Eleven Months

Notice this is the only picture with the bows intact?

Dear Addison & Mackenzie,

Your eleventh month of life was an exciting one.  On February 13, we moved into our new house, the one we plan to call home for a very long time.  From the first time we saw it, your daddy and I pictured you girls growing up here.  We talk about you sitting at the bar in the kitchen, doing your homework in the evenings, and I imagine all the whispering and giggling you will do in your room at night before bed.

Each month, you seem to notice each other a little more.  This month, you really became mobile for the first time, and whenever I looked up to see one of you scooting down the hall or into the kitchen, your sister was right on  your heels.  Sometimes in the morning, I watch you from the doorway of the playroom as you play together.  When you don't know I'm watching you, you will play contentedly, passing toys back and forth and crawling all over each other.  Once you see me, though, you race each other over to me, pulling up on my legs, holding your arms up for me to get you.  Although I love when you reach so desparately for me, my heart swells to watch you playing happily.  I hope that you become the best friends you were born to be.  I know there will be moments of fussing and fighting (I'm quite sure the teen years will be a challenge in our house), but I hope they are far outweighed by the shared secrets, the late-night giggles, and the excitement of experiencing new things together.

You both seem to be constantly becoming more like little girls than the babies we brought home from the hospital nearly a year ago.  You laugh and clap and repeat the noises we make.  We play lots of pat-a-cake, and sing many silly songs in the evenings as you take baths and get ready for bed.  Your newest game right now is to help "wash" one another in the bathtub.  It's very, very cute, until you start slapping your sister on the head in an attempt to help. 

We had some weeks of picky eating over the past month.  There were weeks when you refused to pick up anything wet, warm, cold, or gooey.  If anything got stuck to your hands you would hold them up in the air in disgust until we cleaned it off.  I was picturing you throwing a fit when you got icing on your hands from your birthday cake next month.  Thankfully, you both seem to be moving past that stage this month.  Maybe it was teething, who knows?  Right now, you are both LOVING lima beans, and you will eat as many as I will give you, picking each one up carefully with your tiny little fingers.  Addison, you chew your food in the most hilarious way when we remind you to chew it up good.  You chomp your little teeth together and smack your lips in an exagerrated "chewing" move, making us all laugh every time.  Mackenzie, you have learned to clap your little hands together when we put you in your high chair and tell you to say your prayers.  You both are just more and more fun all the time.

The teeth are coming in left and right...literally.  Lucky us, neither one of you has experienced much of a problem from teething so far.  Tonight I discovered a new bottom tooth for Addison that I had no idea was coming in!   You both have your bottom two teeth, which you've had since about 7 months.  Addison, you've had a top tooth coming in for a few weeks now (not a middle one, so you may look a little funny for awhile, but we will still think you are beautiful!), and tonight, I found one already through the gum on the bottom right.  Mackenzie, you have been working on the bottom left one, and I wouldn't be surprised if your top one appears in a few days.  Neither one of you wants to let any of us look or feel in your mouth, so we have to look closely when you're letting out a big laugh to try and count teeth.

We are doing lots of birthday planning around here.  I know you won't remember it, but we are going to make sure you have one rocking first birthday.  We can't wait to see you playing with all your little friends at your party. 

We love you so, so much, girls.  You brighten our days and make our lives a million times more fun than they were before you.  Although we work a lot harder since you came along, we can't really remember what we did before you were here to entertain us.  Your daddy and I are thankful for every day we have with you girls, and we hope you know that you mean the world to us.

Love, Mama