Eleven Months

Wow. Parker, you are a whole eleven months old! I can truly hardly believe it. Next month you will be ONE! omg.

Here's what you are up to lately:

• Most of your shirts and onesies are 18-24 months, and most of your pants are 12-18 months. The 18-24 months pants are just WAY too big in the waist. You are my tall but skinny boy--just like your daddy!
• You are still so close to walking....but not quite there. You will stand for 10 to 20 seconds and then take just a couple of steps and fall on your butt. You walk very well with your push-walker that Omi, Opa, Grammie, Granddaddy and Auntie Nay got you for Christmas. I'm pretty sure that you will be walking on your own by your first birthday. I'm excited for you but scared for me--haha!
• You have been waking up more in the middle of the night lately. Your dad and I are not too keen on this. You spoiled us for the first ten months of your life--we are used to having our sleep! We switched to using Huggies Overnites diapers because we thought this was the problem. They have definitely seemed to help. You still wake up a couple of times per week at night, though, and I think you just have trouble falling back asleep because the diaper gets SO FULL. We are trying to be good about NOT picking you up out of your crib, but it's really, really hard because you will cry for so long and scream so loud. The other night we let you cry for an HOUR and then basically defeated the purpose of the crying by picking you up to change your diaper and rock you back to sleep. Oh well--next time, we will be strong! :)
• Speaking of sleep, your naps during the day are getting shorter. Each nap is now about an hour long. I think this means you are moving closer to having only one nap per day. Yikes!
• Over the last week or so, I've noticed that when we're playing in the floor together, you will sit and gently fall backwards so that you are laying flat on your back. I usually tickle your "rib-bone" when you do this, and you laugh and laugh and laugh. Now, when you "fall" backwards, you start kicking your legs and squirming in anticipation of the rib-bone tickling. I love this!
• You still love eating pretty much anything soft that we are eating. I can't think of anything that you really despise. As of last week, you no longer drink milk from a bottle--you use your sippy cup now! I also still nurse you in the morning and at night, and on days where you're with me, I also end up nursing you a couple of times throughout the day. I really cherish this and do not plan on stopping the second you turn one. I get asked a LOT about when I will stop nursing, and I've always said that it would be when you turn one, but we'll see. It's not affecting either of us in a negative way, so why stop? I'm looking forward to your one year doctor's appointment where I can discuss all aspects of your nutrition with the doctor.
• You love doing the "touchdown" sign with your arms. In your version, you throw your arms up and then wave your hands up and down. It's terribly cute and funny because you do it at random times while you're in your highchair. We'll be feeding you and out of nowhere you throw your hands up in the air!
• We've been having some separation issues lately when I leave you at Ms. Donna's or the church nursery. You cry when I leave you and have been kind of "fussy" while I'm gone. Ms. Donna says she cannot leave the room without you getting upset. At church, you're only there for an hour, and they make it sound like you're upset about half the time. Hopefully you get over this kind of soon because I know it's frustrating for the ladies that watch you, and it's also frustrating for me because I worry about you when I'm not with you! I really think it's just a phase.
• When I pick you up from Honey's or Ms. Donna's or anywhere else, really, you wrap your arms around my neck and give me a big neck-hug. It is absolutely precious and just what I need at the end of my workdays.

Like I said before, next month you will be one. UNbelievable. Until then....I love you SO much--you truly are my world!