She started walking about a month after her first birthday, a little later than I expected, but nonetheless still a milestone achieved. She just let go of my hands and started walking on her own! A bit wobbly at first of course, but it didn't take her long before she was confident in taking a few more steps without my help. She now runs around the house, runs away from us when she gets the chance, and can even climb up steps on her own. Because of this, I have trained my eyes to be glued on her, and keep her always within eyesight, even if my fingers are working on the laptop. Hehe.
She started talking really early, a few months before her first birthday. The words Mama and Dada were magic to my ears. But after her first year, she gradually started talking up a storm...ohhhhh, the joy! :-) The first few words she learned were mostly related to food (rice, fish, 'tubig', fries, chicken, etc.). And no, she didn't say it the 'bulol' way.
I'm proud to say that she says her words really clearly, maybe because we never baby-talked Keisha at all. We converse with her the way we would with other adults. :-) From Mama and Dada, her vocabulary has now graduated to many Tagalog words, and she uses them correctly to express her thoughts, feelings, and desires. She can say 'antok na', 'busog na', 'gutom na' (isn't it obvious that food-related expressions are her foremost priority?hehe), 'pahingi', 'punta (and the direction where she's going)', 'kawawa', 'kain na', 'come' and lots more. But what really amazes me, is how Keisha automatically says 'Thank you' when someone gives her something. I remember that we did remind her of this when she was a bit younger, to say thank you. I guess she kept it in her 'library' and since she can say it clearly now, she uses it every chance she has. We also make it a point to use it often too, so she might have taken after what she saw us doing.
I'm still introducing her to the world of shapes, colors, and the alphabet. She can already fit the right shapes into the shape sorter, draw a circle, and count from one to ten. She can sing Bahay Kubo, Baby (Justin Bieber's song), and the 'Mutya Theme song'. She also dances a lot, and interacts really well with other kids.
I do feel a bit guilty about not teaching her early on about the basics, online work has taken me prisoner for the past months, and I'm still catching up with quality time for Keisha. Better late than never right? She may not be the most advanced kid when it comes to these things, but I'm pretty sure she'll learn all of it in no time at all. No need to rush her or force her to it.
Earlier this year, I also noticed that Keisha had already started showing separation anxiety. Every time we have to leave, she would always say 'Sama Keisha', and will ask her yaya to dress her. She would even go to her cabinet and start pulling out clothes. I also noticed that she tends not to go to sleep for as long as she knows her Mommy and Daddy are awake. She'll bug us to play with her, and will not doze off until we tell her we're leaving to buy her food from Jollibee.
A lot has changed with Keisha since she turned one. She gained weight, grew taller, her hair grew longer (she now has Dora-length hair), and she became more 'makulit'. And now with the onset of the 'terrible twos', I know for sure that I still have a bevy of changes to look forward to.
And perhaps, her turning two...would not be terrible after all.... :-)
'til the next update!
