In case you're bad with math, the title means Avery had her 11 month birthday recently!!! Wow this month is packed full of fun and exciting things, from teeth, to words, and presenting us with many a challenge. We're very excited that our baby is turning into a kid, but still sometimes cannot believe it!

This month Avery has a total of 5, count 'em 5 teeth!! In this picture you can only see 4 but she also has another one on top. The crazy thing is there are at least two more waiting to break through the gums, before we know it she'll be chomping on everything. She definitely loves to try to eat any paper she can get her hands on.

Avery's vocabulary is ever growing as she learns more signs and starts saying even more, clear words. She also has discovered her own language which cracks us up. As for words we can understand, she will say and sign "done," but it sounds like "daun." She also says, "Da, da," and "Daddy," and knows who Joel is, she knows I'm mommy when we ask her, but she hasn't said it about me yet, she just says, "Mamamama," babbling. She love love loves making sounds, especially the "Shhhh" sound and animal noises, like a doggie, horse, and duck.

Avery understands several new words, "up/down," animals, "dog, duck, frog, horse, bear, bunny, monkey," "nose" and she also points to mommy's nose and her nose. She's starting to understand what "no" means but I think she's not interested in hearing that one. Avery is also signing "done," "change," and "bath." We're working on "book," "sleep," and "please" now.

Being very active keeps mommy and daddy busy, but is also slimming Avery down and helping her sleep longer and of course increasing her appetite as well. She has been doing an amazing job walking, she now will hold something or drink while walking and has just started walking very fast. I'm sure running is just around the corner.

It's been interesting to see her walk in her new shoes. We bought her a pair that was custom fit because a lot of her shoes that I bought second-hand or in children's clothing stores were not fitting well at all. It's more challenging walking with her shoes on, but she's doing a great job.

Avery loves to squat down and then stand up over and over again ("up/down.") We can tell she's getting lots of exercise because her legs are slimming down. She's very curious and into everything, including our cupboards in the dining room. I put a few fun baby things in there to keep her busy. She loves pulling things out, but she doesn't understand putting things back yet.

She also loves Daddy's Lowe's hat, getting into Mommy's diaper bag, giving kisses to everyone, and is very interested in kids and playing with them. Her favorite hobbies are hugging her stuffed animals, reading books, and playing "dress up" with glasses and hats.

Avery's getting great at helping us brush her teeth and stands in the tub when Daddy give her a bath too. So hygiene is tops on her list! Her hair is getting very long and super curly, I can't wait for it to grow, grow, grow, so it doesn't look as much like Albert Einstein's hair. She does however give us the hardest time when we change her clothes or diaper. It's like WWF with a baby! Not fun, but she's so active and always wants to be doing other things. I have a feeling this is not going to get easier :)

Her latest accomplishments include dancing and knowing "moves" to the following songs: "Itsy, Bitsy Spider," "I'm a little Teapot," and "No More Monkeys Jumping on the Bed." She's such an entertainer, she's also learned how to gargle water, I don't know how or when but it's the craziest thing!!

Something we've been struggling with lately is getting Avery to eat vegetables, hopefully this is just a phase and she'll be eating all the fun colorful veggies soon. I get worried but I know she's getting most of her nutrition through her formula anyway.

Speaking of struggles, one great thing that has happened recently is that we had two great nights of Avery sleeping for 7 plus hours. Now most of you know that she has NOT done this at all. So it's a great accomplishment and we hope that this happens more often.

So thanks for reading my ultra long blog, and look out for more fun stuff as Avery turns 1 next month!!