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I wanted to write a quick post ( as quick as this type of posts can be) about BABY SIGNS.

I was first introduced to the concept by some TTC books I was reading before we got pregnant and then saw a real life example in my friend’s daughter who was a little over a year at the time and using signs freely.

I always thought it was a good idea and was very excited about it, but I didn’t realize how truly awesome teaching your baby sign language can be until Alexis signed her first signs.

I am sure by now everyone has heard of BABY SIGN LANGUAGE, a system that allows your baby to become an effective communicator well before they are actually capable of using real words. This is made possible by the fact that their language center is developed pretty well before they can make their mouth pronounce words. Your baby understands everything, he just can’t say it. Many kids, in fact, invent their own sign language. Signs for hi and bye, yes and no are nothing more than sign language.

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BABY JOGGER

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The other day I decided that we needed to get out more on the weekends, rather than try to cram as much housework as we can, along with blog work, along with family time. I said “Pfftt! Housework! Who needs a clean and organized house anyways!?” (that’s my philosophy lol) “Let’s go to the lamest freaking bbq show in the worst part of town!”

Ok, I didn’t know it was going to be lame! Or that it’s in THAT part of town. Or that the “petting zoo for kids” meant a lizard and a tired panther in a cage.

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So when Alexis started walking with support at 9 months, she walked with us holding both her hands. She was fast and excited and loved it so much that was all she wanted to do.

Soon she wanted more independence and had to ONLY hold one of our hands. At 10 months she started taking independent steps, but inconsistently, so her main form of transportation was still by holding onto our finger for balance.

Needless to say that was ROUGH on our backs. We are 5’11″ and 6’4″. To get down to her level in order to hold her hand, we really have to bend. Our backs started feeling it, so we attempted to straighten out a bit which was possible by tilting our body while holding one of Lexi’s hands. (hello, one-sided back pain!)

Then the real walking started. See, Lex wasn’t like some babies who carefully take step after step, lower themselves slowly. No, she was like the other type of babies, who sort of just take off and run. NO stopping, NO walking, NO lowering herself down. If she were to fall, it’d be a face plant, no doubt.

- Lexi, say hi to tile floors!

- Tile floors, say hi to Lexi!

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The long awaited walking videos.

As I wrote in the 11months post, Lexi started walking full time {with support} at 9 months and then with one hand + first independent steps at 10 months and then full on ran throwing our hands aside at 11 months.

Here is the progress video of what it all looked like.

I cannot believe what a chubster she was before she started walking (i.e. in the first shots)

And if you don’t want to waste time looking at how she arrived at walking, you can check out her toddling around for the last 2 weeks.

Complete with head shakes, belly rubs, flashcard kisses, stumbles, screams and lots of running and falling into things. Hit change quality to view it in HD or less fuzzy.

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I don’t know where to start. Again.

Again. You’ve blown our minds.

Yes, we are first time parents so our minds are pretty easy to blow. But you’re still a rockstar, regardless of anything.

At 10 months 6 days exactly you took your first independent steps. The next day you ran from mommy to grandma, and back. Then to daddy and back. By midmonth you were taking 10 steps on your own. They were wobbly and were more like running than walking- you were in the process of falling and catching yourself over and over again, which is what walking is, essentially. You spent this last month doing nothing but walking holding onto one of our hands. You don’t like holding two hands. Oh no, you push the second hand away and walk with pride holding onto only 1 finger. Crawling is long abandoned.

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I have a soft spot for Tiny Love. It’s the first company that I discovered that is conscious of toxic chemicals in children’s products. It’s the first company that I started obsessing over when I saw all their products. It’s also one of the first companies that was added to my baby registry.

For the first few months we used ( and destroyed) our favorite Princess Gym that was a gift from American grandma. It was probably THE most used accessory in the house. By the time Lexi “grew out of it” developmentally, we had nothing but the mat left. All the toys had been carried around and taken with us so much that the gym no longer served as that. Then it was time to buy a bigger mat for Lexi to play on before she started crawling.

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Two years ago I was lucky enough to have a ton of time on my hands, a passion for photography and countless fun times. So when I participated in Ashley’s Memories, Dreams, Reflections, there was a lot to reminisce about. The next year that followed was all about my pregnancy and, honestly, I couldn’t even think about anything but the upcoming birth, so I skipped MDR.

This year, however, is perfect! It was simple, different, somewhat uneventful, but at the same time HUGE when it comes to our roles as parents and our baby girl. So here is a look back at what 2012 had in store for us, based on the prompts provided by MDR 2012.

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This Christmas things were a bit different than normal. For one, we were ALL sick with a wicked flu/cold/bronchitis/whatevertheheckitwas, except for Lexi who only got some runny noise. Needless to say it was hard staying in the holiday spirit when phrases like “I really think I am dying” were being uttered multiple times by both of us. Luckily, my mom was there to help us and we’ve survived our first sickness with a baby. Caring for a baby when you feel like death really sucks. I’ve heard it before but it really rings true when you feel it yourself.

Despite the not-so-holiday sickness, we thoroughly enjoyed Christmas. Not as much as we could have, had we been functional, but it was still baby’s first Christmas  which meant cute dresses, fragrant trees, lots of light and presents.  She was so adorable point at the tree and the lights outside and showing the sign for “light”.

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{Edit: video is now uploaded below}
I am not sure if every mother feels the same way, but while the traditional milestones are so much fun and cheered on and anticipated, there are other types of milestones that are so much more special to me.

First meaningful kiss for mommy, first snuggles, first look of adoration, first baby sign, first bouncy dance to music….

This month we have hit one of the most adorable milestones I can think of that I can actually share with the world. Alexis can now sing!

She sings with me, after me, on her own. Using her high voice and her low voice, carrying the melody and dancing with her hands. She sings in her high chair when she’s had a good meal. She sings while playing with toys.

I am honestly in awe of this person growing up in front of me. She is SO much more than anything I ever imagined. It’s truly a miracle watching her grow, and I am not a sentimental person.

She’s always been very expressive from the very beginning (refer to the talking video at 3 weeks), but this is just “too much”!

See for yourself!