15 Months Old

I feel like I say this every month, in fact, I probably say this everyday but I simply can't believe how fast my "little" girl is growing up. Right now she's 15 months and I'm sure I'll blink and she'll be 15 years. I find myself everyday trying to remember all the little details of her life. I try to find joy in every moment and take nothing for granted because I know I'll look back on this time and realize how fast it went by. I simply don't want to miss a moment of my sweet girl's life.

Because I fear this post will be super long and the only people who will probably even take the time to read it are the grandparents :) here are the stats you've all be waiting for...
WEIGHT: 29 lbs, 2 oz
HEIGHT: 33.8 inches
HEAD: 19.3 inches
She, of course, is "off the charts" and over 100% in every category. Dr. G said she gets an A+ on everything and is extremely healthy. He said she is a very big girl but doesn't seem to be worried about it - he simply said I'm lucky that she's such a great eater and to be prepared that she will probably be VERY tall. Who knows where that comes from but I'm seeing some Olympic volleyball in her future! :)

Jorja has become quite the "busy bee" (which, by the way, is what she was for the Fall Festival - pics coming soon, I promise) and her curiosity is at an all time high. She can't get enough of exploring the world around her and I just love watching her discover new things. She has such an excitement and love for life that it makes me smile so big, some days my cheeks hurt. She has definitely mastered walking (although, her walk is sometimes a bit of a waddle but it is just too cute for words) and now she's even beginning to run. It is so fun to watch her get real excited about something and try to get to it as fast as she can. She gets wide-eyed and open mouthed and just takes off full force - and if I'm not careful and I turn my back for too long she will be clear across the house before I even realize it. She is loving her new found independence and will definitely let us know when she does not want to be held or sit in the stroller and just wants to "wahk" (walk).

She still loves to read books and now knows some of them so well that if I try to skip a page or read something wrong she will stop me by saying "no" until I do it right. She also knows her favorite ones by name - I can tell her to get a certain book and she will go over to the table and literally toss all the others on the floor until she finds the one I've asked her to get. She is quite a little smarty!! :) I think one of my favorite things about her love of books is that every book must be read while seated in mine or Shane's lap - if we are sitting on the couch she will come up to us and pat our leg and say "ree" (read) "boo" (book) until we pick her up and put her in our lap and if we are sitting on the floor she will turn around and back in to us and then plop down while saying "ree". I think it is precious every time and my heart melts with every book she brings my way!! What a sweet time for us throughout the day!

We've also been working this month on eating with silverware and Jorja is doing an amazing job. I have heard horror stories of how messy this learning experience can be but luckily I have a daughter who is a very dainty and HATES to be real messy. If she gets too much stuff on her hands she will hold it out, begin to get whiny and will continue to say "why" (wipe) about a hundred times until I wipe her hands clean. And once she's clean, then she will continue to eat! It is great!! She is still having a hard time getting the food on her spoon or fork by herself but once the food is on there, she can get it to her mouth perfectly and with very little mess. She also loves to "dip" things - ketchup is the most used "dip" but she will pretty much dip any food into anything if given the chance. Refried beans, guacamole, ranch and ketchup are a few amongst the repertoire of dips. However, one time Shane & I went to a BBQ place to eat and got cobbler for dessert. We offered her a peach from the cobbler and she didn't really like it - and she'll do this thing where if she doesn't like something she'll start to chew it, realize she doesn't like it and pull it out of her mouth and hand it back to us and say "no". So she handed me the half-eaten peach and I just put it on her place mat and we kept eating the cobbler. It wasn't long after that she realized I had some chips left over and she kept asking for "chi" (chips) and when I finally gave her one she immediately started to "dip" the chip into the peach sitting on her place mat. It was hilariously adorable. I know this story isn't even doing it justice but I just don't think you understand how much Jorja loves to "dip" and how adorable it really is. She will seriously "dip" any food into anything when given the chance - even if the "dip" is a sunchip dipped into a peach or carrots dipped into ketchup! And, to top it all off, she is extremely dainty about her "dipping" which is just so stinkin cute! She will hold her pinkie out while doing it and sometimes will be so dainty about the "dip" that she doesn't even get anything on the food but because she is so excited and proud that she "dipped," it doesn't really matter nothing transferred over! It is a sight to watch and is just another thing to put on my list of things I adore about my sweet girl. She is an amazing eater and eats almost anything I put in front of her. Oh, and did I mention that 9 times out of 10, she will eat with her left hand... wonder if she'll be a lefty like her daddy?? hmm...

Little Miss Chatterbox is quickly becoming Jorja's new name. She talks ALL the time - she talks all throughout the day, sometimes she talks herself to sleep, most of the time she wakes up talking and there has even been a few times I've heard her actually talking in her sleep. She is officially a Chatterbox! I am amazed at how many words she knows and how quickly she picks up new words. I have been keeping a record of how many words she knows and uses on a very frequent basis and I've come up with about 60 so far but I know I'm forgetting some and she always learns a new one each day! I'm so proud of her! In fact, I am apparently so proud of Jorja that she's picked up on it so much that her new favorite thing to say is "goo girh" (good girl). She has now started to say it after almost everything she does - she helps put her toys away and says "goo girh" - she throws something away in the "ta" (trash) and says "goo girh" - she feeds herself with a "spo" (spoon) and says "goo girh"... okay, you get the idea! :) She is SO very smart and picks up on things so quickly. She knows most of her body parts - I ask her to point them out to me and she'll point them out and repeat the word. She knows her eyes, ears, nose, mouth, toes, foot, hair, fingers, hand and her favorite, belly button! I love whispering in her ear "go find Daddy's belly button" and watching her run over to Shane, pull up his shirt and say "beh buh"! Too cute! She is still using sign language for some words and can also speak the word as well so on those, there is no mistaking what she wants or needs! I love it! She is also becoming a bit of a singer. While rocking on her Rocking Snail she loves to sing "rocky, rocky" (rocking) which is a song my mom used to sing to me! She also loves to sing "Biba, Biba" (Bible) which is actually Jesus Loves Me but all she sings is the part of "the Bible tells me so". She'll just sing "Biba, Biba" over and over but to the right tune - it melts my heart! I love that she is becoming so verbal - it makes life so much easier when she can do something other than cry to get my attention and tell me what she wants! However, it is possible her language is one only her mom can understand! :)

There are so many more things I could say about Jorja in her 15 month... she LOVES to dance and listen to music and still charismatically "Praises the Lord" while doing it! She is becoming more and more cuddly and will give us kisses and hugs when we ask her too and she's now sleeping with a "lovey". I love to put her lovey on my shoulder when I put her down for a nap because she will immediately cuddle with me while sucking her thumb. It is so sweet! She laughs all the time and can make me laugh more than any other person I know - her laugh is the greatest sound! She loves riding in the "wag" (wagon), playing at the park, taking "bafs" (baths) and swimming in the indoor pool at our athletic club. She is starting to want to play with Fezzik more and more and it is so cute how she tries to get him to come to her by yelling "dog" as loud as she can while slapping her knee! Her hair is getting longer and curlier, she is getting a mouth full of teeth (she has 15 right now), her cheeks are more kissable every day, her eyes are an amazing shade of blue and she is just stunningly beautiful! She is becoming more and more of a Daddy's girl and often runs to the back door and yells "dada" while waiting for him to come home from work. She is the light of our lives and is a true blessing from the Lord. I can't wait to see how she continues to grow over the next few months!!