AJ's April

Well you've been taking steps for while now, but Tuesday night (April 24th) was the first time you left one place and got to another by means of walking! By the next day, you were walking all over the place when I took you and Jack to a playgroup. The next two days at music, you were walking right across the room. Auntie Kimmy and I even let you walk around at the mall.

This month has just been another BOOM in achievements. You understand so much of what we say. You'll go get things if we ask for them. You'll follow an instruction. Words are rolling out of you like nobody's business. You'll copy any words we say, but here's just a sample of some of the words you'll say on your own...
ball
buh bye
hi
up
down
bubbles
Mum
Dada
Jack
cat
bath (started really pronouncing the 'th' sound a couple of days ago, maybe on the 25th or 26th)
toothbrush (said for the first time on the 15th)
cracker (said at the end of last month, I believe)

You added the chicken sound 'cluck' and the cat sound 'meow' to your repetoire of animal noises on the 7th April. Here are the animal sounds you currently say.
Cow - brooo
Cat - mow
Dog - woof woof
Monkey - uh uh (instead of ooh ooh)
Elephant - pfhhh (like a trunk noise, hard to explain)
Chicken - cluck cluck (you actually click your tongue)
Sheep - baaa
Rooster - cock doo
Bear - Raa

You are signing lots more now too. You'll copy a whole bunch of the signs of the signing DVDs when the kids are doing them, but here are some of the ones you'll initiate and do on your own.
Bubbles
Please/like
More
Finished
Gone
Milk
Water
Eat
Change (you'll sign change if you're poopy)
Dog

Potty training has really gone in the pooper, pun intended. Ever since you got sick, you just aren't peeing in the potty like you used to. Part of it, is that I'm not on the ball enough and I miss your cues. Not to mention that I have you out of the house a lot, and miss the chances to take you.

You're on one nap now, no matter what time you get up in the morning and it's working really well. On average, you are sleeping 12:30-2:30, a short time after your lunch.

We went to the Island to see Grannie and Papa on the weekend of the 14th before they headed to Nova Scotia. The ferry ride was a blast. We fed you an early dinner before we left, and just took some snacks and your bedtime bottle. We sat up front near the kids play area. At first you were weary of all the kids, but soon you warmed up. You played throw and catch with one girl, and you played on the slide with a whole bunch of kids. You went up the stairs and down the slide, up and down, up and down. On the way back, you didn't take any time to warm up at all, you just ran/crawled right to the slide and went for it! You had a good time at Granny and Papa's.

You've been super picky with your food since turning one and since being sick. It's been a struggle trying to figure out what to feed you. I finally figured out that you'll eat any veggies cut up super small and mixed wit a little bit of ranch dip.

You love your slide. We put it in the playroom next to your tent and tunnel. You climb up one side and you slide down the other on your tummy just like we showed you on the ferry.

That's all I can think of. There's more words and more signs, I'm sure, but I can't think of them right now.

Oh wait, no, you have 12 teeth now because the one year molars on your right came in too!

Another Month of Many Many Milestones

Yet another month has passed! You are just learning more and more every day!

March 8th
-On your real birthday, Grandma, Grandpa, Auntie Kim, and Uncle Paul came by with a birthday gift (magnetix) and a cake! You gobbled up the whole piece! You loved it!

March 9th
-We start to realise your facination with towels on people's heads after a shower.

March 10th or so
-I was washing you on the change table, washing your nether-regions, and you signed 'more' over and over again! You naughty boy!

March 11th
-Today was your 'family birthday' and Grandma's. She put on a wonderful party for you. Lots of aunties, uncles, grandparents, cousins, etc. So many wonderful, thoughtful gifts!

March 12th-16th
-You got your bottom left molar and you start pretending to do your hair with me when I do my hair.

March 18th
-Today was your BIG birthday pool party! It was soooo fun! So many friends and famiy! You had so much fun swimming and eating cake! You were a good boy!

March 19th-23rd
-I tried you on one nap over Spring Break since you did so well with one nap at daycare, but to avail. You will not sleep more than an hour for me in the afternoon if you haven't had a morning nap. ARG! But then again, I like you having two naps, so thanks!
-Top left molar comes in and your bottom left lateral incisor.
-You have around 10 teeth now!

March 25th
-You are saying and signing "hi" all the time now. You touch your hand to your head. You say 'hi' when we arrive at the house.

