eleven months

 

dear Elizabeth,

you are certainly a busy girl! you crawl everywhere now and are pulling up to stand. the first time i found you standing at your play table, I assumed your older sisters had helped you but they assured me you did it all by yourself! you are very interested in everything that is not a toy, like the DVDs in the rack next to the TV, the magnets on the fridge, the art supplies in the cabinet, empty boxes, the robot vacuum, and Tupperware containers -- and last but not least, the electrical outlets. when Greta and Cecilia were babies, I dutifully plugged up each receptacle with an outlet cover, and I don't remember them ever being remotely interested in them. however, you make a beeline right for the outlets and sometimes try to pry the covers off with your tiny fingers! you do love your toy camera and crinkle books, although I have to watch you like a hawk with the lift-the-flap books because you love to yank the flaps off. 

baby in a dirndl!

laughing uproariously as she pulls another flap off

your personality is still very mellow and you are happy to play by yourself for long stretches of time. sometimes i go up to get you after your nap and you're sitting happily in your crib just talking away. and yes, you finally have a crib! the first night we laid you down in it, you immediately stretched out like a starfish and wiggled with delight. 

looking just like your daddy when you sleep

you now have a fourth tooth on the bottom to make a grand total of 8, and two of your bottom premolars are just below the surface. you make good use of all those teeth, eating pretty much anything we eat for meals, and snacking on cheerios, puffs, yogurt melts and raisins. you are wearing a mix of 12 month and 12-18 month clothes, but many of the 12 month clothes are too small for you now! we're still working on the sippy cup and will be starting the transition to whole milk in a few weeks (!). 

signing "more" for more Down on the Farm casserole (a Geiger family staple!)

this month you went to Hozak's farm for the first time for the fall festival, although I couldn't for the life of me manage to get a picture of all three of my girls smiling at the camera! even the outtakes are still pretty cute. I had to take a comparison photo on the hayride so we could see you and Cecilia side by side with your crazy hair! 

Greta trying to "help"

Cecilia on the left, Elizabeth on the right!

you also went to your first Pittsburgh Symphony performance! it was the free RADical Days concert, so the program was shorter than usual and they were very welcoming to first-time symphony patrons (including babies). you did talk a little bit in the beginning, but then fell asleep to the luscious harmonies of Mahler. 

you rode along in the jogging stroller while the girls and I completed our virtual Liberty Mile race. you even got to wear a medal at the end, at least until you started trying to eat it! 

kisses from runner Cecilia

for Halloween, you dressed up in your chicken costume and came out trick-or-treating with the girls. your mean mother didn't let you have any candy but you sure were doing your best to get some after we got home and your sisters were sorting through their haul! 

while I was taking a bag into the kitchen, Little Miss wasted no time trying to help herself

the older you get, the more you want to be around your older sisters, and fortunately, the feeling is absolutely mutual! they love to read you stories, bounce you on their laps, and hold your hands so you can "dance".

we love you so much, Elizaboo!