Brooke at 10 months...

Dear Brooke,

10 months old already, really?!!! It is hard to believe in only 2 short months, you will be a year old!! This past month was very eventful for you! You officially stopped army crawling and found out how much easier it is to get around on all 4's! You get around so much faster now, and are always chasing after your brother, trying to be a part of whatever it is he is doing! Sometimes he isn't so crazy about having you in his business and he pushes you out of the way (yes, the sibling rivalry is already starting!), but you are no pushover, you sure don't let him get away with it, you pull yourself right back up and keep on pestering him!! You have started to stick up for your self and actually give Austin a run for his money...It's fun to watch, you are a strong girl and sure don't take any crap from your big brother!!!

You also started standing all on your own without holding on to anything for pretty long periods of time. When you first started doing it, it would catch you by surprise, you didn't actually know you were doing it!! But now, you are so proud and get so delighted when you see how long you can stand without grabbing hold of something!

You are so close to taking your first few steps on your own. You can walk holding onto furniture, your walker toys, you name it...it's only a matter of time before you figure out you can let go, and go!!

You became a clapping machine this month too! One day you just got it...you started patty caking and haven't stopped!! You clap when you take bites of food, when you watch your brother race his cars, when you throw a ball, when you stand!! It is adorable watching you get so happy!

You also started climbing up on things. You aren't always successful, but man you try so hard!! You have actually made it up onto our fireplace stoop a few times and I've caught you crawling across it, with this look on your face like you know you are up to no good!! You are so going to be a tree climber, our little tomboy for sure!!

You love ripping off your socks when they are on your feet, you tug and tug so hard until they pull off and then you laugh! You love teasing your doggy Hunter when you are eating, pretending to offer him your food then taking it away when he come close to getting it! Hunter loves to lick your sticky fingers and you think this is so funny! You love the dishwasher and beeline for it whenever I have it opened! Same goes for the toilet and the dog water dish...if I turn my back for a second, you have your hands in them, splashing around...GROSS!!!

It's amazing how you have started to really play now too. You love your activity table and LOVE placing the ball into the chute on it and watching it fall down to the bottom! You do this over and over again and laugh so hard every time! You also love all your dolls and animals and hug each and everyone of them when you hold them, it is just the sweetest! And when you get excited you make the funniest gasping noise, like you are sucking in air really fast, it is so funny!

With all that fun stuff going on, it's hard to believe you spent most of this month trying to recover from ear infections. That was they story of this entire past month. You had 5 ear infections just this past month alone. Seriously, you poor thing, they just came one after the other, and you were such a trooper even though I know they hurt you so much. You are going to have tubes put in your ears next week though, so hopefully that will be the end of those.

And as if all those ear infections weren't enough, you also got 4 new teeth this month, making 8 total. I can't even imagine what you were feeling!!! You were just a teething/ear pulling mess!!! But through it all, you always had a smile on your face...that's our girl, you are such a happy baby, even when not feeling that great!

We love you so much and thank you for being our happy little girl!

Here's a lot of you over the past month...(for some reason I took way more pictures than usual these past few weeks and I couldn't narrow it down, you are just so cute I have to post them all!!)

10 months old today!

Look mom, no hands!! Brooke loves standing!

Caught in the act! Somehow Brooke managed to get herself up on the stoop in the family room! Look at how happy she is that she got up there!

...Can't take our eyes off of her for a second anymore!

Almost walking!

Always happy!

Helping mom in the kitchen!

All smiles when it's time to eat! (and check out those top teeth!)

You love bath time!

You get so serious when you check new things out...

You love to clap!

Your whole face smiles!

You have so much fun splashing in the water table!

There's that tongue!! We never thought we'd miss it so much!

Love those eyelashes!

Arghh!!! I'm gonna get you!! Sneaking scraps from under the table!

Now those are some rolls!

You love your baths!

Always trying to pull your socks off!

Making a run for it! Way back when at 9 months old!