Allison is 11 months old!

Allison hit the 11-month milestone last weekend, the last time her birthday will be measured in mere months. I really feel like she's looking more and more like a little girl rather than a baby, and she's following in her brother's footsteps to become a little blondie.

She's still a little sweetheart, though she is letting her opinion be known more forcefully these days. Things she likes - her brother, the cat, eating - get a big smile; things she doesn't like - being left alone in a room, being kicked by her brother, not eating when she wants to - get loud screams and tears.

And it's hard to know if it's intentional or not, but she could be saying a few words. Brandon has been on the receiving end of a few "dada's," I got a "mama" the other day, and she says "hi" when she waves her little Miss America-style wave:

We've had some fun times this past month.

The kids are taking advantage of the YMCA swimming pool while the weather is nice...

Anthony has also been taking swimming lessons. This is an adventure for all involved...one time he SCREAMED the entire 30 minutes; today he did a lot better and announced "I didn't cry!" when we were done. It was more or less the truth.

Ally doesn't get in the water quite as much, but she does rock a bikini:

Work it!

We also hit Hollywood's St. Patrick's Day parade earlier in the month:

This photo just screams, "Awwwww, mom!"

Happier faces:

We also went to Brandon's cousin's wedding in Orlando. The weekend was dampened by the fact that everyone got sick - a planned day at Disney was nixed, and three of four didn't even get to the wedding - but we did have some fun at the children's museum.

Anthony was scared of this odd-looking lizard...Ally, not so much:

Ally also liked playing in the garden...an early version of "he loves me, he loves me not"?
And the highlight for Anthony was "working" on this car:

We're all looking forward to the big birthday party next month - it's almost impossible to believe our little baby is almost 1.

Ally is 10 months old!

And mighty grown-up looking!

Out little sweetheart hit 10 months February 26, and somehow I managed to track her down and keep her in one spot long enough to take a picture for the occassion.

Ally is constantly on the go these days - she's a crawling pro, and recently added cruising to her means of transportation.

It's generally very cute - there are few things more adorable than the determined look of a crawling baby - except when it comes to changing her diaper and getting her dressed. I usually work up a sweat while she works up real tears of dismay at not being allowed to move for the next 60 seconds or so.

Naturally, the 10-month photo shoot had to be quick, as sitting and posing with the teddy bear is no longer entertaining enough for Ally.

That's the point at which I gave up.

Aside from those lovely shots, I'm ashamed to say there is scant photographic evidence of Ally's 10th month, as several of those weeks were spent getting ready for, enjoying and then getting reorganized after a Carribbean cruise.

We had a great time, but I will admit, even on days spent looking at this...

...I was pretty happy to get back and look at this (and big brother, too!)

Allison is 9 months old!

Month 9 finds Ally in great health, high spirits and 1-year-old clothes: the doctor put her in the 95th percentile for "height" and the 75th percentile for weight (19 lbs, 3 ounces), so I guess she's long and not-so-lean.
We marked the 9-month milestone with an amateur photo shoot that allowed Ally to show off some cute new dresses, as well as her bright blue eyes and pretty smile:

Aside from being so good natured its a little scary - she popped through four teeth over the course of a week with barely a frown - Ally spends most of her time engaging in pretty typical 9-month-old behavior.

She crawls all over the place, even coming to greet me when I pick her up at daycare.

She's a menace to get diapered and dressed, often trying to take off for greener pastures (toys, the cat, big brother, you name it) before the job is done.

She loves to play with her toys...

...but hasn't yet learned not to smack herself in the face with them. Poor baby.

She's also figuring out how to wave hello, play patty-cake and clap her chubby little hands.

But by far the most thrilling achievement, in Ally's eyes at least, is her recently discovered ability to pull up to the standing position.

It is her newest skill, and clearly her favorite. She wants to do it all the time...coffee table, laundry basket, bathtub, you name it. You'll be sitting on the couch minding your own business, and all of a sudden this little smiling face pops up to say hello.

For Ally, it is the stuff of true joy.

Of course, for us, so is she.

Allison is 8 months old!

Allison hit the 8 month mark the day after Christmas. The changes over these past few weeks have been amazing - she's completely mobile and is starting to explore her world from an upright position. It's hard to believe that just a month ago I could walk away from her for a few minutes and expect to find her in relatively the same place I left her.
Another big change for this month is a new 'do. While Ally's baby shag was cute, we decided she could benefit from a little trim, especially since the sure hands of Aunt Ellen were available for the job.

Before:

During:

After:

While Allison did a good job sitting still for her makeover, most of the time these days she's on the go.

She started the month by getting up on her knees and rocking back and forth, then progressed to an Army crawl. These past few days, she's been replacing that more and more with true crawling.

She also decided to add pulling up to her knees to her bag of tricks, which couldn't please her more.

This, of course, gives her plenty more options for hijinks.

The car seat is no longer purely for transportation:

And an open refrigerator offers a world of exciting treats. Including, apparently, generic brand salsa that probably expired months ago.

Of course, while getting up and around delights Allison to no end (at least that makes one of us!) it also adds one more item to the list of things our happy-go-lucky baby will cry about: clunks to the head have joined hunger as the two reasons for turning on the waterworks.

But despite a stumble here and there, 8-month-old Ally remains a sweet-natured, joyful little girl...just one with a couple of bruises here and there.

Allison is 7 months old today!!

Today marks month 7 with Allison, bringing with it all the typical 7-month-old challenges...the pending emergence of a first tooth, the understandably frustrating feeling of being almost but not quite able to crawl, a couple minor colds and fevers, and the onset of separation anxiety.

So of course Allison must be a miserable mess, right?

The "official" 7-month photo:
A day at the beach:

In her play center:

Modeling Thanksgiving PJs (I say modeling because they were too small to actually be worn to bed):

Playing outside in the nice weather:

Yeah, she's pretty awesome.

There's a book almost every first-time parent buys called "The Happiest Baby on the Block" in which the author claims you can appease even the orneriest baby through a mix of shushing, sucking, swaddling, and a bunch of other s-words.

Brandon and I are going to rewrite it and pretty much tell everyone just to conceive Allison. I think we'll sell a few million copies and be able to retire early.

Anyway, at just past the half-a-year mark, our little girl is doing good. She's working on crawling, mastering grabbing for toys (and cell phones, earrings, food, remote controls, etc.), and doing a pretty good job eating solid foods...as long as they're fruits, not veggies.

Here are a few more cute Ally photos...she was SO fascinated by grass...pretty cute:

In any case, Happy 7 Months to our little lady - we couldn't love her more!