March 27th
-You are FINALLY blowing bubbles in the bathtub.
-When Daddy says "Hiiiieeeeyaaa" in the cathtub, you kick your leg out a bunch of times! So cute!

March 29th
-We had lunch with Silas and Allison!

March 30th
-You are very facinated by my Eeyore pajamas. You think the picture is very neat.
-You are climbing on the couch! Oh no! And you climbed onto Daddy's laptop desk on the end table. ARG!!!!!

March 31st
-Today Daddy wanted to take you to the aquarium. I thought that you would like it, but I had no idea that you would LOVE it!!!!
-You were banging on the beluga tank and yelling at them. You loved the shark tank. Things surprise you when they came by out of nowhere. You were scared of the 'ugly' fish. I thought that was neat that you knew what 'ugly' was.

April 5th and 6th
-Now you are signing 'please/like' as well. I think there's more things you are signing, but I can't remember.
-You've been throwing a ball now!!! Yay!
-You can say, "Buh Bye".
-When Daddy comes in the door, you say, "Hi"
-When we ask you... "What does a ____ say?", you say...
brooo for a cow
raaa for a bear
cack-doo for a rooster
ooh ohh for a monkey
pppphhhhh for an elephant

YAY FOR AJ BECOMING A BIG BOY!

"A Whole Month of So Many Milestones"

Well, it's been way too long since I updated this, and it's really too bad because you have been REALLY busy!

You say "Mum" more than ever.
You tip your sippy cup to drink from it perfectly all the time.
You are really getting a kick out of using your spoon. I can't wait until you can scoop stuff.
You say, "Uh oh" all the time.
You like to fling Monkey OG, and Monkey 2 out of the crib and yell, "Uh oh".
You cruise all over the place.
You stand alone for a few seconds without really realising it. For example, when you pick up your drink with two hands.
You are using more signs, but not many are consistent. You sign
mommy
hi
dirty
bubbles
eat
more
You are back in your music classes again. Soon you will be in swimming again.
You had your first Valentine's Day.
Today is your birthday! Happy First Birthday my baby, I mean big boy! We'll celebrate on the 11th at Grandma's house, and on the 18th at the pool!
You've tried walnuts.
Sometimes, you like to jump up and down while you're holding furniture.
You like to push your push toys sometimes, and sometimes you just sit down.
You are great at walking while holding our hands.
You really stood alone on the 22nd of Feb.
You signed 'hi' on the 23rd of Feb.
On the 25th of Feb., your bottom right lateral incisor came through and Daddy thinks your top left canine is coming in. We'll see.
Your routine has not been quite as consistent as before. You only take one nap at daycare, you were having longer awake times, and then went back to short ones again.
You had your first haircut on March 1st. I trimmed the back with the electric razor and 'tickle tickled you'.
You found out you aren't going to be a big brother yet anymore, and you thought to yourself, "Well that's okay, that means more mommy-time just for me!"

Phew, you've been busy! You are so smart my little special-bum-cheeky-monkey!

"Big Brother in Training, Dancing, Signing, and More"

Well you found out last week that you're going to become a big brother in and around October. You're taking the news very well. In fact, it's as though life hasn't changed for you at all!

You have been dancing up a storm these past few weeks. More and more every day. You will turn on the radio on your learning home, just so you can dance to the music!

Although it is not new for you to sign 'more', you are really using it now. You 'whip' this out for foods that you REALLY love like Mum Mums and Minigo. You kind of clap your hands together, but not to make noise. Your fingers are bent.

You are walking a lot better when we hold your hands and you are starting to 'cruise' a bit more.

"Uh oh, Closed, Dog, Walking, Mommy, More Waving, Carrot Cake"

Over the course of the 18th, 19th, and 20th.....

So, you are saying, "Uh oh" all the time now since Grandma taught you that. When we went for lunch at Milestone's you said it a couple times when you dropped your cracker a couple of times. Speaking of lunch at Milestone's, you kept dropping toys on the ground and waiting for Auntie Jen to pick them up for you.

Auntie Erica says she swears you said, "Dog" over at her house on Wednesday. She watch you even though you were sick, and now Jack has your fever and cough. You two just keep handing your illnesses back and forth and back and forth.

You will now push your activity table around walking behind it, slowly, but surely.

