Does it get old to have to read month after month about how one can't believe that their baby is getting so big? Because, listen, my baby is 11 months old and I just don't think I'm ready for that first birthday! It's hard to believe that Caleb is almost a year old, but, oh, what a wonderful 11 months we've had together. I've said it before, and I'll no doubt say it again: If all babies came at this age - I wouldn't be able to stop myself from having a hundred babies. It's just such a great age and I'm loving ever moment with this boy.
Stat: 18 month clothes. 1.5 teeth. Size three diapers. The biggest smile. :)
Things to remember from this month:
-Still our happy-to-be-along-for-the-ride baby. He plays pretty independently at home, especially now that he's truly mobile. I'm grateful that he's not super clingy, instead he's just content to be with me out and about, or having time to play by himself at home. (Sometimes I think that he likes the alone-time, because when his siblings are home and "paying attention to him" it's a lot of attenton. I'm sure it's nice for him to have some down-time. Ha.
-He likes to be involved in what you're doing - and now that he's mobile, he's determined to pull himself over to be in the middle of it. (Playing Candyland is basically impossible unless he's down for a nap, because he wants ALL the pieces and wants to be laying on top of the board.)
-My dad went on a mission to Arizona, and part of that he served on an Apache and Navajo Indian Reservation. We had a FHE about missionaries, and my dad sent us a video message about his testimony and his mission and some of the things that he still has from when he served. One of those things is a baby-cradleboard. So the next time we saw him, he pulled it out and we put Caleb in it. This is what the Indian parents would place their little babies in to keep them out of the dirt and carry them around. (You can hold it over your shoulder, or lean it up against a tree/hut.) Caleb wasn't thrilled about it - but it was fun to have my Dad tell us all about it and use Caleb as an example.
-He's not pulling himself to a stand yet, but he's getting ready to do that!
-Park Date! This winter has been unseasonably warm and we went on a little family adventure to the park. Caleb liked the swing until I started taking pictures of him then his face was less impressed. But I see a whole lot of Park days when the weather starts warming up for real.
-He discovered door stops and how much fun they are. He'll sit for an incredibly long time sitting next to a door stop and playing with it (batting his hand against it to make it vibrate back and forth). Occasionally he'll get it off the wall, and then where does it go? Into his mouth. Every. Time.
-Okay, these pictures are SO deceptive. At this point, both Lydia and Austin were walking. Caleb isn't really interested in that yet, which is totally fine! But, the funniest trick he does is that if you stand him up against the wall, he will stand there for as long as it takes until you move him down. He can't stand on his own, and even if you stand him up against a chair or table, he's just barely figuring out that he doesn't have to hold on with both hands (his face is the best when you set him up against a chair then put some snacks on top of it. It takes a lot of concentration for him to lift up one of his hands to get to the snacks!). But because of the way his weight is distributed when he stands, he's incredibly stable leaning up against the wall. We get a kick out of setting him up and showing off his trick to other people. (I don't think that most babies would be able to do this. But he doesn't lean forward or fall down, he just stands there, happy to be standing almost-independently.)
-Other tricks that he's learned this month include: raising his hands while we sing "Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam", clapping with us, and folding his arms while we say prayers. He's such a good mimicker, and even without us teaching him, he's caught on to these things. My heart about exploded when we were saying family prayer and everyone folded their arms and I looked over and Caleb was folding his arms, too. Now he'll do it on command if you say "Caleb fold your arms like this", immediately followed by clapping when you cheer for him because it's so cute. He's even started mimicking the word "amen" at the end of the prayer. I think this is probably his first word other than mammamamamama. At the end of the prayer when we say "Amen", he makes the sounds "Am-eh" and it's darling!
--I mentioned that he's not really standing or cruising or anything. But his biggest accomplishment this month is transitioning from army crawling to hands-and-knees crawling! I'm so proud of him, and love that he's at this stage right now. For most of the month, he would only army-crawl - which actually wasn't much of an army crawl. Rather, he would put both of his hands out, then use his toes to propel him forward. By the end of the month he could get up on his hands and knees - but he switched back and forth between the two types of crawling pretty interchangeably. I wanted to illustrate this, so I set up my camera, (which he loves) and let him crawl toward it. If I started him on his tummy he would army crawl, but if I set him up on his hands and knees he'd crawl-crawl.
-Crawling + pushing himself up on things = Adventures/Getting into Trouble.
His latest adventure? Trying to crawl into the space where his toy bin goes. There was a ball at the very back of it and he wannnnnnnnnted that ball. Except when he reached it, he couldn't figure out how to get out. He started grunting/whining and being the loving mother I am, I came over and started taking pictures/video of him. (It's going to be perfect for his 1-year video.) He figured it out though! I didn't help him get out, eventually he pulled himself out. He didn't manage to keep hold of the ball though, and after he was out - he realized it was still in there and was a little bugged. He made the attempt to grab it, but when he realized he'd have to go back in, he gave up. So I, being the loving mother I am, pushed it to the front so he could get it. He was so happy.
-We have not sleep trained this little guy yet. But we've gotten into a pretty good schedule, and so it's been fine. Except that he just started sitting up in his crib. Up to this point, if I put him down on his back, he would lay there on his back the whole time. Even if he fussed before he fell asleep, he'd stay on his back, and when he woke up, he'd just stay there until I came to get him. But he just figured out that he can sit up in the crib and it's kind of a problem. I probably should have sleep trained him before we hit this point because it would have been so much easier! *sigh* oh, well.
Our basic sleep schedule right now is: Nap at 9:30, Nap at 2:00, Bed at 6:45/7:00, Wake whenever mom lays down to fall asleep in her bed (doesn't matter what time, but he can sense when I'm ready for bed and closing my eyes - anytime between 9:30 and 11:00.), wake usually once more before morning although the time isn't super consistent. Then wake for good about 6:00ish. I try to read my scriptures at this time before the other kids wake up. I have a pile of toys on my bedroom floor for him to play with while I sit with my scriptures/study manuals.
-I feel like a lot of things that I've been writing about this month have to do with Caleb's newfound mobility, but probably one of the biggest changes - and most heartbreaking for Austin - is that Caleb has very little patience anymore for Austin laying in his lap. Austin used to come up to where Caleb was sitting and lay himself across his legs. Caleb loved it because he could play with Austins hair, grab at his face, chatter, and laugh. Austin was in heaven. He loved it all. But now, Caleb wants to be crawling and moving and does not like Austin to bug him. It's been a hard transition, because Caleb used to like it - but now he doesn't and Austin doesn't understand. He comes up and lays on his lap, and Caleb complains and tries to crawl away, and Austin continues to roll over and it ends up in a big heap with Caleb very unhappy and Austin insisting that "he likes it!". It's sad for Austin, and sad for me, because it was such a sweet thing to see my boys doing. But the moment has passed. Austin's tiny personal bubble is going to have to expand to fit in Caleb's newfound freedom.
I love these kids. Also, matching little boys are just as fun and darling as matching little girls. I have been repeatedly surprised at how much I love to match these boys together. And if possible, I try to get Lydia to coordinate, too. Just because I like it. They're just so darling.
-If he doesn't want something, he shakes his head emphatically so that there is no doubt.
-Another random, and funny, quirk he's developed this month: He won't eat something that you try to put in his mouth. You used to be able to take a chex/cheerio and place it directly in his mouth. One of Lydia and Austin's favorite things to do is play "feed Caleb". But now, you must place it in front of him so he can examine it, grab it with his hand, and place it in his own mouth.
Happy 11 Months, Caleb-baby. We love you so much. We just really, really, do.
Happy 11 Months!
