11 months

Yes, this is two weeks late, so I'm going to do my best to say what they were doing AT 11 months, and not talk about new things in the last two weeks! This photo shoot also goes down as least successful in capturing nicely sitting little girls.

Blythe: right now, she's still quick to smile at strangers, but tends to stick closer to me rather than do a lot of exploring when we go out to the library, etc. Still only two teeth, but can eat tons of finger foods, and almost always eats more than Joy. She has a giggly/gaspy laugh that comes out when she's bounced, when other people are laughing sometimes, and at Abby Jane. When you pick her up, she sort of scrambles up into your arms like a monkey. She crawls so much that she's a bit too busy to slow down and learn to do much free standing other than pulling up on furniture.

Joy is a nut. She has come out of her shell and is everywhere, into everything, crawling like it's her job. For instance, at the library, she's 10 feet away from me getting into someone's purse. Then realizes there's strangers around and lets out this LOUD squawky cry. She will NOT smile at you if you're a stranger. But she warms up. She, too, seems good to go with only those two bottom teeth and is amazingly capable with finger foods. Her favorite song is "I'm bringing home a baby bumblebee" (thanks, Grammy.)

The girls are playing together and interacting together all the time. Most of the time, it's sweet and cute, but the toy the other one has usually does look better than the toy in their own hands. They gave us an impromptu demonstration of this phenomenon, which is about as good as the picture of the two of them at this age got when I was taking these pictures.

They both say "mama" and "dada", wave, and clap. Not many more actual words, but that doesn't impact the volume level when everyone is "talking" at the same time. Bless Jake's heart, he's in for it.

They can both walk with push toys, but no steps yet. Favorite toys are bowls, rattles, activity table, blocks, Abby Jane's play heels, trains (yes the ones with chokeable parts), and Abby Jane. Black market items are shoes, magazines, and keys. Frequently heard in our home, "BLYTHEY, no shoes for you!" "Mama, look at JO-OOOYY!"

I promise I feed the child, but scavenging is one of Blythey's favorite hobbies. She often gets stuck.

Joy's strong sense of self-accomplishment is about to bust with this new ability to free stand for a few seconds. She is extremely proud of herself and will sometimes give a clap.

That's the end!