Sophia is 17 Months Old

Sophia is 17 months old today, and I officially have a "walker."  She took her first steps two weeks ago, and she hasn't looked back!  Well, she does crawl once in a while, but for the most part, she prefers to walk ... and she is now starting to master running!  She wobbles once in a while, but I would have to say that she is pretty steady for someone who only learned to use her two feet and balance a mere two weeks ago.

And with this new-found independence, she has started climbing up on everything!  She loves to sit at the bar in our kitchen.

I don't mind if she SITS there, but she prefers to stand on chairs.

My girl knows how to accessorize. Beaded necklaces are a must, and she will often choose her own pair of shoes to go with her outfit (and put them on herself).

Sophia practices independent eating a lot these days.  She wants to use her own fork and feed herself.  And I let her.  Frankly, the idea of her making a big mess doesn't scare me simply because she hates a mess just as much as I do.  If one small crumb manages to stick to her fingers, she makes me clean it off before she will proceed.  She prefers to have a cloth nearby and will consistently wipe her mouth between messy bites of food.  

Yes, no meal will commence on her part unless she has a fork in hand.  And her aim is spot-on everytime.



Her vocaulary seems to be progressing more and more every day.  She prefers the "b" sound, and therefore, says a lot of "b words" -- ball, bubble, bye, burp, etc.  She will attempt any word that we ask her to say, and Sam would like all of the credit for teaching her to say "uh-oh!"

Along with her increasing vocabulary, her comprehesion is unbelievable.  She takes directives so easily and is so willing to comply.  She knows everything by name and tries to communicate with some words, but mostly gestures.

Sophia has gotten very good at puzzles, and even better with blocks.  She will stack them together (either wooden blocks or legos) and make gigantic towers. 

When she is done, she exclaims, "ta-da!" every single time!

Her final tooth (with the exception of her 2nd molars -- those will come in closer to 2 years of age) just broke through the gums yesterday.  I knew that it was going to happen soon because she refused to eat much for two days in a row and her normally consistent sleeping patterns were terribly interrupted.  This whole teething experience with her has been so difficult because all of her teeth seemed to come in at once.  Maybe it's better that way -- just to get it over with -- but it was hard to see her so uncomfortable.
 
Finally, her hair is starting to come in a little thicker, at least in some spots.  If you look closely at the picture below, you will see a little "duck tail" curl (or some fuzz) at the back.  Maybe she will have curly hair like her momma and sister???!!  Only time will tell ...
 
 

 
Next month marks a year and a half that Sophia has been a part of our family.  I have to think really hard to remember what it was like before she joined us because she seems to fit just so perfectly. 
 
Her and Samantha are absolutely "joined at the hip," and do everything together -- sometimes with verbal communication and sometimes with just inaudible cues.  They seem to understand one another so well, and often I find myself closing my eyes and relishing these moments, knowing how fast my girls are growing up and changing.