In true almost-toddler fashion, we are much too busy for times of reflection. I can no longer figure out where nap times go and why we aren't as productive as we used to be. None the less here is the ELEVEN month update, even though sweet Ava will be one year old in less than 2 weeks!
Spring has arrived in Berlin and it is gorgeous. Knowing now what we do about the long winters, we have tried to take every opportunity to be out and about when it is sunny or warm. Ava has spent many afternoons on bike rides in Tiergarten and is learning now to co-exist with sand as it is in all Berlin playgrounds.
The facts:
SLEEP - This area is pretty much the same sleeping at night 7-7 with some random short lived early morning wake ups. She is still taking two naps a day but at times is slow to settle in the mornings. Perhaps we are in the beginning of the 2-1 nap transition. Hopefully we can hold on to the morning nap throughout the summer and make the switch closer to 15 months.
FOOD - It is amazing looking back at 6 weeks ago how much Ava has developed. She is now a pretty competent eater with the full variety of food. She is happy to eat (most) anything we eat. Ava still has the early dinner so she is mostly dining alone but is happy to eat leftovers from the night before. Some of her favorite fruits right now are grapes and bananas and she likes chunks of bread (especially in the stroller while running errands!). Ava drinks from her sippy cup on her own and likes mostly to feed herself. She will eat food off of a fork, but isn't able to stab the food on her own. She is happy to have yogurt or other soft food spoon fed. Mommy hasn't braved letting her try to feed herself with a spoon quite yet.
ACTION - Ava's favorite toy is still her walkers. She is able to walk/run behind them and can steer and make turns. She now uses her walker to get down the long hallway from the kitchen/LR to the bedrooms, crawling is for babies! She has become more adventurous in her around the house navigation. She can now climb off the couch and can climb off the beds with a spotter.
We have finally hit some separation anxiety this month. It tends to be worse in the late afternoon if Mom leaves the room, especially if we are out of the house. We are continuing to use the same babysitters and just giving Ava a little extra time to adjust before we leave.
We are gearing up for a summer full of visitors and travel. The NYC crew arrives tomorrow for a long weekend and then we are off to Barcelona for a week trip where we will be joined by Megan's parent and sister, Christina. In late June Began+Ava return to the States for a 2 week whirlwind trip mostly on the west coast. We finally get to meet the cutest Rynn twins around for a July 4th celebration. In August we are hoping for a quiet/relaxing family vacation and then in September we will traveling north for a week in Sweden. Never a dull moment around here.
Wishing you all the best!
Love from The Aylesworths