19 Months Old: What's Happening

Mick and I think Emily is the smartest, sweetest and most beautiful little girl we've ever been around, but this month, it seems like more people are beginning to realize that as well :). We've started receiving compliments on Emily's manners and her personality this month. One morning this week, her teacher told me the mother of a little boy in her class was talking about how smart Emily was, and said "her mom must work with her a lot at home." There's nothing I've ever heard that made me prouder than that! What's funny is that we don't think about it as working with her, but we're constantly talking to her and she's learning new words and phrases. I'd say she easily has a 100 word vocabulary, but I think I need to be keeping track of her words a little better so I know for sure. I started making a list and quickly thought of more than 80 words off the top of my head that she uses without us prompting her. Mick has been working on the alphabet with her since she was a newborn--she says "A-B-C" and "1-2-3" but doesn't go past those yet. There aren't many things we say that she doesn't repeat, and she knows shapes, colors, and (of course) animals. She's even told us "love you" a time or two, repeating us.

Her favorite phrase right now seems to be "oh no!" and she'll say it any time she sees something broken or torn, or if anything seems out of place. It's so cute, and has taken the place of "uh oh."

Emily rarely wants to ride in the stroller when we're out and about. She would much prefer to hold hands and walk. When she gets tired, she'd rather be carried than have to be strapped in. Fortunately, she doesn't protest the stroller too much when it's been a long day and she's tired.

She moves with great confidence, no matter what she's doing--climbing, running, jumping or dancing. It's amazing how quickly she seemed to progress from crawling to cruising to walking to sprinting!

She loves animals, and I can't help but think part of that is because of Gracie and Bella--she's completely fearless, and thinks every animal wants to be cuddled like they do.

Emily is also getting better and better at crafts, and I hope that doesn't change (since I love it as much as she does)! I really like that she gets to make so many art projects at school. Here are a couple of her fall creations!

Obviously, she had some help with the jack-o-lantern jar candle, but she sure enjoyed painting pumpkins this month!

Em continues to be a good eater, but there have been some nights when she doesn't want much of anything, and we think it's because of her teeth coming through. Here's an after dinner shot one night when she wsn't shy at the table--which is quite apparent by the stains on the front of her shirt!

She's been very healthy this fall (I'm almost afraid to write this), and we're hoping that her little immune system will stay strong this winter.

Every month gets more and more fun with our little adventurer, so we're really looking forward to the rest of the fall, and finding some things to get into this winter!