Happy Birthday, Maryn!

Here's Maryn checking out our new bookshelf. LittleTyke is like, "What?!"

Maryn turned 17 months old yesterday. I guess everyone forgot because we didn't receive any cards! Fortunately, Hope came to the rescue and took us out shopping, even buying Maryn two lovely gifts--two new pairs of sunglasses! And Maryn actually wears them! Here she is with Hope (also known as "Hepp" in Maryn-speak) at the mall.

Maryn's favorite store was Pottery Barn Kids, where she played in the little girl section with all the kitchen stuff, taking special interest in the shopping cart. We had a super great time visiting all the kids stores everywhere (Pottery Barn Kids in one mall, Babies R Us in another plaza, and The Children's Place in yet another mall).

Since Maryn is now 17 months old I feel I should do a special post about her development so that when our next baby is 17 months old I can compare them...lol, just kidding. Anyway, my blog seems to be the most reliable place to store this information.

Maryn weighs about 25 pounds and is moving into 18 months clothes. She has been wearing 18 months shirts quite well, but her pants are still 12 months. She has a long torso and arms and short little legs.

A week or so ago, Maryn had 12 teeth but this week she has gained a few more. Some molars are even coming through right now. It's pretty miserable and there seems to be no way of helping her find relief. She cried or whined all morning.

Maryn is Mommy's Helper and is starting to understand when to help and when not to help. She likes to be by my side when I do my hair, makeup and when I cook. She impersonates pretty much everything I do. She follows directions extremely well and will get me whatever I need, even if it is in another room--as long as she can reach it.

Maryn's vocabulary is astounding. She understands nearly everything we say, and speaks or signs 50 words or more. I'm not sure if everyone would understand what she is saying, but we do and that's pretty much all that matters. Some of her latest words are squirrel (sewel), choo choo, and one, two, three (hu-wun, thoooo, twee!).

Maryn has a bit of a jealous streak in her lately. She was even jealous of the apple pie I was holding in my lap yesterday. I hope this subsides a bit by the time her new baby brother or sister comes along. Here's hoping.

Maryn is doing great in the nursery and with babysitters or family members. She seems to have a pretty secure attachment and warms up to people pretty quickly. She'll give you a kiss if she's known you for an hour or two.

Maryn's favorite toys right now are her trains, her kitchen, and her stuffed animals. She has a new "lovey" every day. Sometimes it's her bunny, sometimes Tigger, sometimes one of her blankets, and today it was her elephant. It was elephant's first time being her lovey, so he is just elated. She gives each of her animals lots of love and attention. She loves to make food for her babies and her scary looking plastic velociraptor in her kitchen, too. She tucks them in and rocks them to sleep. Yes, she even rocks her velociraptor to sleep and feeds him "soup" or "pizza" probably every day.

Maryn hasn't been into crafts much lately, but she sure loves crayons and markers! She puts them in and out of their containers and takes the marker caps on and off, on and off. So craft time has been less exciting for me, but she loves it.

Maryn remains to be a fabulous eater. The only things she doesn't like are sloppy joes, anything barbecue-saucy, and ketchupy things. But if we give her sloppy joes, she will try them again and again, making her sour face every single time. I'm so glad she's willing to try things. If we put something new on her plate, something she's never seen before, that is the FIRST thing she tries. And she loves it. I have my mom, Donna, and the Gaddises to thank for the tips in feeding babies and children. As well as the nutrition class I took in college.

Maryn's favorite foods are cheese, pasta (especially pasta salad with pepperoni), and many other things as long as it's not the same thing too many times in a row. If I feed her peas two days in a row, she won't eat them the second day even if she loved them the first day. I guess she likes variety (she gets that from me).

All in all, Maryn is a sweet, smart, active, healthy and imaginative little girl. We enjoy her and thank God for her daily.