It’s hard for me to stop looking at Skyler. To me, she’s completely captivating. She’s so expressive and beautiful, and there’s so much personality packed into that sweet little body.
She happy. She’s feisty. She’s sweet. She’s curious and observant… She’s so many wonderful things. Sometimes I still can’t believe she’s here. There’s this incredible—very blonde—little person toddling around our kitchen: where did she come from?
These last six months have been incredible, developmentally. It’s definitely one of my favorite ages—that sweet spot between little cuddly infant and goofy, toddling child.
Skyler has always been notably smiley—she’ll charm you with a glint in her eye (probably just before she grabs your hair)—but she has begun reserving her widest smiles for her more immediate circle of friends and family lately. She’s especially partial to Aron and—seemingly by extension—to all tall men with beards.
Her favorite things in the world are Hudson and Sawyer. She will look for them when they’re not around and squeal in delight when either appears. Every doggy is a Sawyer, and she pats them with such affection.
Hudson, she wants to follow everywhere and her saddest moments are when he goes somewhere she can’t follow. If he is excused from dinner before her, there’s no food that will tempt her to remain in her chair. (Not even scrambled eggs!—which she really, really loves.) I love watching their friendship grow, and seeing them begin to really play together.
She actually has major FOMO—”fear of missing out”—especially with food. The fruit on your plate just might be sweeter than the fruit on hers. But this instinct extends beyond the table: The glasses on your face probably look better on hers. The view from your lap must be really good, if someone else is sitting there.
Skyler is a great mimic and will watch you dancing or clapping and do her best to emulate. She does a nice job copying sounds, and will sing a version of any tune you give her.
She has learned many words, “momma, dada, yucky (used for pointing to our coffee), dirty, ball, shoes, Sawyer, hi, bye, hello, hola (said with a stuck-out tongue, repeatedly, in Mexico), that, au revoir, choo choo” and more. She has a few that only we (and her babysitter) tend to understand—like signs for bird and milk. (Okay, the average person probably doesn’t understand most of what she says.)
She is always listening and gets really excited when she hears a train or a plane. We know there’s a plane nearby based not on the jet’s roar, but on the shrieking and pointing that’s happening beside the door. Probably her two most used words are “nahnee” which seems to be a catchall substitute for “give that to me, please,” and “uh oh” which is usually followed by “dirty.” She is obsessed with pointing out any dirt between her toes and will do so saying “uh oh, dirty.”
This seems in direct conflict with one of her favorite things: digging in the dirt or sand in the backyard. She also enjoys throwing and chasing balls, pulling a wooden pull-along toy, knocking down Hudson’s magna-tile structures, having pretend phone calls, rubbing in hand-sanitzier, drawing on chalkboards (and coloring of all sorts), accessorizing with glasses and shoes, hugging the dog, squeezing stuffed animals, and being pushed in a swing or being pulled on a scooter. Getting in and out of bikes and strollers can be high-drama moments. She wants to test each one immediately upon seeing it and patience is not a virtue.
She enjoys time spent in the pool and is comfortable going underwater. She likes to do the “wait and come” game: she sits on the side and extends her hand as we do—”wait, wait”—and then we pull her in and under as we say “ok, now come.”But despite this confidence, she’s not a big fan of bath time; she’s afraid of the loud, running water in the bath. In fact, she doesn’t like loud sounds in general.
She also dislikes: being in the Ergo on your back (torture), having too many food groups on her plate (she only wants that one thing she wants at one time), and having a wet diaper (she lets you know when she’s peeing).
Skyler can be a bit of a scrapper. She’s pretty tough. And she is bold. Often, to our chagrin, she will fight for what she believes is hers—be that a toy or food. She’s prone to biting when her frustration gets too intense and she’ll go at Hudson with an open mouth when he doesn’t let up on his provocation (they each test the other’s limits now and then).
Hudson was never a biter, so this is new territory. We’ve been reassured it’s a passing phase and it has been letting up, but I watch her with concern whenever I see another toddler grab something out of her hand.
That said, I gather she will be so excited when they let her stay at preschool with Hudson. She is so excited to be in the classroom with the other kids and all the toys, and is so sad to leave (especially without Hudson).
She tends to sleep from around 7:30 to 6:30 and then, most days, she takes a 2-hour nap around 11 or so. One of the things that’s been so delightful about Skyler, however, is how flexible she seems to be about exactly when that happens.
But she’s just delightful, full stop. Her laughter is so free-flowing and infectious. She’s affectionate and gives the sweetest hugs to us (with little back-pats) and to her favorite playthings. She likes to kiss the little wooden animals on her shelf goodnight and holds pretend conversations with items in her crib. Even at her most frustrating (or feisty!), I find her to be incredible.
Happy year-and-a-half, Skyler! We love you!
P.S. Skyler’s first week of life and at one year old. And a post on Hudson’s monthly photo series.
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