THE STATS:
Age: 1 year
Height: 31 inches (80%)
Weight: 23 lbs 9 oz (78%)
Diaper size: 4
Clothing: 24 months-2T
DEVELOPMENTAL ACTIVITY:
G has been full steam ahead on the developmental activity this month! He is furniture cruising, climbing onto furniture (making mama very anxious, when I turn my back for a minute only to return to him standing up on an armchair), and is fond of causing trouble. When I catch him standing on a chair and tell him firmly to 'Sit down!', he looks at me with his huge mischievous grin and laughs. He's great at taunting us! Such a little personality he has, but don't be fooled, he is trouble with a capital T. He says mama and dada, along with a couple other 'kind of words' like 'nigh-nigh'. He does a lot of grunting and groaning until he gets what he wants...usually food. G has also discovered how to wave, and is just the cutest when papa T leaves in the morning if he is awake and will occasionally wave 'bye-bye' to him. He also makes a similar motion when I tell him 'Pee-yew! You stink!', so I'm not sure which one he associates the wave motion with more! He continues to be a speed crawler, but aside from cruising along furniture or pushing his truck or walker around, G hasn't gotten brave enough to take any steps on his own yet. His balance has gotten much better though, so I don't think he's too far off at this point! Near the end of this month, G has been working his hardest on adding a few more pearly whites to his mouth, and just after his birthday, he had three pop through all in one week! Not great for our sleeping, but good that they are all coming at once, so the process hopefully won't drag out.
SCHEDULE:
Yikes. G's schedule this month has been a doozy. He has been going through a growth spurt, and the week of his birthday got three new teeth all at once, with more on the way. In other news, G moved into his own room early this month when C got kicked out to a new room downstairs. He really has had no trouble with the transition to a crib from the pack'n'play in T & I's bedroom. Unfortunately, with his crazy teething, he immediately chewed on the rails of the crib (something that in the entire 3 years C used the crib he never did), and chipped some of the paint. Thank goodness I have Amazon Prime and was able to order these crib protectors (here and here)! They've really put a kink in his game, but have saved the rest of the crib from being destroyed. In other sleeping news, we introduced his blanket at bedtime, and he absolutely LOVES it. If I lay him down for bed with his blanket next to him, he will squirm and rearrange until it is right up by his face before he falls asleep. In the mornings, if the boys are up before T is gone for work, we've gotten into a routine of snuggles with T & I in our bed before we start our day. C is a great snuggler, and is content to share a pillow and cuddle up under the blankets, while G is so pumped to be in bed with us that he can't resist roaming all around exploring before finally flinging himself back...usually right into my neck or jaw. G LOVES to be as close as he possibly can get to mom for family snuggle time!
FAVORITE TOY:
We celebrated G's birthday a week early, and he has been LOVING his new ride-in truck. He figured out how to crawl into it right away, and has been giving us daily heart attacks as his tries to climb out the windows or get out of the truck on his own. He also loves to grill and cook with pretend food, play with our miniature pots & pans set, and sit in brother C's chair any and every chance he gets!
STORYTIME:
G loves reading, and will pretty much settle down from squirming on your lap immediately when asked 'do you want to read a story?'. Before bed, he'll usually have about half his sippy cup, then will want to wriggle away, but if we read a story in between, then he tends to finish his sippy after the book. A pretty particular little fella!
CUISINE:
G pretty much eats whatever is set in front of him, but he is particularly fond of scavenging food off the floor, or eating grass, sticks and rocks if we are outside. Maybe this is a product of teething and trying to back off the pacifier during the daytime, or maybe he is just fascinated with different tastes and textures, but nonetheless, he has most certainly got his hands on a few questionable 'edible' items from the kitchen floor or our yard! I'm not sure if I would say he has any true dislikes when it comes to food, but he does love to have cheese and smoothies. He figured out how to use a straw, so we often do smoothies at breakfast, and he will even hold the cup and feed himself! #winning I suppose I could say that one of his favorite foods is cake...isn't it all of ours? At his birthday celebration, I had a personal 'smash cake' for him, and once he realized he could eat the cake too, it was game over! As cake happens to be one of my favorite sweets, I can't say I'm too sad about this development!
TWELVE MONTH FAVORITES
TWELVE MONTH LEAST FAVORITES
Being left out of 'Big kid activities'
Having to wait for food
Getting new teeth
OH THE MEMORIES:
Florida vacation! Just after G turned 11 months, we took off for Florida on a summer vacation with family. You can read more about it here, but know that it was so much fun, and G ate up every minute of time spent at the pool and beach.
A friend of mine is starting up Kindermusik at the Lakes, and G got to be part of her practicum 'trial' class. He had so much fun playing instruments, singing, dancing, and interacting with his peers. C also got to participate at a storytime Kindermusik class at the local library, and we are looking forward to the fall semester of classes at the Arts Center.
