Tonight, I opted to wait till after he was asleep to type up the blog post, since my last attempt was deleted by said adorable 11-month-old baby, who loves helping out on the computer.
I've tried to keep up with these month-by-month posts primarily because this is the only baby book little E has, and it's a great way to document his milestones. So what has he accomplished this month??
- He's still not walking but pulls himself up on everything and everyone and cruises like a champ. Just in the past week he will stand on his own for anywhere from 2 seconds to 15 seconds or so - though I don't think he realizes he's doing it just yet.
- He's such a little climber. At his weekly Gymboree class, he schools all the other kids on climbing the stairs, the ladder thingies, the kiddie rock wall. He always wants to be at the highest point. When one of us is on the couch, he'll climb up to our shoulders, to the back of the couch, and if we would let him he'd transfer to the bookshelf and scale that.
- We're not sure yet if he's had any true first words, but the talking never ceases. We love listening to his inflections now, as he mimics our speech. There have definitely been moments when he looks at me and says 'mama' or at Joe and says 'dada', and maybe a 'dah' for dog and 'dow' for when he's trying to descend the stairs, but we don't know whether he just got lucky or he's using real words. We do know when he starts he's not going to stop.
- When it comes to social interaction, he's absolutely his father's son. He has to greet everyone, particularly the pretty ladies, and he's still smiling more than anyone else I know. He's got a little stranger anxiety when it comes to men he's never met, and he sometimes cries when people he's not close to hold him, but generally he's got a grin and a wave for everyone.
- He figured out pretty much on his own how to turn around and get down from couches or descend stairs backwards. And he's so independent that he gets very angry if you try to do it for him - he will turn around himself or he's not going anywhere.
- His communication with us is becoming so much more clear. He's picked up a few baby signs, and he'll put his hands out to tell us 'all done' at the end of a meal. When he's hungry, he'll either find an empty box of raisins left on the floor and present it to us, or he'll crawl over to his meal counter and yell. Tonight he pulled himself up right under where we keep the bottles, which I think meant he was ready for his bottle...
- He's got 6 teeth now and if profuse drooling is any indication there's more on their way. He's also got quite a head of hair (considering I was bald till I was 2 years old), which is excellent because we can use his growing hair to hide the bumps and scratches he always seems to have on his forehead.
- He's a stellar eater. We're down to 16 ounces a day of formula (the goal is to have him off bottles when the new baby comes, in 2 months) and there's an awful lot of eating in between bottles. Some of his favorites include the more expected food choices, like Chex, goldfish, dried fruit. Then there are the somewhat more adventurous options, like roasted zucchini, red peppers, hummus and pita chips, bacon. And finally there's the ridiculous stuff - he can't get enough of edamame. The other day, we made Kraft mac & cheese and while feeding him that the edamame was ready. As soon as he saw that he wouldn't take another bite of mac & cheese. He likes fresh tomatoes, slices of lime, and corn fresh off the cob - he's loving the summer produce we have around here! His other favorite is roasted seaweed that we buy at Trader Joe's. His eager face and grabby little hands are so hilarious when we pull out the sheets of roasted seaweed. He shoves the stuff in his mouth like he'll never get an opportunity like this again. Joe and I love the stuff too, although our nanny and our family can't stand it - apple doesn't fall far from the tree, I guess. Oh, speaking of apples and trees, we got some fresh Texas peaches last week. I showed Joe a ripe one and E grabbed it from me and proceeded to devour the whole thing, down to the pit. He's had a lot of peaches since then - so convenient that we don't even have to cut them up before we give them to him!
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- He's just about done with his infant safety swim lessons, where they teach him to roll over and float if he falls into the water. It's amazing to see him flip himself over, though I admit I'm glad I don't go to the lessons in person (our nanny takes him) because it's hard to watch them put him under the water. I couldn't be prouder of him for learning from his awesome instructor and, though I hope he never has to use what he's learnt, I'm definitely more comfortable knowing he could if he had to.
Oof, long post. I could brag about this beautiful kid forever, but for the few family members still with me to this point, I will break at this point and resume next month, at the big one-year post.
:) s
