"A Day in the Life of a 12-Month Old"
The above video was taken yesterday morning just before their nap and is pretty much how we spend our time. They wake up anytime between 6:15 and 6:30 (but I let them stay in bed playing until about 6:45). We eat breakfast at 7am after getting dressed and then play until 8:30 when we start getting cranky. Naptime! When they wake up from their morning nap (right around 10am), we try to get out of the house and do something. This day, we went to the Ferry Building to watch seagull and pigeons and meet up with friend Mary for lunch (pictures here). After eating parts of a roast beef sandwich, running after pigeons, watching ferries come in and out, and eating a few bites of gelatto (Mary's treat), it's back home for another nap (2pm). Then, after about an hour - sometimes 2, it's walking around the neighborhood (today to get a key cut) and going on a "flower hunt" where we visit, smell and learn about all the flowers' names around our house. You'd be surprised how many varieties there actually are in a 3-block radius in the middle of the City! Dinner's at 5:00 followed by their bath. By 6pm, they're playing with toys again in their sleep clothes waiting for Dad to come home. They are usually back in bed by 7pm.
Stats: (based on the Doctor's office visit, which Paul thinks is completely wrong!)
Ava: Ava is 29 inches tall and 19.5 pounds which puts her in the 50% for height and the 25% for weight.
Ava: Ava is 29 inches tall and 19.5 pounds which puts her in the 50% for height and the 25% for weight.
Bettina: is 29 1/2 inches tall and 20 pounds which puts her in the 75% for height and the 25% in weight. Neither Paul nor Nonna are convinced there is only half-pound between the two girls. "It has to be at least a pound and a half," they theorize (their own experiment with the in-house scale doesn't do them any favors to disprove the doctor!).
Favorites: For toys, anything that has wheels and that can be pushed around like their ride-on car and push-toy. Tina has just started getting on her ride-on car all by herself. She doesn't push it yet with her feet; she just waits for Ava to push it for her. Tina has started to try to get on her rocking horse by herself which makes Mommy very nervous. It's much taller than her car and she could hit her head very easily.
Ava loves music and carries her new MP3 player around with her. They both LOVE the cell phones that Aunt Kathy and Cousin Holly sent for their birthday.
Somedays, they will be very assertive about their independence. Tina will refuse to eat off the spoon; she'd like to feed herself instead. Ava doesn't want Mommy to carry her; she'd rather toddle around herself. In the same breath, I've discovered that their stranger and separation anxiety has reared it's head again. So, it seems that, even though they're longing for independence, it's still so new, that Mommy needs to stick around in case they get a pang of fright.
With food, we've stopped buying the formula and are with cow's milk now. I'm not sure if it's my imgination, but it seems that they spill more if it in bed, so I'm thinking about going back to a slower nipple - a 3 or 2 - to see if that makes a difference. Another adjustment: I didn't realize how much milk we'd go through. Definatley need the Costco sizes of whole milk for the kids, and lots of it! We go through a gallon every day and a half.