You signed 'Mommy' while watching the Signing Time DVD.

You wave good-bye intermittently. Yesterday you waved good-bye.

You tried carrot cake at Grandma's. You liked it a lot. This also means that you've tried coconut.

"Kisses and Hugs from my Special Bum Cheeky Monkey"

Oh yes, and I almost forgot to say, if I haven't already, that for a week or two you've been giving hugs and kisses. The kisses you've done off and on for a while, but are more consistent when I do the sign for 'kiss'. Hugs started with your potty book. At the end it says, "Then cuddle up for a big hug!" and we hug. Well, you anticipate it, and whenever I just say 'then cuddle up for a big hug' you reach for a hug and say, "ya ya ya" with me.

"Over the Tummy Virus, Now a Bad Cough, Salmon, Spoon, Words, Egg Whites"

Well, you got over that tummy virus that knocked Daddy off his feet. Everyone got it except Auntie Jen and Mommy.

Now you have this horrible cough that includes a runny nose as of yesterday. Of course, our crappy clinic down the road prescribed a puffer. We're not doing that. We're watching to make sure you don't have pneumonia because a girl from daycare has pneumonia.

I really fell off the 'food introduction boat'. Finally, I hopped back on this week. You've had salmon now and loved it, but you're still not a big fan of white fish. You've also had egg whites now, so you can have whole egg omlettes. You enjoyed your eggs two days ago.

Grandma watched you yesterday because you were too sick for daycare and Daddy wanted to take you to the doctor. Now mommy is off today because she was literally getting 'worried sick' about the possibly snowy driving conditions and your cough.

You've been copying lots of words. You like to close the bathroom door and say, "Closed", but it sounds more liked "Kroah". You like to try to copy us saying, "Cat". Grandma taught you to say, "Uh oh".

Also, you've been using a spoon. You don't scoop things up with the spoon, but I load it, you pick it up, and you put it in your mouth the right way.

Too cute!

"Dry Skin, So Sickly, New Year's Eve, Signing Update, and Potty Training Update"

Well, it started out that you had dry skin. You had a patch or two quite some time ago. The doctor said it was from the winter. I started to wonder if it was from allergies, like to oranges.

I had been giving you diluted orange juice while you had that second really bad cold. I stopped giving you the orange juice. We started putting cortizone cream on the skin. It got better, but it's not gone yet.

You were really sick the day before yesterday. You vomited 4 times and then have had diarrhea ever since. Daddy also got sick. Dave, Ryan, Wes, and Jack did too. What we originally thought was food poisoning from Japanese New Year or from New Year's Eve instead seems to be a really bad stomach bug that Auntie Erica's parents had. Whew, it was a doozy. Dave even had to go to the hospital!

We did have a wonderful New Year's Eve. We went to Auntie Erica's. You went to bed shortly after we arrived. Like usual, at Auntie Erica's, you fell asleep like a good boy, and stayed asleep. You let us sleep in the next morning, thank goodness because we didn't get to sleep until about 3:30am.

The next day, we went to Japanese New Year at Kaela's. It was so delicious, but you stayed home with Auntie Kim and Uncle Paul.

Auntie Kim and Uncle Paul also watched you on Wednesday when I had to go get some stuff done at work.

You've had a rough, fussy, sick week.

You are starting to be more consistent with using signs. You still sign 'dirty', but that one is inconsistent. Perhaps this is because you aren't really 'dirty' as often now that you use the potty more and seem to be regulating yourself more. You sign 'water' now, 'more', and 'finished'. You've been doing these for a few weeks off and on, but they are very definite now. I can ask you if you're finished on the potty or at the high chair and you will shake your hands. Who knows if you actually know what it means, but you know when it's used. It was kind of funny at lunch today when I went to move your tray. I guess you thought I was taking it away and that we were done and you started signing 'finished'. When I moved the tray and kept it on, you got a little upset with me. Oops! Sorry!

"Crazy Christmas, Pineapple, Granny Ziegler's Stuffing, Jarred Food Poops, Standing, the Bell"

Well, we had Christmas and you had a great time. You ripped a bit of paper. You played with boxes. You had some Christmas dinner. You got LOTS of toys.

