stella at 15 months

Tiger gets pulled into reading 101 Things I Learned in Architecture School

Stella at 15 months is (mostly) all joy. Aside from toddler tantrum moments, complete with flopping on the floor and emphatic wails, which usually revolve around hunger, tiredness, or frustration at not being able to accomplish something, Stella is one sweet, friendly, good-natured kid. 

Stella is effusive with cuddles and kisses; she regularly kisses her friends, hugs her stuffed animals, and kisses animals and babies in books. She is still open to meeting and greeting new people, for the most part. She is increasingly sure of what she wants and where she wants to go; she points and makes a sound if what she wants is out of her reach and she refuses to let anyone guide her in a direction she doesn't want to go. She is also watchful and observant. She has moments of real seriousness, which no doubt she gets from me. Her vocabulary is growing; new words include "ball" and "book."

A few things she's loving right now:

-101 Things I Learned in Architecture School (for whatever reason this book holds her attention for 15-minute stretches, longer than any of her own books, toys, or puzzles)

-Chicken apple sausage

-Waking up and discovering that Dada has come home after a few days away

-Testing boundaries (she loves to unplug my computer and act like she's going to put the power cord in her mouth, she giggles and looks at me expectantly while waiting for my response)

-Pulling everything out of my purse and taking every card, dollar, and scrap of paper out of my wallet

-"Guinea," the stuffed guinea pig that her friends J and M brought her from Switzerland

-Homemade mushroom, spinach, turkey lasagna

-Animal sounds

-Shaking her shoulders and twirling around

-Spinning the dial on the old rotary phone at Subrosa