18 Months

I was suppose to write after Christmas and guess what THAT DID NOT HAPPEN... so the time is now to catch you up on what the Cooks have been up to and it is A LOT!

So the Cook that is the most important and has the most updates is, you guessed it HELENA JAMES!

Helena just turned 18 months... really she is a year and a half. Where has the time gone. She is not a baby anymore, she is getting longer hair, she is talking, signing, singing, marching.... you do it she mimics. SHE IS AMAZING. She has lost her baby features to and totally looks like a little GIRL! There is so much she is doing so bear with me while I share with you and document it for us....

• Helena's vocabulary is growing here is a list of things she loves to say: cracker, car, read, bubble, woof, kitty, puppy,yummy, Blues Clues, plane, truck, ROAR , I did it, mama, dada, fish
• She also is in love with the show Blues Clues, from this show she has learned to say, Blues Clues, Hi Steve, and sing "EIEIO" She also does all the dances to a perfectly and begs us to watch it DAILY!
• She is also signing very basically. She signs more and says it too, signs milk, all done, help, and we are working on Thank you.
• She also tells us when things are hot by waving her hand and blowing on it and she like to tell us when things are yucky by saying "ish"

Other milestones that she is reaching:

• She is in her big girl bed... she has been since the New Year and is doing AWESOME in it.
• She loves her body parts, she points to all of hers and yours as well. She likes belly, teeth, and tongue the most right now :)
• She is very independent she likes to pick out her clothes, wash her hair and body by herself. She also like to pick out her snacks and food for herself!
• Something that is funny... we take a lot of pictures of her from our phones, she now takes our phones and holds it towards us and says " CHEESE" like she is taking a picture:)
• She tells us NO of course, but she also started to shake her head YES, and shrug her shoulders for I Don't Know.
• She tells us OH OH if she did something or I DID IT... very funny especially if it is something she is not suppose to be doing.
• She hit a huge milestone at the park, she climbed a ladder after she watched 2 other kids do so.... she was so proud she could not stop smiling or clapping.
• She also loves jumping.... we say 123.... she squats then tries to jump up, she usually gets one foot off the ground, its pretty cute!
• OBSESSED with BUBBLES.... to all the moms out there GAZILLION bubbles from Target ROCK and they just came back out.... stock up now!
• The other big thing she is into is pointing at things and wanting us to tell her what it is... its like she is an encyclopedia that just stores every word sometimes she will try to mimic. Most times she will just go back and forth between 2 or 3 objects.

On a negative note..... Helena is a TANTRUM thrower and WHINER some days are awesome and others are very challenging. I just keep telling myself that she will be talking soon and that will help both of these things.

Grammies was just here to visit and Helena liked that very much. As I called Grammies THE ENABLER..... its funny, I love having my mom around,but all rules go out the door! Grammies allows ALL:) HA HA Helena and Grammies had an awesome visit. BJ and I got to go out a few times since it was our 3rd Anniversary and I also got some just Sarah time. All and all it was a great trip .... 11 days went by so fast though :( Glad she made it home safely and I am sure in a week she will be begging to come back to the 70 degree weather!!!

As for the last big change in the Cook house..... I am going back to work part time. Starting in March I will be working 3 days a week. We have hired a nanny to come in and help with Helena, this is going to be a huge transition for us since I have been home with her everyday for 18 months. I went in a few times when my mom was here and I am looking forward to interacting with adults. Even though I am working I guess it will be time I am working on myself. I'm very nervous about going to work and missing out on things Helena maybe doing. However I will be with her Friday thru Monday and working Tuesday thru Thursday from 6:30-3.... so it will really be about 18 hours a week that I am missing..... I know it is going to be a tough transition but a very good one.

BJ's business is growing rapidly and it sounds like there is a lot of new and exciting things in store over the next few months. Well I hope everyone has a very Happy Valentines Day..... again I say that I will try to blog more GOAL at least once a month:)

I almost forgot, Helena had her 18 month check up..... 25lbs 62 %, 32.5 inches tall 66%, 19 inch head 90% :) and she is developing fine:)