other tricks Anastasia has learned recently

Anastasia has started a lot of new tricks in the past week, so I thought I'd write them down so I don't forget. A few of the cutest:

* Hugging. She hugs everything. First she would "Hug Mama" or "Hug Dada"--which she always does cheek first. She leans her head against you, then wraps her arms around you as far as she can reach, and then pats you with one hand. It's adorable. But lately she hugs everything. She hugs her toys; she hugs the floor; she hugs the wall; the other day when she wanted a bath, she hugged the side of the bathtub. (Of course I had to give her a bath then, only because it was so incredibly cute.)

* Saying "no." Not in words. She just shakes her head. It started the other day when I was trying to give her some teething medicine; she pulled her face away and then shook her head violently back and forth. "You don't want the medicine?" I asked, and she shook her head again. "No no no no no!" I said. "Are you saying, 'No no no no no!'?" She kept shaking her head, laughing a little now, and it's quickly become one of her favorite games. She definitely knows what it means, though, and uses it when she doesn't want something. I really hope to catch this on camera sometime soon, while it's still so adorably cute, so I can look back at it once she starts the real toddler tantrums and remember how darling her first "nos" were.

* Reading. She loves books (how could she not, with me for a mom?). I've always read while I nursed her, and now sometimes when I'm trying to nurse her to sleep, she'll roll away, sit up, crawl over to her own books, and sit there and turn the pages, watching me as she does so for approval. "See?" she's clearly thinking. "I can read my own book, just like Mommy!"

* Follow directions. She'll do all sorts of cute things when prompted: hugging, of course, is one of her favorites, but she'll also clap her hands, dance, pat the dog (or Daddy), and touch her tongue to her nose. (The last one is probably my favorite.)

walking!

ANASTASIA WALKED TODAY!!!!!!!

This morning she was holding my hand and walking, which she's been doing for a while, and I got her to let go of my fingers while encouraging her to keep going. She took three or four steps before she went back to crawling.

Then, later this evening, she was practicing standing. She stood up without holding onto anything for about 45 seconds. I got in front of her and held my hands out toward her, and she walked toward me. She took about ten steps before she crouched down and then sat down.

The first time it happened, I screamed so much that everyone in the house came running. I'm so excited! My baby is walking!!!

one year well visit

On March 3 Anastasia had her one-year checkup with the pediatrician. I had originally intended to start her on vaccinations then, but, well, something didn't just feel right about it. Probably I'm just scared about it, but I decided to wait a few more months. I would like for her to be a little more verbal before we start, in the hopes that if something goes wrong, she'll be able to tell me where it hurts, at least.

Anyway, here are her stats from the visit:

Weight: 18.98 pounds (and I was sure she'd be 20 pounds and able to face front in the car seat!)
Length: 29.4 inches
Head: 18.1 inches

Since we didn't do much and didn't have much to discuss, the only thing I could find to be annoyed about this visit was the sample menu for a one year old. (I always have to find something to be annoyed with the pediatrician about!) Mostly it annoyed me because it seemed to consist primarily of dairy. Dairy and eggs are the only things we're still avoiding feeding her, because Matt was severely allergic to them as a child, and we figure that the longer we can avoid them, the better.

In other news, she's been teething like crazy and is about to gain her bottom eyeteeth. Which will mean that mostly just molars will be left. Something to look forward to, I guess!