Nathan: One Year Old (and 13 months, too)

Nathan,

This time of year is CRAZY busy for our family. Not only was it your first birthday, but Thanksgiving, Holiday Parties, Christmas, and Katie’s birthday. That is too much for one mommy to keep up with!

I have tried to do my best, and hopefully I will be successful in the future, but your updates this month and last are a bit late. Oh well…

You are still as cute, lovable and ornery as you ever were.  You are learning so much and getting into everything. Since your last update, you have started Walking! Running! And climbing! You took 14 steps on October 31st and never looked back. Now that you are more mobile, you are into everything. You constantly open cabinets, pull things off the Christmas tree, climb on step stools and your latest - play in the toilet. Yuck! You are ALL boy! You have 6 teeth now! (2nd tooth on the right November 18th, Top Right on December 10th and Top Left on December 14th). I think you are actually working on your 2nd bottom right tooth, right now, as you were drooling up a storm last night.

You are speaking more, too! Your list of words include: Mama, Dada, “Bubba,” “uh oh” on November 12th, “Bella” on December 14th and you gave Isabella a hug when she got home from school, and “Mawmaw” January 1st while pointing at Grandma. You wave “Hi” (November 25th), “Bye” (December 3rd), and clapped your hands (November 25th). You are becoming so communicative. You are making sounds and gestures for your other wants and needs, and I am sure you will be talking more and more in the coming weeks and months. You seem to be growing taller and heavier, but the doctor tells us you are still under the 5th percentile for your height and weight. I am not quite sure why this is, but otherwise you are doing so well! Your hair doesn’t have any problems growing at an accelerated rate, however, as you got your FOURTH haircut right before your birthday.

You love to play “peek-a-boo” and “get you” with Katie and anyone else that wants to join. We took our first long distance road trip (to Aline) with you November 2-5th for an Early Thanksgiving with GamGam and my cousins, aunts and uncles. On the way home, you were playing peek-a-boo all on your own! It was darling. Speaking of our road trip, you did really well! I was a bit nervous to see how you would do as the farthest you have gone is the coast and back, but you slept well, played by yourself and didn’t scream for the majority of the trip (as I feared you would). This trip was when you really started eating people food well! You scarfed down Thanksgiving dinner and never looked back!

We have been all around the past two months; it is hard to keep track. I had vacation for a bit around your birthday, and I wanted to fit in as many holiday and fall activities as I could. We went to Devine Acres Farm for a hayride and to see a pumpkin patch with Tiffanie and Caleb October 30th. You had a blast being outside and taking everything in. We made several trips to the duck pond and SeaWorld, where you started taking part in feeding the dolphins like Katie. You even tried to eat one of the fish, but thankfully we caught your hand in time. We have had a slew of birthday parties, including Caleb’s November 17th, and Isabella’s December 9th at Amazing Jump. You love partaking in the birthday festivities and most importantly the cake! We have been spoiled by having Gam Gam with us twice in the past two months (once for your birthday and again for Christmas). You love to play with Gam Gam and G-Paw, and they seem to have enjoyed being here with you, as well. We went to the River walk on December 2nd while they were here with Aunt Rikki and you loved your first boat and carriage rides, as well as looking at all the Christmas decorations. We also made a quick day trip to Portland for Emma’s baptismal December 23rd with the family. You did so well in the car, but you were entirely over being at the baptism and fussed when Papaw held you instead of letting you run around everywhere.

Your Clothing/Eating and Sleeping Habits:
Clothing: 6-12 months, size 4 shoes

Diapers: size 3 disposables and “medium” cloth diapers

Sleeping: Bedtime is around 8:30pm. Sometimes you wake up around 5am, but you are awake for the day at 7:30. Your naps have been more erratic lately. Sometimes you take a morning or evening nap for 30-45 minutes, and sometimes you don’t. You always get that 2 hour nap in during the middle of the day, though.

Eating: You are eating so well! And big boy foods, too! You eat breakfast, lunch and dinner with snacks in between. You are not even kind of interesting in baby food anymore. You LOVE fruit. You would eat it all day if we let you. You like corn and sweet potatoes, but fruit is definitely the winner in fruits vs. veggies. You enjoy chicken and some beef. And you LOVE sweets. You had cupcakes and cake/ice cream for your birthday, which you thoroughly enjoyed. You still nurse 3-4 times a day and do really well drinking whole milk out of a sippe cup.

Overall, you are becoming quite the little toddler and are extremely energetic and happy 99% of the time. You bring so much joy to our family, and we are so proud to call you our son! We love you and I look forward to updating again when you are 15 months old! I am sure you will have learned so much more by then.

Love you to the moon and back,
Mommy

Kaitlyn: Month Twelve

Katie Bug,

This month's letter is going to be a bit different than before. Your daddy and I both handwrote you letters and placed them in your baby book for you to read later, but I still wanted to post some updates of what you have been up to this month.

You continue to amaze us with how quickly you are growing and changing. Your personality is so cute, and I love that you are communicating more and more.

Sleeping: Usually from 9pm to 7am, followed by another 1.5 to 2 hours more sleep after a bottle. Takes 1-2 naps for 1 hour each (if we are lucky)

Clothing: You are about to move on up to 12-18 month clothing and are now in size 4 shoes. Medium Diapers.

Mealtime: 16oz of milk in four bottles. Sometimes you take an extra two ounces of milk before bedtime. You eat lots of "regular" food now and you have tried so many things. (Kiwi, Pineapple, Apple, Banana, Grapes-your favorite, Strawberries, Melon, Cantaloupe, Raspberries, Blueberries, Cherries, Broccoli, Spinach, Carrots, Sweet Potatoe, Brussell Sprouts, Peas, Beans, Corn, Butternut Squash, Mashed Potatoes, Ham, Turkey, Chicken, a very small amount of beef, pasta, toast…)

Developments:
-Plays "Peek-A-Boo" and "Chase"
-Waves "hi" and "bye" when people talk to you (most of the time)
-picks up the cell phone and attempts a bad version of "hi!" This is too cute
-Stands up from sitting and climbs without help (December 4th)
-Top Left Incisor (December 12th), Top Right Incisor (December 22nd)
-Indicates wants with gestures, imitates some activities (You brought Grandma your bib this week when you wanted to eat)
-Bending over to pick up objects
-Enjoys gazing at her reflection (You love to smile at the baby in the mirror)
-Holds out an arm or leg to help you dress her (You are really good at getting clothes off)
-Eats with fingers

We love you so much baby girl and can't tell you how much you have made our lives more complete. We wish you a wonderful birthday full of fun and can't wait to see all that you learn next year.

Love Always,
Mommy