No Coupons For Ladybugs: Claire at 15 Months

Claire is now a busy toddler. She finally really started walking more than crawling the first week of February. She is still a speedy little crawler, and she still often chooses that as her mode of travel, but she is becoming more steady on her feet. She loves shoes and brings them to me to have them put on. She loves to be outside, to walk around on the sidewalk. She has taken to collecting the newspapers laying out on the driveways on our street. She scurries down the street, collecting the papers, occasionally stumbling, and then resorting to crawling.

Since she's started walking we've also noticed potential signs on EB (Epidermolysis Bullosa) on her toes, but we will have to wait and see. So far we have only seen a few patches of peeling-like skin, where it looked like a blister would have been, but we haven't seen active blisters. Oh how I hope for her to be spared from that hereditary condition, that she might be able to run and be as active as her little heart desires!

I am so grateful to have a daughter. She is so much fun and so girly. She toddles around the house, finding things that can go on her wrist like a bracelet. Nathanael made her a giant necklace from large stringing beads and a lace. She loved putting it on and taking it off, and even wore it to church one Sunday. She has the sweetest, most girly laugh. I love her sense of humor. She knows when she's being silly, and always has. Claire means "bright", and she is definitely a very bright little girl. Her vocabulary is pretty good for a 15 month old. She says mama, mommy, dada, daddy, dad, Yaya, Mimi, Mema, Papa, Pop Pop, hi, bye, baby, ball, please, no, quack quack, moo, baa baa, and bobby (we don't know why). She also says thank you, though it's not quite perfect and several other words that clearly mean something but aren't quite intelligible. Her receptive vocabulary is amazing. She will do just about anything you ask her to do including being told to tickle someone, which she always does just once and giggles. She points out her nose, eyes, mouth, ears, tummy, hands and feet. She still gives great hugs and now her kisses are complete with the "muah" sound.

As always, she still loves a good book! Reading is definitely her favorite activity. She will sit and look at them alone, but she prefers to be read to. She will listen to book after book after book. The reader will always tire of reading before she tires of listening. She has a clear preference for certain books, however, and will close the book being read if it bores her. Her first favorite was The Itsy Bitsy Spider which she was awarded from the library last summer for her participation in the summer reading program. She also enjoys Baa Baa Black Sheep. Sam is a very good big brother and loves to read to Claire. I love that she will climb up into his lap to listen.

Cousin Tessa is a definite bestie. I love how excited they get to see each other and how they already play and interact with each other.

Claire has her brothers wrapped around her finger. The other night at bedtime, Sam told me that playing with Claire made him the happiest in the world. Nathanael is a good big brother, too, but he also loves to pick on her. She, of course, returns their adoration.

She is obsessed with the dishwasher. It's hard to get the dishes done with her around. Even if she's in the vicinity, she will hear the dishwasher open and quickly meander over to "assist".