Greetings, greetings...
We're rolling through J's 11th month wondering how the heck a year has gone by??? not that we haven't lived every day, but... still amazing to think this little dude is almost a year old! and he's still mine! not just a long term babysitting gig! crazy. :) and no, we have no idea what we're doing to ring in the happy first birthday... i figure i have a few years before it needs to be "memorable" for him... i'm not exactly a creative type... it falls on a monday this year... maybe i can find a good applesauce cake recipe... dunno... there's always ice cream! we'll for sure be takin' some pics... :)
one of his fav things is going for hb (dog) potty walks with daddy (substitute people are ok, but loves it with daddy)... as soon as the bjorn comes out (right after bkfst for instance), both the pooch and the babe get all frisky and excited... as daddy layers up, j starts chirping away... sits fairly patiently while i add his layers... sockies, hat, rain pants, rain coat or down sweater coat, etc... and then the arms and legs start flapping up and down as we wrangle him into the bjorn... when he returns, he's hooting and still arm/leg flappin... good times! :)
and speaking of wrangling... he loves riding on his pony... points to it and rocks back and forth fast when he's wanting to hop on... likes pointing to the eyes and ears and mane...
we had tons of fun with auntieree... even got to take part in $2 zoo day!!!!! i about fell off my rocker when i learned it was only $2! i thought it was reg price -2... so we really felt like we scored! i think little j was equally if not more interested in the leaves and other kiddos and strange people around... but that's ok... sometimes mommy feels that way, too. :) we got to see lion interaction... good monkey play... a lesson in banana hoarding and how the most ornery wins on that deal... etc.
auntieree telling a secret...
j's babbling has stepped up to a new level... combines a few different sounds at a time... lots of b's now and some new vowel sounds... i think he's figuring out that everything has a name so he really likes pointing at all sorts of things... not just electronics and clocks...
he can find the caterpillar on the different hungry caterpillar book pages a good portion of the time... he points out suns and moons... he loves his doggie/counting/barking book by sandra boynton... great books by her!... he now likes pulling all his books off the table we keep them on... tosses them into a big pile on both sides of his legs on the floor... then sits in the middle and "reads" them... turns the pages, makes sounds, etc... he especially likes the board books as his little fingers are now strong enough to open them and turn pages. when we're reading books to him, he likes you to read, then sometime in the middle-end of the book, he wants to turn the pages himself... so we read parts after that... then sometimes he just likes to flip the pages with no reading... it's a great way to get him settled down prior to naps... 3-4-5-6 books... etc. ;) this could get interesting as he gets older... but i'm loving it. :)
he really loves his hi ho mozart cd and the putamayo ones we started when he was just a wee one...
his sideways cruising (standing and stepping sideways) while holding onto things has really improved...
his appetite has increased again... really loves white fish dishes... as in, white fish with carrots, zuccs, potatoes... or etc... beef or chicken stirfry without or with a bit of sauce (pureed) is pretty good... roast/carrots/parsnips/potatoes, etc is tasty... etc... he had his first big people oatmeal with fruit and milk mixed in with pretty good success... still loves his morning yogurt and fruit and bread... he loves eating part of mommy's chicken burrito, including the beans, cheesy brown rice, tortilla pieces... he usually needs to be busy to finish his meal... banging a spoon, crinkling a yogurt container, or having finger foods to eat in between bites... he loves his fingerfood... and so does hana. :) hee hee!!! really, he's a good eater so far... we'll see how it turns out as toddlerhood rolls around.
seems that our weather has settled into the "winter" phase... sigh... i long for the snow and dry and sun, even if it's significantly colder. it's hard to be more miserable than high 30s, windy, and raining. but i have good gear... so i get out in it every day... and so does the little man... cuz he has good gear, too! ;) and we both love it! :)
i start work after TG holiday...
cheers and happy holidays!
kz
