Catching Up With Karis!

Christmas, the new year, Kam's birthday and my birthday have all come and gone.  The pace of life is in high gear with me starting another term in school and going back to part-time work.  But amongst all the changes happening in the day to day routine, I've had to stop and take the time to watch and take in all the changes going on for this gal.....

Karis is 16 months old now and is in full swing of becoming a little girl with personality.  Our little Kare Bear's biggest accomplishment is that she has started to walk.  All along I was positive that she would be walking sooner than Kamille did (15 months).  So many other things that Kamille does inspires Karis to give a try, however walking wasn't one of them.

By Christmas Karis was navigating the house by wall and furniture.  She was super speedy, however she was very reluctant to walk while holding our hand or she would drop to her knees if we even tried to get her to stand on her own.  She was just not into it.  On Boxing Day without any prompting, Karis let go of the ottoman and took about 2 steps all on her own.  All three of us caught it out of the corner of our eyes and we erupted into cheering and excitement for Karis.  I suppose its been baby steps for her since then.

We kept encouraging her and found certain things that seemed to work for her, perhaps giving her a sense of balance or distraction.  If we put her in her 1-piece snow suit she would manage a few steps at a time.  If we wrapped her baby around her in a blanket sling, she was able to walk the hallway upstairs.  Gradually she was getting it.

 Last week was the week that she officially became a walker.  Last Monday she was still mostly crawling through the day, by Friday we captured this amazing video of her and Kamille dancing.....and spinning!

And then once she had it, she hasn't stopped showing off her skills.  

Even the "down" times are fun to capture!  She doesn't mind!

We've even managed to get outside for some real practice.  

This brings a whole new level of communication to their relationship!  I love it!

The one other thing that I want to remember about Karis right now is her love of hats.  Hat is one of the first words that she has perfected.  She points them out to us everywhere, in photos, on TV, on strangers and absolutely loves wearing them and having them involved in her play.  "Haaat"  

It didn't take me long to find this collection of photos of her in her hats.  She is always wearing them.  Makes me wonder how she is going to handle it once the weather gets warmer.  I hope she loves sun hats just as much!  I'm thinking that her obsession with hats is the reason why she can't stand wearing barrettes and ponytails in her hair.  Super bummer for me, but she looks super cute in hats too!  

 This week I have even noticed her fascination with her winter jacket too.  She loves wearing it and is thrilled when I announce "get your coats and hats on" to the girls.  Kamille dawdles getting ready, but I kid you not, Karis stands there with her hats, mits, shoes and jacket begging to have it all put on saying "haat, gack, haat, gack" over and over again.

 love love love her little pony tails here.....didn't last long after the hat went on!  

And her words are coming!  She is using Mama more for me now.  She is just like Kamille in that she loves her Dada.  She lights up and happily says "Da-da" or "Da-yee" while pointing at him when he comes into the room.  I think she might use some form of "dada" for Kamille too.  I love that when I talk to her she appears to understand more.  Sometimes I get a "yes" or a "no" nod from her.  And some words she will repeat back to me, like snack which also sounds like "gack" too.  Its just so exciting to see her learning!

I cannot recall what she was saying here...Bummer, it will come to me though...hmmm

A couple week or so ago Kevin brought Karis home a new stuffy.  Its a cheshire cat.  "Caa."  Karis has really taken to this cat.  Recently she has insisted that "caa" and her white knit blanket be with her during our snuggle and comfort nursing before bed.  I love it.  Her cat, her blanket and my baby in my arms....a perfect way to relax into the night.

She has one other night time interest - Baby Beluga.  When Kamille was a baby and for quite some time, she insisted on singing/reading Baby Beluga before bed every. night.  That Raffi sure did something right when he came up with that one.  Karis is fully into the Baby Beluga book and I had no influence in that at all.  It was in the rotation of bedtime books and for a bit now, she has insisted on "Booo" when we cuddle in the rocking chair at bedtime.  Singing is always the preferred way of flipping through the book for her too!  Having Kevin home over the holidays and into January really allowed me to have that 1:1 time with her rather than the usual "all in Kam's bed" storytime that me and the girls were used to.   Oh, another thing that Karis is starting to say is "nigh nighs", which sounds more like "na-na."   I just love it.

Her "What the heck?" face doesn't show itself as much anymore.  It was such a fun expression to call out when she made it.  "What the heck?"

"What the heck? Can't a girl eat her breakfast without a camera in her face?"

Kamille and Karis play well together most of the time.  They tend to squabble over a few items, dolls, purses, cameras and the baby carrier or stroller.  I think its fair to say that Karis rarely plays with the toys that Kamille would have typically played with at her age because she is all about what Kamille plays with.  

Sometimes she gets frustrated that she can't carry as much as her big sis.  Two purses (one with a camera in it), a wallet and keys.  But eventually she figures out her priorities...or which items Kamille would want the most.  Cheeky!

Oh, but I have to mention one of the things that completely gets me going at this stage - the constant rummaging through ALL OF MY STUFF!  Specifically, my kitchen.  Paws off!  This girl is obsessed with the lazy susan cupboard where all my baking and dry goods are.  Its impossible to tear her away from it without a big big upset.
But sometimes when I catch her up to no good, its worth while to stop and take a few photos...because I really want to remember her sneaky side!

Have at 'er my darlin' girl.  You win.

Karis you are such a fun little gal.  You are on the cusp of leaving your "babyness" and becoming a wee girl.  It makes me teary sometimes (you are my baby!!!) but I am also excited for all the change that will come.
I just love you!