Evelyn Clara: 17 months

She's so grown up- I can't believe how fast time flies!! Summer is over, and now it's time for autumn. Evie had a great month, she is growing so fast and learning so much. You can really see how much her comprehension has improved, she follows directions really well and understands what we're telling her all the time now. She's a great little helper when it comes to cleaning up- she's so good at putting toys away! Evie also loves to help "wash dishes" now, aka play with a sink full of water and bubbles. ;) She's also into coloring.

But probably her favorite toys these days are dolls- she loves her babies! We have a doll-sized high chair from one of Eric's aunts, and we got her a little doll stroller, so she takes good care of her baby dolls. She pretends to feed them, takes them for walks around the house and outside, and gives them lots of hugs and kisses. She's started sleeping with a doll or two for naps and bedtime as well. It's so sweet to see her imitate all of the things we do to take care of her- she even puts diapers on the dolls when she gets a hold of one! :)

Evie has added a couple new words to her vocabulary, including Elmo ("Melmo") and Emma ("Memma"). She loves to run in circles lately, and then drop to the floor in a fit of giggles which is super fun to watch. :) She also has started showing interest in the potty, so we bought her a little potty that she likes to sit on fully clothed. We're going to start real slow with the training thing, just to see if she's ready.

We're so excited for lots of fun activities this fall- we've started a story class at the library on Friday mornings, and so far Evie seems to really like it. We plan to go to Letchworth for some hiking, and visit a pumpkin farm and the cider mill. Plus I think Evie will really enjoy playing in the leaves this year, since she can run and jump in piles now! She is amazing, and we love her so much.