Ten months

I've written so much lately about Madeline's recent accomplishments that I won't belabor them here, but suffice it to say that the 10th month has been a whirlwind of activity. In mid-November she crawled for the first time, she started pulling up and she even sat up by herself.

Only a few weeks later she's almost forgotten about crawling as she attempts to walk everywhere. She only takes to her hands and knees begrudgingly when it become apparent that no one's going to help her walk. She shifts from crawling to pulling up to sitting as seamlessly and effortlessly as someone who's been doing it for years. She climbs steps tentatively (but is still getting the hang of going down).

A relatively slow fifth month forced me to think about adding new activities to our daily schedule. At 10 months Madeline seems to be doing new things every day - she's peeked behind the door of exploration and is getting ready to use her new mobility to kick it down and rush in. Today she led me on a walk around the front yard, stopping every five feet to bend down and inspect some weed or fallen leaf. I even taught her how to blow a dandelion - although the little seed puffs were attached too firmly for her gentle breath and she had better luck just shaking the thing.

Her energy level can be hard to match sometimes, but I'm so enjoying all of this. I'm excited to see what the eleventh month brings.

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10-month check-in

This month Madeline weighs 21 pounds, 3 ounces (with a dry diaper) and is 28.75 inches long. She's grown about an inch and a half since her last appointment, but last month's height was less than the previous month's, so something was awry. She's 12 ounces heavier, meaning she's put on just under a half-ounce a day (maybe some of that is holiday weight!).