Fifteen Months old

Many times moms will reflect on how old their kid is and say.... 'where did the time go?'
Not me, not this month. It seems like G should be a lot older than 15 months--it seems she's been around a lot longer than a year + 3 months.

She's a regular part of the family, and only if I try very hard can I imagine life before her. Because I stay home with her every day, she feels like an extension of myself. I don't often worry about her, because it seems like I've developed a sixth sense. I can almost always tell what's wrong with her, even though she's not great at talking. I can hear the difference in her words, even though they probably all sound like 'da-da' to anyone else. I guess it's just a mom thing.

Anyways, she's growing right along and the official measurements from her well-child check-up are:
Height: 30.5"
Weight: 21.5 lbs

Tooth Count: 4 top, 2 bottom, 1/2 of a top molar (the outer half is clear of her gums, but the inner half is still covered), & G has been cutting a bottom tooth for a few days now. I'm not sure if it's sharp (and clear of the gums) yet, because I don't want to get bit! She also has bulging gums at the site of the other 3 molars.

She still wears a size 4W shoe (regular fours DO NOT fit her) and size 18 month clothes. The doctor, whom I do not like (I miss our KS doctor so much), said her numbers are very average, despite many peoples' comments that she is very small.

Here are some facts about 15 month old G---Sleep:

G sleeps from about 8 pm until 7 am (if i'm lucky). She naps about 2 hours around 12:45 - 2:45 pm. G usually whines or cries a bit when I put her down for sleeping, but puts herself to sleep very well on most nights. She gives her stuffed animals hugs and kisses and 'puts them to bed' before she goes down for a nap or night time. G is very in tune with her bed time routine and can 'direct' it. That's why I'm at such a loss for how to ween her.

Eating:

She nurses at nap and bed time, eats 3 meals plus several snacks. She drinks almond milk and water. Sometimes she gets 100% juice (watered down). She eats cheese and yogurt, but has never had cow's milk to drink. She knows where her food is kept and how it gets cooked (ie: the waffle is in the freezer and goes in the toaster first).

Favorite foods:

• All Beef / no nitrates added Hot Dogs. She'd eat them at every meal if I let her.
• All natural Chicken Nuggets...how do kids end up trying, and loving these things? I don't know.
• Strawberries. Again, she'd eat them for BLD.
• Waffles and bananas. If I try to give her one without the other, she's not nearly as happy as she is with the combo.
• Peas...still a favorite from months ago.
• GRAHAM CRACKERS

New foods she likes:

• taco meat went over pretty well
• blueberry muffins
• pasta with sauce - cheese or tomato
• Zucchini off the grill
• Corn cut off the cob
• non-cheerio cereal (I don't let her have those often because of the sugar content, be she looooves cocoa puffs just like her momma)

Behavior:

G loves bath time with Daddy and is learning to brush her teeth (thanks to her Winnie the Pooh toothbrush and 'training' toothpaste). G loves watching Caillou and tries to say his name. She likes Gilbert their cat and Rosie the baby sister. She behaves great, most of the time, but church is a real struggle. She knows what she is and is not allowed to do. She respects no, even though it makes her mad to hear it. She's gone in the potty once, but sits on it several times a day. She knows she doesn't wear a diaper on the potty and she knows she is supposed to sit there for 'a while.' She also knows what toilet paper is for. G loves my hair brush and glasses case. She does not like it when I am getting ready and not paying attention to her.

Favorite games:

• Building with blocks independently
• Pretending to go 'night-night' (I love her new found snuggle-y-ness)
• Exploring new cabinets, especially the water bottle ones
• Peek-a-boo and hiding dolls under a blanket
• Singing LOTS of songs: Winnie the Pooh, Little Bunny Foo-Foo, Itsy Bitsy Spider

Favorite chore:
Cleaning out the dishwasher. I plan to take a video of her doing this...she is such a big helper. She knows where everything goes and she knows what momma does and what G does. It's actually her favorite time of day. She loves to close it when we are done and she also likes pushing the start button when I tell her it's time to.

Vocal Skills:

G understands almost anything you might say to her (within reason, obviously)--she's very bright. She communicates very well, despite not having many words.

Words:

• Daddy
• Momma (rarely said)
• Winnie the Pooh (hard to tell)
• Drink
• buh-bye
• Strawberry (doesn't really sound like it though)
• Dar Dar
• Grammy/Grandma/Grandpa (all sounds the same)
• Her please sounds more like thank-you...it's like she knows they go together, but says "tttuuh tuuh" when you ask her to say please

Animal Sounds:

• Woof-Woof (dog and cat, wolf, small bear...anything that resembles a dog)
• Roar (lion, tiger)
• Eeee-eee-ooo-ooo (monkey)
• Snort (pigs)
• Tweet-Tweet (birds...this one is rare and more often sounds like tuh-tuh)
• Moo (cow...this is her newest one, has only been said a few times, and sounds like mmmmuh)