Piper - 18 months

At 18 months, Piper is definitely her sister's best friend. I'd say it was around 15-16 months that they really started playing well together and I didn't have to worry (as much) about Libby sitting on or strangling Piper. Just last week, I decided to move Piper into Libby's room at night, hoping it would help quell Libby's "I don't want to be alone!" protests at night. So far, so good. The first night was adorable...I could hear them giggling and talking for nearly an hour before they went to sleep.

They climbed onto the counter and finished off a package of sprinkles while I was taking a shower!

A few things I want to remember about Piper at this age:

She is so obedient when we tell her it's time to pray. She will stop what she is doing and clasp her hands together. She sometimes even bows her head, but usually she looks around at us to make sure she is copying us just right. If we fold our hands, she folds her hands. If we fold our arms, she folds her arms.

She knows so many words now I can't even keep track anymore. She will attempt to copy nearly any word. Some of the most repeated words we hear from her: no, stop, mine (those are usually directed toward Libby), snack, eat, milk, bike, bath, back (when she wants to ride on our backs), drive-drive (whenever she sees a car), Bibby (Libby), and of course Mommy and Daddy. She can also name body parts (eye, ear, nose, mouth, hair, cheek, chin, hand, foot, toes).

She is still crazy obsessed with animals, particularly dogs. I'm pretty sure we are the only ones on our street that do not have a dog, but we get plenty of use out of the neighbors' dogs. If we are in the backyard, Piper is usually sticking her hand through the fence and calling "Lily! Lily" to the dog next door.

She likes the Old McDonald song and the Slippery Fish song. She knows sounds for duck, cat, dog, cow, horse, owl, rabbit, alligator (snap!).

She plays tag with Libby and can say "got you!"

She LOVES riding her tricycle, which is why we hear the word "bike" so often. (For a while, I started parking outside of the garage and going in through the front door, because if she saw her bike in the garage and I did not immediately let her ride it, it resulted in a major temper tantrum.) She is so fearless on her bike. Our driveway has a bit of a slope and she will push off, lift up her feet and fly down with hesitation. Problem is, her trike is not all that stable, so I try to run along beside her in case she tips. She wears a helmet and it's already come in handy a few times.

She is happiest playing outside, on her bike, in the swing, petting the dog, or rolling around in the grass with Libby.