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 Baby Birthday Ticker Ticker

Thursday, September 29, 2011

Ezra: 11 Months

Only one more month until his birthday.  I can't say it's felt like time has flown, it's been a crazy year, but I can say it feels like just yesterday I was giving birth!


Weight: 22 lbs 8 oz
Height:
Head Circumference:18"

Eats: We have completely moved away from purees for the most part.  He eats pretty much any finger food and is awesome at chewing and all of that.  He does enjoy to just taste somethings and then spit them back out.  It's cute and gross all at once.

His favorite food by far is french fries (without ketchup at the moment because mommy would probably throw up - I HATE ketchup).  We have to cover the french fries whenever we go out to eat otherwise he won't eat anything else.  He also enjoys strawberries, carrots, mashed potatoes, chicken, eggos, eggs, and cheese.

His other favorite thing to eat is whatever you're eating (so put down your snack).  He's like that annoying family member that always asks "are you done with that" as you're raising the fork to your mouth.  He sticks his little hand out and says "mo" or more.  He'll even flash a smile and a head tilt if he has to flirt it off your plate.

Sleeps: Sleeping is going very well. 

Ferber is my new BFF.  Sleep training went really well.  He goes right down after his bottle and a few minutes of cuddles and rocking.  His eyes are still open and he falls asleep in his crib, by himself, just with his Fisher Price Seahorse (thank you so much Aunt Corey for that shower gift!).

He still takes 2 naps, usually, during the day.  One in the morning and one in the afternoon.  He has been known to skip a nap just for fun, though.  Fun for him, not for those of us trying to maintain our sanity.

Likes: 
Music.  He really has an ear for it.  He loves to bop up and down or side to side to the tune and can keep up with the beat.  He does a very cute "ro ro ro ro ro ro" rendition of row row row your boat.  And loves to clap.  He enjoys banging pots and pans, too.

Bath time.  He actually climbed over the edge of the tub and into the water before I could catch him the other night in all of his clothes and his diaper.  Thankfully he's a good climber and he didn't end up head first under the water (don't panic, I was right there), but he wasn't happy about wet clothes nonetheless.  He loves to run his hands under the running water and try and play with all the knobs and levers in the tub.  He pretty much ignores all of his bath toys to play with shampoo bottles, the bath mat, or his face cloth. 

Micky Mouse Clubhouse and Sesame street.  Yes, I'm a terrible mother and I let my 11 month old watch TV.  He has the attention span of a small ant, so really he's only watching it for about 24 seconds at a time, BUT he loves the songs and periodically points to the TV when something is happening or when he recognizes a character or an animal.  He also loves the Toddler Tunes music channel on cable which just plays music, but he dances and dances and dances.

He also loves his Mickey Mouse clubhouse ride on toy.  It plays music and has spinning lights and some of the characters dance when he hits the keys.  He pushes it all over the house. He even hides things under the seat and gets so excited when he finds them again later.  Definitely the best $30 I've ever spent!

Dislikes:
He does seem to understand and already ignore the word "no."  At times, just saying it will make him scream, cry, and fall to the floor.  Other times he'll try to charm you into letting him do whatever it is he is trying to do (play in the trash can or toilet, eat something inedible, etc).  Or he'll just ignore you.  I feel like it's preparation for when he's a teenager.

Milestones: 
He can stand up straight from the floor and he's taking about 10 steps at a time right now!  Crazy.  He does the funniest drunken walk, though.  He's a pretty good sport about falling down and will usually not cry.  We're definitely getting a little more banged up from all the walking attempts but he's a tough boy. Here's a good video of the drunken walk followed by a smash into the hardwoods:



He says lots of things now including Maybel, dog, truck, mama, dada, his cousin's names, "mo" or more, juice, fish, and lots of animal sounds including cows, dogs, fish, sheep and sometimes horses.

Things I want to remember about this age:
You make the BEST faces.  Pouty faces, smiley faces, goofy faces, annoyed faces.  I could just watch you sometimes while you talk to yourself and play with your toys.  You crack me up by just being you! 

Your new dances.  The side to side, when you clap your hands, or try to bob your head to the tune.  The butt waggle.  You just love to dance to music.

I love how you're turning into a person more and more each day.  You have likes and dislikes, and such a personality.  I get so excited to think of what kind of little kid, big kid, teenager, and grown up you will be.  I do get sad every time you let go of my hand to take a few steps though.  It's that first "you don't need me anymore" moment - but it makes me so happy to see how excited you are getting about your independence.


Here are some 11 month photos for your viewing pleasure:
Sitting backwards in the bumbo, but he can get himself back out every time!

Getting a good view out the window

Playing with the pots and pans, or becoming one with them?

He looks like such a big boy in this picture!

Hiding things for later - and making a funny face!

His best buddy, Penny the Penguin

Thursday, September 1, 2011

Family Vacation

So this summer, finances are a little tight, so we decided to take a few small trips instead of a big family trip.  During August we spent a week camping near the beaches in Rhode Island.  Minus the rainy first part of the week, we really had a great time!

When I say camping, I don't mean camping.  Mike and his mother have a pull behind camper with all of the basic amenities, bathroom, beds, stove, fridge, etc.  I don't know that would be brave enough to camp in a tent without a pregnant belly and a 10 month old - nevermind with them.

We got to spend a lot of time at the beach, which is one of my favorite things to do.  Mike and I pretty much got a system down for dragging everything from the car to the sand, setting up, and then taking it all down.

Ezra loves the beach, too.  He might have eaten enough sand to fill a sand box but it was fun to watch him roll around and dig, or chase the seagulls, or watching the boats.  He liked playing in the waves and knocking down sand castles.  He didn't seem to mind wearing his hat, getting sand in his diaper, or being knocked over by a surprise wave.  This kid really is easy going.

As I mentioned in this post  I attempted to take a bike ride.  Mike's dad has a child seat on the back of his bike that we borrowed and Ezra loved it.  Mommy and baby Violet did not enjoy the bike ride quite as much.  We enjoyed reading or relaxing while they went for rides.
Of course we went with the Harley Davidson helmet

Sometimes he even fell asleep!

I really enjoyed sitting by the campfire with Mike after Ezra went to sleep and reading my new Kindle (love my kindle!).  Or going out for ice cream or clam cakes (or both, lets be honest, I am pregnant).  The heat definitely kicked my butt a little bit and caused my nausea to kick in.  It was hard to stay cool when we were spending so much time outside.  Much different from last summer when I was pregnant with Ezra.

Here are some of my favorite beach photos!
Crazy eyes
  
Crawling in the water 

playing in the sand
Covered in sand
Whew, that was a long walk!
Mommy and Ezra