Here's some things you received...
A ride on plane, the Fisher Price Learning Home, a Peek a Blocks farm and turtle, shape sorters, the Fisher Price Bouncing Zebra, stuffed toys and puppets, a top, a bead chaser, a vibrating elephant, and much more.

I made you a special stocking that has pockets on the outside and it was almost filled up to the top!

You had jarred food over the holiday and you went from pooping twice a day to about five times a day! Yuck! Back to homemade food for sure now!

You loved Grannie Ziegler's stuffing. You could've eaten it all day. You crazy kiddo!

You tried pineapple over the holiday in the form of fruit salad.

You've been pulling up to furniture non-stop. You aren't quite 'cruising' yet, but you are definitely taking some steps toward other directions.

You've been trying to copy words that we say like 'cookie', 'cat', and 'duck'.

Your favourite toy lately has been the little wedding bell from Daddy and I's wedding. You love to walk around with it or Monkey in your mouth, or should I say crawl around?

You are sure growing fast. The jarred food got you up to 19.5 lbs!

The next time I update this, it will be 2007!

"Crawling Crawling, Getting Chased, Pulling Up, Cat Food, Pineapple, Grandma, Cookie, Duck"

You are crawling everywhere and I have yet to remember to replace the tape in the video camera so I can record it. You've been crawling now for about 4.5 weeks, maybe 5. As suspected, you never commando crawled. You just went straight to proper crawl. You are crawling everywhere.

You like gettting chased when you're crawling.

You can pull up on furniture. I think I already wrote that you did it for the first time, geesh, almost 4 weeks ago! Now it's just natural instinct. The motivation is, of course, the laptop. You love the keyboard, the screen, and especially the mouse. You click it and do all sorts of crazy things to my screen.

Yesterday, in the kitchen, while exploring, you popped some cat food into your moouth before I could do anything about it. Grrrrrrrrrr. You, unfortunately, didn't seem to mind it.

Speaking of food introduction, you'll be trying pineapple on our trip to the Island because you'll be having jarred food, and Daddy bought you fruit salad.

I had my first three days of work and Grandma and Auntie Kim watched you. You had your horrible cold, so there was some 'cuddling to sleep'. Poor little guy. You had fun with Grandma and Kim.

You are copying what we say lots. You were trying to say, "Cookie" at the lunch table. You said, "Caca". When Grandpa stopped by so we could give him his birthday gift, you were copying him saying, "Duck". You said, "Duu".

"Baba for Real, Potty Crawl, Dada, Farzzle's World, Stand Up Legs, Almost Lost Monkey, Oranges, The Worst Cold Ever"

I walked into your bedroom yesterday morning, and clear as day you said, "Baba". This is the word we use for 'bottle'. You didn't say, "bababababab", you said, "Baba". Like you were saying to me, "Mommy, it's time for my bottle. I only had half as much as normal last night."

Three times now, you've crawled to the potty, and after taking off your diaper in the off chance that you may be trying to tell me that you have to pee, you peed! Coincidence?

You've really been saying Dada. I think you mean Daddy. It seems like you know what you're talking about.

Correction. This morning, while playing your leaning over peek-a-boo game with Daddy, you looked right at him about three times, and said, "Dada". Yup, I'm going to say that Baba and Dada are your first words.

You love Farzzle's World. It's this cartoon with an animated baby that only babbles, occasionally saying the odd word like 'ball'. You are mesmerised by him. He has a big imagination. Anyhow, the day before yesterday, Farzzle had some cups that he was knocking over with a ball. You saw this, and crawled over to your cups, and grabbed one to play with whilst watching Farzzle.

Many times now, while you are crawling, you all of a sudden take your knees off the ground so you are up on your hands and feet. It looks like you're getting ready to stand, but you don't.

While we were Christmas shopping this week, we lost Monkey in Army and Navy. Luckily, one of the clerks found him for us. Phew. I think I was definitely more worried than you.

You tried oranges the other day. Just in time for you to get your WORST COLD EVER! Your nose is running like a tap. You were so pouty and moany today. You poor little guy. You hardly napped. You were miserable. Luckily, you were good for Daddy when I went out with Auntie Jen. After this cold, I'm washing Monkey for sure. He is so stinky and covered in so much snot, it's just gross.

"Grannie Ziegler and Eggs"

Grannie Ziegler came to see you and stay with us this weekend. This was her first time getting to see you since you were 6 weeks old! She was very excited to see you and you were very excited to see her. You played together, she fed you, and she gave you lots of love and hugs. We can't wait to see her again at Christmas, and you'll get to see Papa Bud too!

