milestones

i sort of consider myself a planner. while i was pregnant, i read all the baby books, caught up on mommy-to-be blogs, and chatted with new moms trying to somewhat figure out this whole parenting thing before little stella would arrive.

one aspect of parenting that i did not think about, nor did i ever really come across, was all of the day to day milestones our baby would accomplish. i'm not talking about the big stuff...like saying a whole sentence or walking (even though those are hugely wonderful things) but the little steps our baby would take to get there, so to speak.

last night after practicing with stella to stand at her music center, she decided on her own that this tippy toe business was not for her. she wanted to kneel. and kneel she did. all by herself for ten whole minutes without falling over!!! now that's a huge accomplishment. my first thought, get the camera. my second thought, a solid reconfirmation that my child is a genius. (this thought resurfaces quite a bit. mommys and daddys out there, you know what i'm talking about.)

here are a few other firsts that we consider milestones in stella's life, and as parents jumped for joy about:

- holding her bottle for the first time

- switching her "ah ah ah" sound to "ba ba ba" and even combining syllables "ba da da"

- eye contact

- her first smile

- lifting her head when on her tummy for the first time

- trying avocado and loving every second of it

- turning her cardboard book by herself in an impatient fashion

- sitting up in our tub and putting hers in storage

- noticing her hands for the first time and staring them down

- scooting across the wood floor...backwards

- rubbing the silk corners of her blankie before going to sleep

- entertaining herself with toys in her room...without mom or dad right there

every day is a new adventure with our stella vivienne.