The Mousel's: Bikes, Beer, and a Baby: 10 Months

It felt very weird to place the 10 month sticker on Isabel's onsie for this photo shoot. Time is flying by and I have a sinking feeling it is not going to slow down any time soon. I guess the best we can do is hold onto our little Bellaroo and enjoy the ride.

Butter and I must admit that the camera was somewhat in hibernation the month of January, but that doesn't mean we weren't savoring our time with Isabel. I guess before we knew it ten months was upon us. Isabel was busy working particularly on her balance this month. Pulling herself up on just about anything, Isabel is quite daring as she is constantly trying to stand all by herself. She has not been all too successful...her record being 3 seconds...but that has not stopped her from continuing to try again. As she stands, Isabel has figured out that if she leans against something both hands are free to play and grab stuff. When she sees something on the couch, for example, she will pull herself up and then walk along the furniture to get to what she wants (normally her blanket, a toy, or her rag).

Speaking of her rag, which are the burp cloths that Kerri and Josie made her, as soon as she picks it up, like clockwork, the thumb goes in her mouth, if only for a second. As hard as breaking her of the thumb-sucking habit might be, we still think it's so darn cute.

The thumb is not the only thing that goes in Isabel's mouth, anything and everything finds a way there, but lately she has come to enjoy small pieces of anything on the floor. We have to keep many eyes on her. Of the things she is supposed to put in her mouth, Isabel is still eating anything we give her, and we have officially stopped giving her any form of baby food. Her favorites lately are string cheese, crackers, and peas.

Random notes: We are still working on patty-cake, peek-a-boo, and "so big." As much as she enjoys watching other people play these games with her, she is not ready to play back. All in good time I guess. Isabel is definitely not ready for her first haircut, but her hair seems to have gotten a lot longer this month. We have also been expecting more teeth, but so far she still just has 6 (her bottom two and top four). Isabel plays very well all by herself, but also loves to cuddle and fall asleep. Isabel's new favorite room to explore is the bathroom and can get there very fast...she is a speed crawler. Luckily, she hasn't made it into the bathroom for very long without mom or dad right on her heels. However, she did manage that feat at daycare and ended up pulling a small table over on her. Live and learn...the beauty of growing up.