You tried egg yolk for the first time yesterday. You loved it cooked up with cheese. Today, you weren't as hungry. It seems that your growth spurt has ended and you're back to normal. You'll be trying oranges today!

"Standing, Eating Cake, Talking, Being Chased, Sleeping, Pottying, Daycare"

On Saturday, December 2nd, you pulled yourself up to standing (or so says Uncle Paul). I'll have to believe him because you've done it more since then. You like to pull up to kneeling lots to play with your activity table.

You keep crawling under things and then bonking your head when you sit up, like under the end tables or your piano.

Jack's first birthday was this past weekend, and you got to go to the farm and see animals. You also at cake and enjoyed it!

Even though you say mamamamam dadadadada all the time, I really think you know that Daddy is dada and I am mumum. You seem to be saying it to us or in reference to us. It also sounded like you said "Hello" into your phone the other day.

I've realised that if I get down on my hands and knees and say, "I'm going to get you!", you'll crawl away as fast as possible. You seem to love getting chased.

PU/PD is going well. You are usually falling asleep with 5-20 minutes and usually with no crying at all. Congratulations on learning to fall asleep without your paci! It's hard to put you down for naps when you're overtired and overstimultated like when we return from Starbucks.

You're still peeing on the potty, when I remember to take you! That's the toughest part. You are comfortable on your potty and you like the books that we read when you're on your potty. You've pooped in the potty about three times! Our best day yet, is 6/12 pees in the potty. Really, it's Mommy being potty-trained, not you.

On Monday, we did a trial run for daycare. We got you ready on time and arrived on time even though we got stuck in traffic. You didn't cry for the first hour. I think that is when Separation Anxiety set in and you started to freak out a little. You held and sucked monkey like crazy. Tonight you'll go to daycare at dinnertime so you can 'bond' with Dia and her son.

You will be 9 months old tomorrow!

"Growth Spurt Growth Spurt, Very Hungryyyy, Clap Clap Clap, Poop and Pee"

Last night, you were h-u-n-g-r-y! You are not a hungry guy normally. I think you're going through a growth spurt. You were definitely letting me know that I was late with your dinner. I had already thawed an extra veggie because I've noticed these past couple days that you've been more eager to eat. So, I gave you some pieces of rice cake while I got the rest of your dinner ready. You ate 3 large veggie cubes (cauliflower, peas, squash), 1 fruit cube (guava and pear) mixed with 2 tablespoons of rice cereal, and an arrowroot for dessert. You still kept opening your mouth when I'd sign and say 'more?'. I didn't have anything else thawed, so I cracked open a jar of carrots/peas. YOU ATE THE WHOLE THING! You followed this with wanting an extra 2 ounces of formula! Crazy!
Now, about the formula and thus, the evening.
When we went to the grocery store this past weekend, they were out of your formula (Enfamil A+ DHA/ARA for 6+months). Rather than just wait or get the regular Enfamil A+ DHA/ARA, we decided to give the 6+months version of your old formula a try (President's Choice, like a knock off of Enfamil). It is $10.00 cheaper for the same amount, so it was worth a try.
Now the reason we stopped using it before, is we realised it had much to do with why you were spitting up, and possibly night waking long ago. We thought we'd still try this anyhow, since you're older, and it's the 6+ month one, so it's slightly different.
I didn't want to switch cold turkey, so I mixed half and half (old and new). Well, all three of those first bottles resulted in a bit of spit up. It wasn't too bad, but nonetheless. I thought, well, I'll just finish up the jug, and then I'll stop using it.
Remember how I said, you ate all that food and had the extra 2 ounces?
Well, I put you to bed, and you were only fussing a bit. You started to cry and sounded a bit muffled. I headed in to to pu/pd and flip you onto your back. Well, when I turned you over, you were covered in puke!!! Ewwwww! It was on your head, your face, your sleeves. Oh you poor guy! Daddy and I have decided that no matter how cheap it is, we're not buying it anymore!
I cleaned you up, and you went to sleep pretty quickly.

