Audrey at 13 Months

I just love this age! Audrey is so funny right now. She's walking well, but also crawling quite a bit, I'm trying to soak it in, because I know before long the crawling is going to be completely gone. She's so proud of herself when she gets a long string of steps together. 

She's also mimicking quite a bit more. Everyone pats her back when they hold her, and gives her kisses. My favorite is when she does it back to us. Her version is a really aggressive pat, some could call it a hit, while making kissy sounds. So funny. 

She has more words for us now: up, hi (with a huge wave, sometimes two handed), and no. No is a full body response, usually related to food- no, no, no, no. Poor girl, I bust out laughing everytime she does that one. 

She also loves saying night, night Dada, when Conan puts her down for a nap. She loves to snuggle with him. 

She loves to play with her barn animals, dolls, and in the play kitchen. She's still a pretty terrible sleeper, but I stopped nursing her in the middle of the night, so maybe we're making some progress? 

Her brothers adore her, and she loves to make them laugh. They are quite the team. The other day we let them eat dinner in front of the baseball game. Audrey was sitting with me, and then scootched down so she could sit on the floor right between Bryce and Chris. It was such a sweet picture of what's to come with these guys. I love their sibling bond!

Happy 5th Birthday, Bryce!

Dear Bryce,

Happy 5th birthday to you! What a great year it's been! You have learned so much, done so much, and stayed the sweetest little guy there is. It's a good thing you're five now, because people were not believing me any more when I said you were a four year old-- you're huge now!

You have gone from liking cars and superheroes to being a little obsessed with Star Wars. You want to talk about it, ask questions about it, and have lightsaber duels about 95% of your day. This isn't a bad thing, because most other little boys seem to be the same way right now, so you fit right in! You love Legos, and are constantly making the most creative ships and having battles with your Lego men. You can also put a Lego set together in record time.

You and Chris have the most special brother relationship. Yes you fight occasionally (ahem...), but you also really love each other. You talk for hours and hours about your own worlds (right now it's Lego Land), and make up the silliest stories. You really love each other, and it makes us so happy! You are also such an amazing brother to Audrey. She adores you, and you always say she's your very favorite person in the world. She's able to play with you a little more now that she's getting older. The other day you were letting her knock you down, and you both would laugh so hard. It's one of my most favorite memories. You are the  perfect middle child, and we hope you know how much we appreciate the love you show to your siblings.

You are still such a smarty pants. Your teacher always says you really get it. You can count super high, figure out lots of math problems, and you're starting to be able to read some words and spell. Your handwriting is awesome too! 

Your favorite songs are "Boom, Clap", "The Yoda Song", and "Hello". You are a really good dancer, and love to listen to music. Your favorite baseball team is the Yankees. Your favorite tv show is anything Star Wars related. We always have so much fun together during the day, and I'm going to be so sad when you leave for kindergarten!

Bryce, we are so proud of you! It's hard to believe five years have passed since we strolled a tiny newborn out of Beth Israel hospital and into crazy NYC. We love everything about you, and can't wait to see what five has in store for you! Thank you for being you-- a light and pure joy to our family.

All of our love,

Mom and Dad

Audrey's first steps

Audrey took her official first step 4 days after her birthday, on March 19th. Conan and I both got to see it. Since then, she's been standing lots, and takes 1, 2 or 3 steps. She's so graceful. When she gets down from standing, it's almost like a curtsy. Today you could tell she really figured out walking though. She practiced over and over and took at least 5 steps. She was so proud of herself! The transitioning from crawling to walking is one of my very favorite stages, and I'm trying to soak it in. I know in a few weeks she's only going to be a walker!