14 months old and getting more fun everyday. I finally made the decision to enjoy each stage as it comes, instead of reminiscing about the days flying by. I tend to get nostalgic easily and want to make sure I focus on the thrill of the journey of parenthood so I don’t miss a moment. I snap a lot of photos so I can properly cry my eyes out with nostalgia and she goes off to to college, but for now, I savor the moments and each new stage.
And let me tell you, 14 months is a pretty awesome stage. I skipped the 13 month update because I didn’t think I’d post monthly updates anymore, yet here I am, not wanting to forget the joy that is 14 months, so please indulge me 
At 14 months, Hailey loves exploring the world. She would be outside all day if it was up to her.
She points and laughs and the neighbor’s dogs, crumbles fall leaves in her hands, and handles her walker like a pro. It’s funny she loves it so much because she can now walk on her own!
She started at 13 months taking steps. She’d take 3-4 in a row, fall down and try again. I guess some people call that walking, but I wasn’t convinced. When I finally got to 15-17 consecutive steps, I declared her a walker. I LOVE watching her toddle. I still squeal when I see her pigtails bouncing up and down on the other side of the island.
Hailey is also a stair master. At 13 months she started handling them like a pro. As she approaches, she turns around and slides down backwards. As with everything she does, I think it’s adorable.
Her favorite activities include peek-a-boo/hide-n-seek, dancing to toddler radio and Christmas songs, giving high fives, grabbing Koda’s tail, climbing into chairs, going down the slide and putting things in her bucket, spilling it, clapping and filling it back up again.
She’s a sweet girl. Periodically she’ll stop playing, walk over and lay her head on my leg. She gives the best hugs and snuggles. We’re working on kisses.
This isn’t to say she isn’t without her challenges. Besides pulling everything out of cabinets and drawers, she also sometimes bites when she is tired and it hurts! She also thinks of most diaper changes as torture and occasionally throws a tantrum when I take things away from her. Oh, the drama.
She is sleeping from 7:00pm-7:30am and I usually go get her around 8:00am. She always smiles, stands up and hands me both pacifiers. Yes, she still needs one for each hand for bedtime and I think it’s adorable. She is napping once a day, usually going down between 10:30 and 11:00 and sleeping 2-3 hours.
Let’s talk words. I really struggle with what to count as words. Is it saying them? Or using them consistently in context? Hailey says hi (hiiiii), dada, banana (na-na-na) and dog (dah) in context, meaning I know she, without doubt, knows what they mean. In fact, I can’t say the word banana without her freaking out and wanting one. She wakes up every morning saying banana and pointing to the counter until I give her one. She says mmm when she is eating something she likes and says moooo when I ask her what a cow says.
She also has said mama and ball, but doesn’t say them consistently with meaning. Seriously? I’m with you EVERYDAY and I can’t get a decent mama? Sigh…
I’ve also found that she is mimicking our inflection. She repeats things back in babble, but with the same inflection in her voice. It’s neat.
She’s still eating well. 3 meals and 1 snack a day. Her favorite foods right now are banana, sweet potato, pomegranate arils, Greek yogurt and salmon. She’s not as wild about her old favorite black beans unless they have some flavor added in. She drinks about 8 ounces of her milk a day. No banana milk necessary. Whoop!
As if I haven’t already been wordy enough… here’s a rundown of the basics.
Weight: 22-ish lbs
Clothing: 12-18 months or 18 months clothing, though some of the pants sag on her. She wears size 4.5 shoes and size 4 diapers.
Favorite Toy: push walker, bucket with napkin rings, cups,
Teeth: She has 8! Top 4 and bottom 4, though with the swollen gums, I wouldn’t be surprised if those molars popped through soon.
There can’t possibly be anything I left out, so thank you for indulging this update post. Sill deciding whether or not I’ll keep up the monthly updates or not…
Have a great day!
blackhuff says
She is so cute in all of these pictures and she looks so much like you.
Love that you decided to enjoy every stage she goes through rather than getting depressed on what have passed.
Molly @ Duchess of Fork says
She couldn’t be any cuter! Love her pig tails. It’s fun/challenging/crazy to try to decipher what they’re trying to say. How cool is it that our babies are learning to communicate!?
Brittany says
SO cool! I can’t wait (ok, well I can), but i think it will be so neat when she can tell me stories and talk about the world!
Kaitlyn @Keeping up with Kaitlyn says
She is adorable!! I don’t have kids, I’m not even married, but I love reading these little updates on her!!
Sherry says
Keep up the updates, I love them!!! She is so adorable and her mom is pretty cute too. Wish I had kept a more detailed diary of you and Kris. But one (of many) cute things you said when you were about 2 or 3 was–you were dressing yourself and you put your shoes on the wrong feet. I looked down and said “You got your shoes on the wrong feet”. You looked down at your feet and then looked up at me with big tears in your eyes and said “but I don’t have any other feet”. So cute!
Brittany says
<3 You were/are such a great mom! I love hearing the stories you remember from when we were little. Like this one.. and when I wanted to be a cupcake! ;)
Abbie says
I hope you keep up with the updates! What a cutie!
Erin says
She is so sweet!
It is so true that every stage and age is better than the one before. My oldest son is almost 3.5 and since birth i have delared monthly that I love this age more than the one before:) I also have a 7.5 month old and he has reminded me again of all that is amazing about that age.
Thanks for continuting he updaes. I love hearing what other kids are up to!
Coleen @ DNCWWO says
I love the Hailey updates! I’ve noticed Liam imitating our inflection, too. And I think I’m going to have to borrow your banana milk idea!
Parita @ myinnershakti says
Way too much cuteness in one post! She’s grown so much. 🙂 I don’t know about others, but I love these posts because I know they’ll help me one day when I have my own little ones.