PU/PD
Well, you've been going down pretty well without your paci for your morning nap and bedtime, but that afternoon nap was killer yesterday. It took an hour! You've only been napping for 30 minutes in the morning (even with W2S) and only an hour in the afternoon! You usually sleep a total of 3 hrs. I'm chalking this up to 'change', and hope you'll go back to normal soon.
Today, you went down well for your morning nap and stayed down for 1.5 hours! Yay, I have my boy back! But then the afternoon nap was a rough time because we stayed out late at Starbucks with Auntie Jen. Sorry! However, you slept for another 1.5 hours! That's my boy!

YOU CAN CLAP NOW!!!

TODAY YOU PEED AND POOPED ON THE POTTY! AND PEED AGAIN AFTER YOUR MORNING NAP! AND PEED AGAIN AFTER YOUR AFTERNOON NAP! AND PEED AGAIN AFTER YOUR LATE AFTERNOON DRINK! AND PEED AGAIN AFTER YOUR BEDTIME BOTTLE! YAY!

YOU ALSO PEED IN THE BATHTUB.... BOO!

YOU'RE CRAZY AWESOME! I'M SO PROUD OF YOU!

"Last Tooth, Tuna, Pull My Hair, Pick Up / Put Down, No Daycare, The Vacuum and The Hand Blender"

Your fourth top tooth came in yesterday! You didn't put up much of a fuss this time.

You tried tuna yesterday! You love it!

You've really started to take an interest in my hair. You like to pull my hair. You have a knack for pulling those back ones really hard! Ouch! My istinctual reaction is to attack or throw...... but I restrain myself of course! You little bum! It's weird what pain does. I've got to remember you're in my arms, and you're a baby wanting to play, not a vicious monster out to cause pain!

So we've been trying to wean the paci by doing the Baby Whisperer technique called pu/pd. It's been a lot of crying and rough times for these past 3 days, but it's gotten better and better. Last night you went to sleep with almost no fuss, and for this morning's nap, you went down within 15 minutes with only one intervention from me! Amazing. I think we're almost done! I am so proud of you! You are so strong!

Well, we couldn't make it for our second attempt at a daycare-trial-run! We woke up on time (Mommy at 5:30am, Daddy at 6:15am). We were ready on time at 7:00am. We headed out to the car only 5 minutes late, and.....

I couldn't open the back doors to get you in the car. Daddy tried to warm up the car to no avail. Then we heard the traffic reports and decided it wasn't worth the risk.

The vacuum - You are mesmerised by the vacuum. If you can't see me when I'm vacuuming, you cry.

The Hand Blender - What really upsets you is the hand blender for my shakes. You just scream in shear terror!

"Let it Snow, Soo-Soo Go"

Well, you are encountering your first snowfall. It began yesterday. It's BIG! There's about 9 inches on the parked cars. We bundled you in your snow gear, and took you to Mill Lake Park for some pictures on the swings.

You are having a rough time at getting to sleep yesterday and today, and probably tomorrow. I am trying desperately to wean your paci. It is definitely a 'prop' as opposed to a comfort. You can't fall asleep without it (unless you're in the car), and if you wake during a nap, you find it hard to settle. So, I've started "Pick Up / Put Down" from the Baby Whisperer to wean it. It's been horrible for a whole day, but it got better this evening.

You went to sleep without your pacifier for your afternoon nap, and your bedtime.

Good Job my little special-bum-cheeky-monkey! You poor thing! It will all be over soon!

"Raisin Recount, Go Go Guava, Blissful Brussels Sprouts, and Fantastic Figs, Crazy Carnivor, Crawling"

Okay, so the other day I said you tried raisins. I actually don't know if you grabbed the raisins off of Jack's tray or not. I'll give you raisins soon.

Today you tried guava, steak, and figs. Oops, that's a lot at once! You loved all of it. The guava was a beautiful combo with pears. The steak... you just kept eating it and eating it and eating it and eating it. You are definitely your daddy's son! The figs, I but in half and turned inside out for you to eat. You looked like you were eating candy!

About 3 or 4 days ago, I forgot to write that you tried brussels sprouts. You loved those too. I just cut up the whole head and you gobbled it up! You've been really into your meals lately!

Here's the BIG NEWS!

YOU CRAWLED TODAY WHEN GRANDMA, GRANDPA, AUNTIE KIM, UNCLE PAUL AND KIRSTIE WERE WATCHING YOU!

