Well... we skipped March! Cora will be 11 months in a few days and I have a ton of updates! I just want to warn all of you busy people out there that, since I've neglected my mommy diary, this has become the diary. I'm posting ALL the details about what Cora's up to so that I can come back here when I eventually scrapbook it and find all the info. If you get bored... ;D, that's probably why!

Within the last week (3/24-3/31) Cora has started standing up in her crib. She can pull herself up and then stay there for some time; wiggling her hips so violently sometimes that she gets the crib banging against the wall. She's still mostly rolling around though she often gets up on hands and knees with one knee stuck under her. If we help her get into crawling position, she just eases down onto her belly and keeps rolling. She hasn't figure out yet that all the furniture around here would be fun to pull herself up against like her crib... we'll see how long it takes for it to catch on. :D

Cora's gag reflex is still quite strong, so... we're still doing mostly baby food. We tried her on mashed potatoes on 3/28 and they were thick enough that she completely gagged on them every time. She did okay with broccoli though... We've been continuing trying her on the dry Gerber's cereal every now and again and we're reaching some success I think.

What Cora is excelling in the most, is her word recognition. She knows so many that I'm not sure I can remember them all in one sitting (I may be coming back and making amendments). Of course, these aren't words she can SAY, just ones she responds to in some way and knows. So... here's an attempt at a list that's up to date:

Mommy
Daddy
Auntie Marian
Grandma (being Roseanna)
Grandpa (being Gary)
*along these lines we're working on Nanna and Granddad; also, Grandma & Grandpa are depending on how recently we've seen them.
Auntie Brynna (this was a recent thing when Brynna came to visit on 3/27)
Sammy the Bear
Wally the Walrus
Ducky (bedtime buddy #1)
Kangaroo (bedtime buddy #2)
Teething Tablets
Toothbrush
Bath
Eyes (points to hers, ours)
Nose (points to only ours)
Ears (points to hers, ours)
Teeth (points to ours)
Tongue (sticks it out)
Hands (hides it in her sleeve and then pokes it out again mimicking in her own language "there it is!")
Toes (points to hers, ours are too dirty)
Socks (pulls them off, or points to them if already off)
When we sniff she looks at the kleenex box
Num nums (tries to nurse)
Boomer (her baby bear)
Patty-cake (claps hands)
Chapstick (smacks lips)
Dances when you say "Dance" or "sing a song"
If you say "Are you okay?", she fake coughs.
If you say "Blecky!" she shakes her head and realizes that she shouldn't put it in her mouth.

Words she actually does say:
Baby
Pretty (this is a variation of Baby)
Momma
Da da, Da dee (just recently)
Bear bear (for Sammy)
There it is! (sounding only vaguely like that)
Ducky - "Deh!"

Now that I've put these in lists... I can't believe how much we're communicating around here!!

Sleep schedules have been weird lately because we've been trying to get her to go to bed earlier and have earlier naps. This has been difficult. A couple nights ago she was up 8 or 9 times -- worse than she's EVER been! So far, that was only one night and the two nights that followed she was asleep by 10 pm (a total rarity!).

Not much else going on that I can think of. Also, she's awake in her crib right now which may contribute to not being able to think. If anything else comes up... you can be sure I'll update.
Love,
The Holland Family (updating you on only Cora, lol!)