We celebrated G's first July 4th weekend at the lake! The weather was beautiful, and we even got to sneak out for a boat ride with Grandma J and Grandpa T, and a walk with cousin J.
Smash cake and first birthday celebration. We celebrated G's first birthday a week early, and he had so. much. fun. The theme was Enchanted Forest, and it fit our little explorer perfectly since he enjoys being outside and eating any piece of nature he can get his hands on. Sticks, rocks, leaves, grass...you name it, nothing is off limits. Anyways, back to his celebration, I ordered him a personal smash cake from Playful Cupcaketions, and he absolutely had the best time smashing and stuffing his mouth with it. See more about his birthday celebration here. Stay tuned for picture from his official one year old photo shoot and cake smash!
Moving to a new room. G moved into C's old room this month after we finally got C's new room partially put together after our visit to Florida. Realistically, G was ready to move earlier than this, but we didn't have a new room ready yet for his big brother, and sometimes priorities fall on playing and having fun instead of boring things like buying a new bed, mattress, bedding, and clearing out a spare room to put together a new space for older brother :) G had no problem whatsoever with the transition, and continues to be a good sleeper in his new space. Unfortunately, he was in the new crib for less than 24hrs before he decided to use it as a teether (something his big brother never attempted), and chipped some of the paint before I was able to get some crib protectors. Now that we've got that hurdle under control, the next thing will be to find some new wall art for above the crib - currently still has his older brother's initials!
First popsicles! I have this popsicle mold, and will occasionally use any leftover smoothie the boys have to make popsicles. After playing outside on a particularly hot afternoon, I let the boys enjoy the icy treat for a snack. G's first impression was extreme skepticism, but he eventually came around and decided he likes them! My recipe is pretty basic, and includes a blend of banana, strawberries, vanilla greek yogurt, and a little milk.
Summertime at the lake means lots of time playing outside and lots of visits to the park. We usually go several times a week to either a playground or Arnold's Park Amusement Park, and G enjoyed going on the swings, slides, train and even the ferris wheel! At home, some of our favorites are playing in the sandbox, water table, or going on a bike ride.
The first year of G's life has flown by, and we have made so many wonderful memories. Can't wait to see what year two brings!
Having to wait for food
Getting new teeth
OH THE MEMORIES:
Florida vacation! Just after G turned 11 months, we took off for Florida on a summer vacation with family. You can read more about it here, but know that it was so much fun, and G ate up every minute of time spent at the pool and beach.
A friend of mine is starting up Kindermusik at the Lakes, and G got to be part of her practicum 'trial' class. He had so much fun playing instruments, singing, dancing, and interacting with his peers. C also got to participate at a storytime Kindermusik class at the local library, and we are looking forward to the fall semester of classes at the Arts Center.
We celebrated G's first July 4th weekend at the lake! The weather was beautiful, and we even got to sneak out for a boat ride with Grandma J and Grandpa T, and a walk with cousin J.
Smash cake and first birthday celebration. We celebrated G's first birthday a week early, and he had so. much. fun. The theme was Enchanted Forest, and it fit our little explorer perfectly since he enjoys being outside and eating any piece of nature he can get his hands on. Sticks, rocks, leaves, grass...you name it, nothing is off limits. Anyways, back to his celebration, I ordered him a personal smash cake from Playful Cupcaketions, and he absolutely had the best time smashing and stuffing his mouth with it. See more about his birthday celebration here. Stay tuned for picture from his official one year old photo shoot and cake smash!
Moving to a new room. G moved into C's old room this month after we finally got C's new room partially put together after our visit to Florida. Realistically, G was ready to move earlier than this, but we didn't have a new room ready yet for his big brother, and sometimes priorities fall on playing and having fun instead of boring things like buying a new bed, mattress, bedding, and clearing out a spare room to put together a new space for older brother :) G had no problem whatsoever with the transition, and continues to be a good sleeper in his new space. Unfortunately, he was in the new crib for less than 24hrs before he decided to use it as a teether (something his big brother never attempted), and chipped some of the paint before I was able to get some crib protectors. Now that we've got that hurdle under control, the next thing will be to find some new wall art for above the crib - currently still has his older brother's initials!
First popsicles! I have this popsicle mold, and will occasionally use any leftover smoothie the boys have to make popsicles. After playing outside on a particularly hot afternoon, I let the boys enjoy the icy treat for a snack. G's first impression was extreme skepticism, but he eventually came around and decided he likes them! My recipe is pretty basic, and includes a blend of banana, strawberries, vanilla greek yogurt, and a little milk.
Summertime at the lake means lots of time playing outside and lots of visits to the park. We usually go several times a week to either a playground or Arnold's Park Amusement Park, and G enjoyed going on the swings, slides, train and even the ferris wheel! At home, some of our favorites are playing in the sandbox, water table, or going on a bike ride.
The first year of G's life has flown by, and we have made so many wonderful memories. Can't wait to see what year two brings!
