11 mo

Completely Obsessed With:

dogs

remotes

destructing anything and everything (but mostly our bookshelf)

swimming

goldfish

reading

chewing on her crib

skype

throwing food

anything sweet

playing chase

airplanes

finding Dada on our picture wall

"singing"

giving kisses

Struggles With:

diaper changes

walking away from dogs

being quiet during church

keeping herself occupied for longer than 5 minutes

throwing her paci out of her crib

letting new people hold her

feeding herself using a spoon

walking

sitting still on airplane rides (or anywhere else...)

keeping her hands to herself

being "soft" to other kids

Words:

Woah - "woooooah"

Dog - "duh"

Woof - a very guttural "wuh" 

Yummy Yummy - "nunna nunna"

Dada - "dada"

Airplane - "nee-oh" 

(don't know how she came up with that one, but it's been consistent)

I just can't believe she's going to be one next mont.  ONE.  She's totally a riot, and I have an extreme love/hate relationship with all of her spunk - definitely more love than hate, but man alive the girl can scream.

I really can't wait for the day that we can get her a dog.  Thank goodness I'm not an animal hater, or this girl might find some different parents. It's almost hysterical to watch her reaction to dogs, however far away they may be -- Her body completely tenses up and fingers tighten around my shoulder as she starts yelling, "WUH WUH DUH DUH WUH!" Which inevitably is followed by a violent lunge out of my arms to get herself as close as possible to the approaching canine. 

What can I say, she loves dogs. 

 The first time she met my dog Schneider when we went home to visit, she went straight for the kiss, mouth wide open.  Don't worry - I stopped her before any damage was done.  He was kind to put up with her and even brought his wooly-man toy over to play with her, although I know he was just being polite.  He really has turned into the grumpy old thing.  As far as Eva was concerned, he loved her.

We're getting a dog.

...once we have a yard.

I really really REALLY love this Eva girl.  Being in the Bay Area has played some tricks on me, especially when I'm surrounded by so many incredibly successful women who are so skilled at what they do.  Every once in a while, I feel inadequate, like I need to be out there benefitting the human race, pushing my brian to it's limit, and proving to the world that I am a smart and capable female.  I take the next 10 minutes (usually during naptime) to brainstorm and organize my plan of action before my reality check sets in.  Stop.  I walk into Eva's room, watch her while she sleeps, and realize that I am the luckiest woman in the world.

This is the perfect job for me.