11 Months

My baby boy is 11 months old! We got one picture of him looking at the camera with his sticker on. The rest look a little more like this. :) He is so fun. We are never, ever bored. My favorite thing is watching him eat. His little mouth is adorable. He is still obsessed with blueberries. If I put them on his tray with other foods, the blueberries are always the first to disappear. He likes them more than strawberries and more than bread. He seems to love all fruit.

He's learning and growing so fast I can't keep up. He's in mostly 12 month clothes, but we've had to move him up to 12-18 month pjs and size 5 diapers right at 11 months. One day something fits, and the next day it doesn't. It's the craziest thing! I'm not sure how big he is, but I'll find out at our one year appointment early April. He had an ear infection a few weeks ago, and he was over 24 lbs then. He has six teeth and more visibly on the way.

One day he suddenly started pulling up on everything, and that's been his favorite activity ever since. He's always just standing up and holding on to something. It's so funny. :) He is walking all over the place with his walker or by holding on to furniture or various objects. He's used his rocking chair as a walker, too. He's a creative little boy! He still says "uh-oh" all the time. He also says dada and mama! It's sweet. He loves music and really started noticing it and paying attention to it a few weeks ago. He usually stops what he's doing and starts dancing or at least looks at the tv or speaker or wherever the music is coming from. He is really interested in books now and sits still for several stories in a row. He loves taking baths. He is getting better at using his sippy cup on his own. He still loves his bottles, and eats like a champ at every meal. He loves playing with his toys, but I think he would be fine if he didn't have any. He's always playing with random things for long periods of time. The other day it was bibs; today it was an empty box. He is so good at playing independently, especially if he has some room to explore. We try to give him quite a bit of independence. We don't usually follow him around at his heels when he crawls around the house, as long as we know certain doors are shut, the floors are clean, etc.

His favorite thing to do right now is put in, take out, put on, take off, open, close, etc. He is constantly stacking stuff, and is so good at his stacking rings and making towers out of blocks. He can build a tower that is 5 blocks high! He opens and closes doors, cabinets, and drawers. He's obsessed with my jewelry armoire and has broken one bracelet already. Ha! :)

He takes a short, usually thirty minute nap at 9am and a 2-3 hour nap at 2:00. He goes to bed around 7/7:30 and usually sleeps for 12 hours, although he's getting to where he can stay up a little bit later and still sleep 12 hours. He used to wake up by 7 no matter what, even if he hadn't gotten enough sleep. He's still Mr. Happy, and we are SO crazy about him!

I'll be adding my favorite pictures from this past month at some point... hopefully soon. :)

9 & 10 Months

8 Months

My sweet Owen is growing and changing at the most rapid pace. I mean, obviously, but I just can't believe how much change happens in what is truly such a short amount of time. He is wearing mostly 6-9 month clothes. Most 6-12 month tops are a little too big for him, but he can wear a few. He can wear some 3-6 month pants in the waist, but he's too long for them. He's in size 3 diapers. He eats three 6 oz bottles a day and one 8 oz bottle. He loves drinking water out of his sippy cup or real cups. He also eats cereal at breakfast, and fruits and veggies at lunch and dinner. I've been feeding him table food at lunch and dinner if I am eating something he can eat. He has had and loved chicken, roast, and turkey. He loves eating Puffs and usually reaches for the container when he sees it. He can feed himself Puffs like a pro, but I usually still feed him at meals because it's faster. I try to strike a balance between helping him and letting him be independent. A lot of times he actually won't let us feed him his Puffs. He'll keep his mouth closed and try to get it out of our hands and do it himself. He is Mr. Independent. He still hates, hates, snuggling, but he does like to be held. If I hold him where he can look around and grab whatever he wants, he loves it. As soon as we try to snuggle him, he gets upset. It's funny and sad. My mom has always said that I was exactly like that. He definitely enjoys being active, and we always say "he sure is a busy boy!" He's been babbling constantly, and these past few days he has been saying "dada" a few times! He doesn't seem to be associating it with Ryan, but we are trying to teach him.

He goes down for bedtime and naps pretty much as soon as I lay him in his crib. No fussing, no anything. He's still sleeping great at night, and he's taking longer naps on a consistent basis. He's able to put his pacifier in his mouth if he finds it in his crib or wherever. I've been waiting for that day ever since we introduced the paci to him! Ha. Diaper changes have become extremely difficult because he either scoots across the room on his back, or rolls incessantly. The only thing that works for me? Giving him a diaper sack or box of wipes to play with. Great parenting, I know: this is not a toy. :-) He has four teeth, although one is a new development and therefore quite tiny. He enjoys having his teeth brushed each morning and night. He still smiles frequently, and he enjoys observing his surroundings.

People still, for the most part, say he looks like whichever one of us (or random family members) they know best. I'm really sensitive to people saying who he likes like, or who he acts like, etc. (although I'm guilty!) because Owen is his own person. He is not an extension of us. Actually, to quote a post I read several months ago (with no citation, sorry... can't remember where it came from): "My children are neither my possessions nor extensions of myself. They are image-bearing individuals with souls that will last forever." He has his own personality which is both innate and learned. He has his own feelings, hopes, dreams. He has his own beliefs, likes, dislikes, and worldview. As much as we can try to shape bits and pieces of him, he is who he is, and I will love him unconditionally no matter. I absolutely cannot wait to get to know this amazing tiny human. :)