One Year Update

I'm a little late posting Virginia's one year update. We saw Dr. Oken for her one year checkup on April 14, and all is well with our little Worm! She is 20 lbs, 4 ounces, which isn't much of a gain since last time - but never fear. Dr. Oken wasn't worried at all with this result because weight gain really tapers off at the one year mark and also because Virginia had just recovered from stomach flu and had probably lost quite a bit due to sickness. Virginia was 45% for weight and 55% for height. Right in the middle!

Virginia was really POed to be getting her shots this time around. She had tolerated them quite well up until this point, but she had missed her afternoon nap that day and was already a bit of a grump. She also got two big shots this time - the MMR and the chicken pox, and those are tougher. Poor little thing sobbed the whole way home. Not a sad sob - it was more of a "I'm so mad at you, Mommy" sob.

At one year, here are some tidbits about what Virginia is doing:

• Virginia is taking her first steps! She's still a speed demon crawler, so she is choosing to crawl to reach anything that is more than an arms length away.
• Virginia has mastered the baby sign for "more" - but with her own special flair. The sign is made by tapping fingertips together, but she misses every time. So it looks like she is trying to clap her hands and misses the point of contact. She does "more" for everything - we've created a monster!
• Virginia loves her books and knows to turn them right side up every time. Brilliant!
• Virginia babbles very loudly. It sounds like yodeling sometimes. She especially loves to babble in the bathrooms because she can hear the echo.
• Virginia LOVES seeing other babies - in person, in the mirror, and in photos on diaper and toy boxes.
• Pointing is the new obsession. She points at everything she sees. Her favorite things to point at are quite eclectic: a plastic Bob's Big Boy figurine and the photos of Teddy Roosevelt and Pee Wee Herman in our hallway.
• Virginia is a fan of stuffed animals. We line them up at the base of our couch and she crawls happily over to them and snuggles face first into the pile of them. When we say "Snuggles," she grabs a stuffed animal and gives it a big hug.
• Although Virginia is still fiercely independent and prefers not to be messed with, she has gotten a little more snuggly in recent weeks. She'll sometimes give me a big hug around the neck. And she'll occasionally kiss (a.k.a. "lick") my cheek.