frustrating all at the same time. I have found that plain pasta, berries and pickles are standbys. Also anything you can dip. Oh, you love to dip your food, and often you'll dip things so delicately, which saves on the mess. Thank you!
I love to see that you are sprouting an imagination. You will often put your babies to bed all over the house on little blankets. The other day I gave you a bowl and a spoon and you spent most of the day walking around feeding your babies, the dog, the cat and mama, always commenting mmmm, mmmmm! It was very adorable. You've also taken to colouring and will run to the desk and do your adorable/ annoying demanding whine asking for a crayon so you can colour. So far your works of art are just faint scribbles since you don't push too hard with your crayons, and you'll carry your paper around for most of the day, but I've collected them all up and saved them. You still love music and adore your kazoo and recorder. I've also let you play more with your xylophone and you bang on it happily making noise. If you hear music from anywhere, you'll stop what you're doing and look for it. Daddy is convinced that your favourite band is Green Day, but I think you just like any music.
All in all, you are a total dream to parent. You've made this parenting gig so easy that Mama and Daddy decided that it's time for you to have a baby brother or sister. So, my Love, you're going to get a late Christmas present. We're sure that you're going to be a fabulous big sister!
love,
Mama.