11 Months!

Seriously. How did we get here, to where you're almost a whole year old, Val? I must have blinked because my little baby girl is now a really funny toddler with squeaky shoes.

Just last night you started feeding yourself with a spoon. Yes, yes, it was really messy but you were so proud of yourself, squeaking and squawking the whole time you were making a mess. We were proud of you, too.

A week ago Friday you decided to start walking. This, you love, but the power in it seems to scare you just a little because after about 5 steps you get down on the floor and go back to crawling. That's fine with us, too. We're proud of you either way.

Your favorite toy remains the plastic caps from your bottles. There is no greater joy in your world than putting a pacifier into, then taking it out of one of those caps. It also doubles as a darth vader mask, you love to talk into it and laugh at yourself.

And yes, you love to laugh. I love it that you love to laugh. Because nothing's funnier than being funny and nothing makes life grand like laughter. And of course, you.

We're planning your birthday party already. It seems absolutely unreal that in just a month you'll be a 1 year old, your age no longer just measured in months but in years. Okay, one year, but still A YEAR that you've been with us.

Yep, this has been the best year of my life. Nice work, kid.

This Is What 11 Months Looks Like

How Is This Possible?

Val, we're making plans for your first birthday party already. One. You're going to be one. It seems like a second ago that we were all in the hospital and I looked up at the clock and said 'Val! You're 4 hours old!'

But here we are, shopping for play structures and sort of starting to refer to you as a toddler. I cannot believe how fast it's gone, this time since you arrived in this world.

When you were but wee, a stranger with two seriously rowdy young sons told us to treasure every minute. We assured her that we were, but I don't think we quite prepared for just how fast it's gone.

Could someone please slow down the clock, just a little?

But. This is a really fun age. Val, you're almost walking. You laugh a lot now. You say 'no' an awful lot and I can't help but find it funny. You're even sleeping in your own crib for 7-8 hours at a stretch some nights. Not all nights, but enough to make me feel a whole lot better in the mornings.

You give hugs. Those little hugs are The Best Hugs Ever.