16 Months

Is Mira really 16 months already? It just seems so big and grown up to me! This age really is so much fun. I didn't think I would enjoy it as much as I am. A lot of people have told me that this was their favorite age for their kids to go through because it was so cute and so fun. I was skeptical at first - I was thinking I would enjoy the baby stage more. And that stage was fun, but I have to admit, so far this is the best!!! I just love it. Mira makes me laugh so much every day.

We tried putting her on a trampoline a couple weeks ago and predictably, she loved it! I of course was imagining her taking a tumble off the trampoline and sustaining a massive head injury with C spine involvement but of course she was fine. Here are a couple of videos of her "jumping" and running around on the trampoline:

And some pictures:

Mira has this fascination with straws - they make good teething toys apparently. She's been having a really hard time lately with these molars that are trying to come in. I think I counted 3 or 4 molars coming in simultaneously, and very slowly too. Plus she has a couple additional teeth also trying to get in. Her poor mouth must hurt so bad! :( An unfortunate side effect of this is she's started to bite people - I think it's unintentional because she's used to biting her hands and fingers all the time she just doesn't know that it hurts. And how could she? But still not good. Anyway, the point of all that is I have a big water mug that I bring to work with me and as soon as she sees it she yanks the straw out and starts chewing on it. I have some random pictures:

And one completely random picture of her. This dress was a present from my Aunt Ellen last year and she finally fits it - so if you're reading this, thanks for the dress Aunt Ellen! The color is perfect for her. :)

One reason for all the random pictures is I got a new digital camera and I'm trying it out to see what sorts of pictures it takes on different settings. So far I like it a lot. It's a 16.1 megapixel camera, compared to my old one that's 7.2, and it's quite a bit faster. Plus it records HD video. I upgraded in anticipation of our big trip coming up in less than 2 weeks. When I think of our trip now it's with a mixture of disbelief (because it's coming up so fast), excitement (because it's coming up so fast), and panicked anxiety (because it's coming up so fast). The panicky feeling comes from the thought of leaving Mira. We have the babysitting all figured out - except for one night and a couple of days, she'll be able to stay at home with people she knows so that will make it easier on her. In my head I know that she'll be fine - she's social, she's adaptable, she's happy, and kids overall are very resilient. I know she'll be fine - but I just get so nervous and scared because I'll be leaving her, and for so long. I need to just stop obsessing about this but I'm a mom and I'm leaving my only baby for the first time so I guess it's to be expected that I'm going to freak out.

One final video - Mira was at my mom's and she found a basket. The way she does this is all girl!