Samantha is pulling herself up onto everything. One of her favorite things is to grab my (now) loose pants and pull herself up to a standing position while I am working at the kitchen sink. I get kind of nervous with this because it is a hard tile floor there, so I reach down and hold her until she sits back down again. I saw her standing in her crib yesterday and she was laughing and bouncing up and down on her mattress. She loves bouncy games. A week ago she was screaming when she stood up in her crib because she didn't know how to get back down. Now she sits down again like a pro.

I have to keep all the surfaces clear of clutter, too. In her efforts to climb and stand, she will grab at anything that hangs over the edge, and if it isn't secured (really, really secured. She's strong!) she pulls it off the table. I just pull it out of her hands for now and never leave her alone. She is pretty good with "no." She leaves the dog dish alone when I say "leave it." Yes, I use commands for simple things.

Such a fast crawler, too. I had to put her in her play yard when I was occupied hanging something so she wouldn't crawl down the stairs. The play yard seemed fine for about a half hour, which is good to know. Safe spots are very important right now! Oh, stairs. Well, four days ago she flipped over the three-inch high stair in the bedroom onto the sun porch and yelled. Three days ago she flipped and didn't yell. Yesterday she stumbled a little, and today she crawls over it as though it isn't even there. When Sam decides to go somewhere, there is no such thing as an obstacle in her way.