Stefanie says
I love the Hailey updates! It’s so fun to watch her grow and see what milestones she’s reached! And her pigtails are adorable!
Shari says
What a little sweetheart!
Ali says
Keep the updates – at this age they still change so much every month at this age!!
Megan @ My Path in Motherhood says
I LOVE the monthly updates! I enjoy seeing what I have to look forward to in approximately 7 months 🙂
Bethany says
As a new mom I like these monthly Hailey updates, it gives me an idea of what’s ahead for me with our baby girll!
Lauren B. says
I love the updates! As a very nostalgic person myself, I am already sad that Jackson is 13 weeks old and getting into size 2 diapers! Your updates give me fun things to look forward to, instead of lamenting that my newborn isn’t a newborn anymore!
That pic of her playing with the thermos is too cute- love the pigtails, the squat, and the diaper showing out of the back of her jeans. Awwww.
Brittany says
The diaper showing- I agree! It ALWAYS sticks out, but it’s so darn cute that I don’t mind.
I can’t believe Jackson is 13 weeks old. That seriously blows my mind! I feel like you just had him!
Shanna, like Banana says
Love this! And that last photo is precious. I too enjoy reminiscing and also savoring each moment. Every thing my lil bean does is a memory to me…quirks, smiles, tantrums and all!
Natassia says
I saw keep the updates! I am also a first time mom with a 9 month old and I love reading your updates and schedules to see what I have to look forward to. I can’t tell you how helpful your blog and the daily garnish has been to me throughout this journey your daily schedules have been the most helpful given me an idea of what was to come and giving me a template to work with as I tailored our schedule to my baby and my work schedule. Although I can’t help but be a little jealous of how good a sleeper Hailey is; mine is a wild man who doesn’t like to slow down to even sleep.
Whitney says
You and Daily Garnish are on the same wave length. She just did a similar post too! I love that you are cherishing the time with your daughter 🙂
Hallie@ChasingHallie says
I said I wasn’t going to do monthly updates anymore either but I think I probably will. : )
She is so cute and getting so big!
So the only milk she drinks all day from sun up to sun down is 8oz? Just trying to figure out with Molly. So confusing.
Also, what kind of straw cups do you use for her? All of M’s straw cups shoot the milk out of the top making a huge mess!
Brittany says
I don’t claim to be the expert on baby milk, but being that H is a good eater, I don’t worry much about how much milk she gets. She usually gets around 8 ounces. Some days she will drink more and other days (like when she is congested) she doesn’t get any.
We have a couple different types of straw cups. A few of them make a big mess, too! My favorites are thermos brand and a cheao from Target clearance 🙂
Chantal says
She is so sweet! I learned to embrace each stage too. It’s soooo fun when they start walking – my Penny just did a few weeks ago!
KRISTEN'S MOM says
Brittany, she is absolutely adorable! My granddaughter is about 3 weeks behind her – not walking yet, but saying the same words! Those must be the easy ones to say. Hi is by far her favorite word. We cannot get her to say mama either!
Tina @ Best Body Fitness says
I’m all for reading the recaps! Especially since it helps me be nostalgic for my own babies. 🙂 The banana thing – B did that too. He would freak every morning for a “nana”.
Rebekah says
I love ALL your posts, but especially the monthly update ones! I have not blogged for months due to some crazy stuff going on in my life and being busy, but this inspired me to update my blog and get going on sharing (and reflecting!) how much my Amaré is doing now, too. Our girls are just about 2 weeks apart, and it’s so fun to see Hailey grow up, too!
Tiffany says
Love the update. She is so adorable. I am so jealous that she allows the pigtails as my 15 month old pulls out anything I try to put in her hair! You are not alone on the not getting a good mama for a long time. I JUST started to get a real Mama in the last week. She made me wait SOOO long for that. Now, she knows what she is saying with both Mama and Dada and thinks it’s hilarious to call for Dada since he turns and says Hi! So fun.
Kristen @ notsodomesticated says
Love the update. It’s so interesting to see a child’s developmental milestones. Before you know it, I’ll have a 14 month old little girl of my own! (But I’m not rushing it haha … I’m enjoying the pregnancy part!) 🙂
Erin says
Hailey just keeps on getting cuter. I love the idea of taking each stage as it comes. I need to do that because I find myself crying every time Michael grows out of an outfit. LOL.
Lee says
You should keep doing them! I think you’ll really enjoy looking back at them later.
Jessie says
I’m so glad you decided to do another monthly update. Hailey is such a little doll!
jodie says
I especially love these updates bc I work with toddlers 🙂
And uh oh, you have a little biter on your hands 😉 silly toddlers.
Keep these coming. I love them!
Brittany says
Any tips for the biting? I don’t want a biter!
jodie says
I want to elaborate more and I will–im just on my phone right now. My number one tip is if shes tired, to try ad get her down before shes so tired she bites. If she does, tap her lips and say, “biting hurts me. No bite.” And set her down. Don’t give her anymore attention for it than that. Believe me, it’ll probably be hard on you because she may cry. Are there other instances she bites?
Brittany says
I’ll do whatever it takes; I don’t want a biter. Thanks for the tips! She really only tends to do it when she is overtired and I don’t think she means anything mean by it because she does it while giggling. But still, not cool 🙂
sarah (the SHU box) says
love these posts, too! 🙂 she is a happy, lucky girl.
Megan says
She is so stinking cute! I’m in no rush to see my booger grow so fast, but what a fun age when they start walking, talking and having such funny personalities!
Elle says
I love these posts! It’s so fun to see her grow up! Please keep them coming! Can you please do a video of her mimicking your inflection? It sounds so cute!