Anyway, these are Layla’s “BFF”s =)  They were all born within weeks of each other, same month, same year.  At least 2 of them, if not all 3, were born in the same hospital.

I’m really glad I found moms my age with first borns of the same age, too.  That was not the case with James.  I was still in high school when James came into the world thousands of miles away on the other side.  Some of his friends’ parents were old enough to be my parents or at least a decade older than I.  We hardly had anything in common.  With Layla’s friends, their moms and I speak the same language… in Elmo’s voice =)

Two weeks and counting!  At 14-1/2 months, she finally started sleeping in her crib!  Now I know what proponents of co-sleeping meant when they said I will know when my Layla is ready.  She gave me subtle signs.  One night, I just got her excited about ownership of her very own bed.  I pointed to daddy’s bed, then mommy’s bed (same bed, opposite sides), then clapped and cheered when I pointed to Layla’s bed.  That seemed to do the trick!  She’s been sleeping in it every night for 2 weeks without a fight!  (I didn’t want to post it earlier and jinx myself. *hehe*)

It’s been harder on me, I think.  I miss cuddling with her in bed!  I have to fight the urge to pick her up and lay her next to me.  Her crib is still in our room.  We’re not ready for separate rooms yet =)

A couple of days ago, I started putting her in her crib for nap time, too.  I thought I’d better get her used to a new nap routine before her swing gives out, which could be any day now.  Besides, when daddy works from home, she can’t nap as long in her swing downstairs.

Today was her 15-month well-child visit.  She weighed in at 27 lbs (I swear she feels 10 lbs heavier!) and measured 33 inches tall.  Apparently, I’ve been giving her too much of the wrong kind of milk.  We’re switching back to whole milk (for the fatty layer of her expanding brain) and cutting back on the amount per serving.  I tried eliminating the bottle altogether this week since she’s great with a sippy cup, but not when it comes to milk.  I’ll try again soon.

Otherwise, she’s developmentally on track.  I was concerned about her caloric intake and size (she’s always been in the upper 90th percentile and the tallest of her peers), but her weight is still proportional to her height.

She is still perfectly content playing by herself even with other kids around.  I think it’s an only child syndrome.  She can climb the stairs, close a buckle, and cleans up her toys w/ my coaching.  I sometimes have to wrestle with her at bath time; she stands in the tub and walks around.  Her vocabulary is growing; she understands a lot more than she can speak.  She signs “I love you” when I put her down in her crib and knows all the hand motions to Itsy Bitsy Spider, Jesus Loves Me, Where is Thumbkin, etc.  She’s such a good girl!  So smart, too!  I just feel so old now that she’s becoming really active.

I’ve realized that I can totally do the single mom gig… if I did not have to work! LOL!  Of course, if I was a single mom, I wouldn’t be able to stay home with Layla.  So, even though we’re not spending more time with daddy than we’d like, I suppose it’s better for him to have more work than he can handle than to have no work at all.

Meanwhile, I was supposed to take out the trash and recycling which are usually Don’s chores.  But the recycling can had crickets and other unknown jumping critters all around and inside it.  Needless to say, the recycling can never made it to the curb.  I ran back inside the house as fast as I could! Sorry, honey, it just wasn’t meant to be… the bugs and me! =)

Now that she’s been watching Sesame Street regularly, I thought Layla might like to watch it in her own chair.  I forgot that sitting, like walking, is a learned skill.  She’s so entertaining and a good sport sport, too!

Just yesterday, Don predicted it won’t be long now when she’ll take off her diaper and smear poop all over the place.  Today was the day, but thank goodness there was no poop!  So, instead of going to see the penguins at the aquarium this morning, I’m cleaning a puddle of pee and hosing down everything that was swimming in it, including Layla.