First Steps

My baby is 13 months old today, and I am making it official.  Staley has taken her first independent steps!!  Over the past week or so, Staley has been working hard on walking.  She loves to walk around holding onto just one finger.  If she falls, she insists on getting right back up.  (I love the perserverance.)  Staley likes to practice standing without holding onto anything.  She will take 3-4 steps from Zach to me and back again (over and over), but we help her get stable and get started.  This evening, Staley pulled up to standing at the wall in her playroom.  She let go of the wall and took 2 unassisted steps to get to her Little Tykes car.  Zach and I were both there to witness her feat of balance, stability, and coordination, and it was exciting.  By far the best part, though, was the huge, proud grin that Staley wore after arriving (vertically) at her destination.  So look out world--she's on the move!

Scrabble

S, O, A, L, H, R, E

If I were good at scrabble, I could take these 7 letters and come up with words better than horse or real or solar.  (And I'll be honest--it took me a few minutes to come up with those.)  Staley is not yet rearranging letters to form various words, but these are the 7 letters that she currently knows.  (She also knows 'C', but only when it is in the form of the Bear's logo.)  Staley can identify these letters and name them.  She loves when we are wearing shirts with words so she can point out the letters she knows.  (Lucky for her, BEARS has 4 of her known letters and happens to be plastered across a good portion of our t-shirsts and sweatshirts.)  So although not quite ready to compete in a rousing game of scrabble, she could at least look over my competitor's shoulder and give me an idea of a few of the letters they might be holding.

Lessons

I always thought that one of my primary roles as a parent would be to teach my children.  And it is.  But over the past year, I've realized that I do way more learning than teaching.  Simply observing Staley as she goes through her day has taught me some valuable life lessons. 

1.  Get excited about the simple things in life.  Joy can be found in almost anything.  (Like socks, for example.)
2.  Wake up happy.  It starts the day off right.
3.  If it doesn't taste good, don't eat it.
4.  A round belly and pinchable cheeks are cute.
5.  Clap for yourself.  It's healthy to be proud of your accomplishments.
6.  Feel free to show excitement about seeing someone you love.  It will make them feel good.
7.  Take off your shoes and socks.  Being barefoot feels better.
8.  Talk about what you love.  Excitement is contagious.
9.  Expensive toys aren't necessary.  There is more fun to be found in an empty box and some tissue paper.
10.  If you are not happy about something, let people know.
11.  A hug and a smile can turn someone's day around. 
12.  It's fun to make a mess.
13.  You never know unless you try.  How else will you learn that putting your face in the water lets you drink and bathe at the same time?
14.  If you want to break the rules, just do it with a cute smile.  Maybe you'll get away with it.
15.  You don't need to use a lot of words to get your point across.
16.  When things aren't going your way, it's okay to cry.
17.  Take time to smell the roses...and pet the cat and touch the balloons and empty the drawers and...
18.  Nothing feels quite as good as cuddling on the couch with someone and reading a book.
19.  Sometimes it's about the journey, not the destination.  If you just fold the clothes, you'll miss out on the joy of playing with them first.
20.  People will love you for just being you!

Touching

Touch.  Touch.  Touch.  If there is one word that I hear more than any other in a given day, it is 'touch.'  Why?  Because touching is one of Staley's favorite activities.  The touching 'game' started with the Christmas tree.  We did not want to deprive Staley of experiencing the wonder of the Christmas tree, but we also did not want it to end up as a mangled mess of branches, ornaments, and lights sprawled out in the middle of the living room.  So we taught Staley to touch.  No grabbing. No pulling.  Just touch.  Staley took to this immediately.  One finger extended, gently poking, and pulling away.  Touch.  Every time she saw the tree, she would ask to 'touch' the branches, the ornaments, the lights.  So much excitement in that one little request.  The Christmas tree went away after Christmas, but touching remained.  Staley loves to touch her bows hanging on ribbons, my necklaces dangling in the closet, the hats on the hat rack, pictures in frames.  At the mall, she asks to touch the clothes hanging on racks.  Touching the rows and rows of books at the library or the shelves of canned goods at the grocery store make those outings a little more special.  I love the gentle way Staley has found to enjoy her surroundings.  There may be a day in the future where racks of clothes end up on the store floor, canned goods are rolling down the aisle, and all our glass knick knacks have to be packed away as I'm trying to rein in my little girl.  But not today.  Today we just touch.  And I love it.

The Next Picasso?

Picasso.  Van Gogh.  Walles.  Monet.  Meares.  What do all these individuals have in common with my daughter?  The ability to create beautiful art.  Staley spent about 20 minutes (which, I believe, is the typical time it requires most artists to complete a piece) sitting at her little table this morning, working to create her very first masterpiece.  She trialed a variety of artistic techniques:  the horizontal scribble, the dot-dot-dot, the double-fisted crayon technique, the draw-on-the-table-instead-of-the-paper plan, the exchange-my-crayon-for-a-different-color experiment.

The right hand eagerly waiting for the left hand to get tired.

Pretty pleased about having a red crayon AND a green crayon.

The end result.

I think we can all agree that the use of color and movement, the presssure differences in the crayon strokes, and the empty white space on the bottom right-hand side of the paper all provide an emotional abstract experience that leaves the viewer feeling the essence of joy that Staley brings to her art.  Or at least feeling mildly pleased that she didn't try to eat the crayons.

Discoveries

Staley and I went to the Children's Discovery Museum in Bloomington with Melissa and Liam on Wednesday.  Here is what we discovered.

1.  Getting a picture of two one-year-olds where they are both looking at the camera is virtually impossible.

2.  In theory, cute blue smocks to keep the water off clothes in the water play area is a great idea.  In theory.  In reality, they annoy the wearer whose clothes continue to get very wet.

3.  Hiding behind curtains and watching construction out the window are fascinating 'exhibits'.

4.  Even when surrounded by a vast array of new, fun, exciting activities, books still require some quality time.

5.  Realizing that a wedge of plastic cheese in the grocery store section is not, in fact, yummy and edible does not stop my daughter from tasting 4 more wedges.

6.  Plastic cows are AWESOME, and making repeat visits back to touch them is a necessity.

7.  Chess is child's play.

8.  Just because a toothbrush is as big as she is does not keep Staley from trying to brush her teeth with it.

9.  The Children's Discovery Museum is fun, fun, fun!!!

10. And so is spending the morning with cousin Liam.

Tutus and Books and Cake, Oh My!

Staley's one year pictures are here.  Enjoy this sampling of a few of my favorites.