When Mommy and Daddy came home you showed us too. You just moved your knees a few times, but it was a proper crawl.

What a big boy! You've peed on the potty 3 times now! One time was at Auntie Erica's on the fold up potty!

"Climb to Kneel, Big Boy Bath, Pee Pee Potty, Rabble Rabble Babble Babble, Raisins, Mommy's Birthday"

It was Mommy's birthday yesterday and you've been out non-stop with Mommy (me) for two whole days. You played with your toys this evening as though you had never seen them before and they were a brand new gift! For Mommy's birthday, you went for a breakfast at Jill's on the 21st. You were a very good boy and had fun playing with the girls. You didn't want to go down for your nap, but eventually you did. You poor thing, you were sooooo tired. On the 22nd, you went to lunch with Grampa and Mommy at Milestone's. You were excellently behaved. They pretty much sectioned off a little carpetted play area for you! It was great! You also went for lunch with Auntie Erica and Mommy. You were well behaved there too. You tried a couple of Jack's raisins!

A couple of days ago, you were at your play table, and you used it to pull yourself up to kneeling so you could play!

When Daddy had to work late yesterday, you had a big boy bath in the big tub only. You had a blast!

Mommy bought your potty, and your travel potty today so she could start this "Elimination Communication/Early Start Potty Training" thing with you. You pee peed on the potty the very first time tonight! It was very exciting!

For the past couple of days, your new favourite words have been "Rabble Rabble Babble Babble" like the Hamburgler.

Well, I think that's everything to catch up on. Thanks for giving Mommy a great birthday!

"Cucumber, Cottage Cheese, Guava?, Celery, More Teeth, Teeth Grinding, Funny Naptime, Fuzzy Books, No Kiwi!"

In the past 6 days, you've been busy.

You tried cucumber and you thought it was okay.

You tried cottage cheese and LOVED it. You love it as a finger food and stirred with fruit!

You were supposed to try guava, but there wasn't any in the store.

Today you'll try celery.

On the 15th, you got your other top tooth.

Your right lateral incisor (top right off centre) is just about through. I'll be glad when all of them are through and you can go back to regular sleeping.

When your two top teeth were through you were grinding your teeth at the bedtime bottle. Ewwwww!

As you are on the verge of your crawling milestone, your naps went haywire yesterday and a bit of the day before. Instead of going right to sleep at naptimes and quick to sleep at bedtime, you roll over onto all fours and decide that's a good time to practice crawling. When I come in the room, you start laughing hysterically. YOU GOOF!

You are loving your feely books right now. You go right for the bumpy, fuzzy, rough parts and scratch your fingers on it just like I showed you! So clever! So aware of texture...LOL!

Well, evidently I shouldn't have snuck kiwi into the food introduction. It's highly allergenic and you got a big rash. We'll save that for 1 year old with strawberries! Did you know that 1/3 of the population is allergic to kiwi? News to me!

Oops!

"Tooth Cuttin, Feet Clappin, Crawl to Sittin', Light Switchin, Hand Movin, Hand Clappin Fun"

Okay, so lots has been going on.

It appears that finally after all this pain and some night wakings because of 4 top teeth trying to push their way through, that you have finally cut one of them! Top, middle, left! Yay! One tooth, three more to go, for now!

You like to take my hands and clap them together. You love the sound of clapping.

You love the sound of clapping so much that you love to clap your feet together to make a clapping noise while you're sitting up.

You are sooooo close to crawling. You can commando crawl backwards and have for quite a while, but it was nothing to report because it frustrates you to not be going the direction you'd like to go. For quite a while now, you've liked to lunge forward from sitting so that it looks like you're about to crawl. You eventually would get into a crawl position after kicking out the last leg, and then, nothing. You started doing this more and more, just eventually putting your face down and pushing your legs out, so you're laying on your tummy. For the past few days, you've been doing this lunge non-stop and hang out in the crawl position for a while. Now, you've started moving your hands forward, but can't seem to figure out to bring your legs forward too.

Last night, you finally went from crawl position to sitting!

For the past week, I've been pushing your hand against our light switch to show you how to turn it on and off for your naps to start and end. It's part of our "goodnight radio, goodnight lamp, goodnight aquarium, goodnight mobile, goodnight big light"......... WELL TODAY YOU TURNED OFF THE LIGHT YOURSELF!!! YAY!