Parker's 12-Month Update!

Dear Parker,

I really can't believe it.  I look back and I don't know where the time went.  You are officially a "toddler," I guess.  You'll always be my baby, though.  This year has been the craziest, most exhausting, fearful, beautiful, fun, exciting, scary and joyful year yet.  You have taught me many things about myself and mom and dad have loved watching you grow.  You were this little 8lb thing when you were born and now you are 24ish lbs!!  How is that possible.  You literally tripled your birth weight.

This has also been a fun month where you've been to birthday parties, hung out at a pool, had your first birthday party for yourself and spent tons of time in the back yard playing with your many water toys.  I'm slowly turning you into a water bug, I think.  You love, love, love your water table.  You also really seem to enjoy your splash pad that I got you and just splashing in any puddles of water.  We're still working on you enjoying being submerged into water via a pool.  You are improving, though!

You are officially in the "young toddler" classroom at daycare.  You are doing okay at adjusting.  The biggest adjustment is that you now sleep on a cot and only take one nap a day.  The change in your nap schedule has really thrown you off.  You seem much more tired all the time now.  Your little body still needs two naps, so it's taking you awhile to adjust.  We just went through a HORRIBLE transition where you screamed and cried when mom dropped you off in your new classroom.  This broke her heart and made her have awful days at work.  Mom does not like to leave daycare with tears in her eyes. 

We had your birthday party in the back yard and your friend Vir from daycare and mom's friend from work brought her baby from work, Chibueze, to play with you!  You had so much fun and were such a trooper!  All of your great-grandparents on your mom's side were there and all of your grandparents were there with the exception of Grandma Kathleen.  We had it airplane themed and I think it turned out great!  You even went for the cake like a champ.  As soon as I brought your cake to you, you started kicking your legs and grunting like you knew what to do with it!  I have no idea how, but you knew that it was going to taste good!  The party was wonderful!

At twelve months you:

• Where size 3 diapers, but will be transitioning into size 4 when we run out of diapers at home.  Mom has stretched the limits with these size 3!
• Still get a morning and evening bottle and we are transitioning you to whole milk.  You won't drink milk out of a sippy cup (regardless of formula or whole milk).  So, I can already tell that's going to be major process.
• Sleep from 7:30 to 6:40 when we wake you up, but on the weekends you sleep about 8-8:30.
• Are still a very good table food eater, with spaghetti being your favorite.  You will eat adult size portions of spaghetti and its what we had for your birthday dinner!  It just so happens that spaghetti is mom's favorite, too!  :-)  You also like potatoes, steak, pizza, anything ending in "berry" and yogurt.  You go crazy at the sight of yogurt.  You also want to feed yourself... there are very few foods you eat that I feed you.  You spit it out if it comes from me... but will eat it like there's no tomorrow if you pick it up yourself.
• Weigh about 24 lbs and are about 30 inches tall.
• Wear 9-12 months shirts and 6-9 month shorts.  Most shorts are too big in the waist and too long for you. 
• Will drink water out of a sippy cup.
• At daycare you take one, 2-hour nap and snooze on the way home from daycare, but at home you still take 2 naps with the morning being a little over an hour and the afternoon being about 2 hours.
• Had a babysitter for the first time that was not family!  Ms. Nairy from your daycare kept you one evening so that mom & dad could attend a wedding shower for your Aunt Kirstie and Uncle Travis.  You did great!! You love Ms. Nairy.
• Still like to cuddle with soft objects and play with leaves and rocks.  You have really taken to eating leaves and we usually have to dig them out of your mouth.  But, you bite us really hard when we stick our fingers in your mouth and we're afraid we're going to lose a finger!
• Like to just walk around on the driveway and up and down the steps on the deck.  You won't go up the steps yourself and just reach up to one of us to help you.  It's so sweet that you need us to do something.  You get more independent each day, so it's always nice when you reach out to us instead of pushing us away.
• Have SEVEN teeth and I can see the 8th one on the way!
• Love playing chase with anyone.  You love to stay behind the ottoman and sneak around the sides to be surprised!
• Got to spend quality time with your Mimi & Papa Randy who came to help dad out while mom was in San Francisco.
• Got to see your DD Nana and T-Pa THREE different times this month!  You love it when they come down b/c they take you to fun places and you always get to go out to eat.  You do lots of shopping, trips to the zoo, pool time, etc when you are with them!  They wear you out, fast!

This has been a great month baby boy.  We are so in love with you sweet boy.  You have brought a light to our life that we didn't even know was missing.  This has been the best year ever and I can't wait to watch you grow into a little boy.  We will love you always and forever.

Month 0

Month 1

Month 2

Month 3

Month 4

Month 5

Month 6

Month 7

Month 8

Month 9

Month 10

Month 11

Month 12

Parker's 9-month Update!

Dear Parker,

Oh what fun you are!  You giggle and laugh all the time.  You absolutely love being outside.  We are all really enjoying the longer daylight hours.  This means we can resume some nightly walks!  You still love your wagon and also your trike! 

This month has really been more of the "same."  You crawl around and cruise like you've been doing it your whole life.  You have taken some steps but that really seems to scare you.  If we try to get you to do it again you just become zombie-like and refuse to stand.  You don't sit still for more than 30 seconds.  Even if that means you craw like 1 foot and then sit for 30 seconds and then go back to where you were.  You're a mess!  Quite exhausting!

The helmet does not seem to bother you one bit.  I feel like your roundness has sort of "stagnated" here in the past few weeks.  I'm sure it will start rounding out a bit more; just have to wait for a big growth spurt.

You said "ma ma" one time.  Not to be repeated.  But, even dad heard you, so I have proof!  But, for the most part you just say "ba."  You're whole face lights up when you smile.  You love it when dad chases you around the house on his knees.  How you giggle, so! I love watching you two together.  I also love hearing you two.  Your dad is always trying to teach you new things.  When I'm in the other room, I can just hear him saying, "look here Parker.  This is how you do it.  You go [....]."  It's so great.  You love your dad.  I'd say this month you have been more of a "daddy's boy" instead of a "mama's boy." 

You have started to have real separation anxiety when I drop you off at daycare.  This breaks mom's heart, sweet boy.  It's so hard to leave you in the morning.  But, I know you are in good hands.  Here's what you have been up to this month:

• You sleep 10-12 hours a night (usually 10-11 hours) from about 8 to 6:30.. when we wake you up.  If left alone, you'll sleep to about 7:45 or 8.
• Drink 4 bottles a day ranging from 6-7 oz and eat 3 meals a day.  You also like puffs and yogurt bites.  You love pizza and anything with tomato sauce (that's my boy!).  You still struggle with different textures.  You love baby food, but if I give you "real" food, you still struggle to swallow it.
• Wear 6-9 month clothing.  Still long and lean, buddy!
• Weigh 19.5 lbs and are 29 inches long.
• Enjoy bath time
• Fall asleep at night all on your own w/o me rocking you to sleep.
• Starting to warm up to the swing at the park.  At least you are cringing when we give you the first push.
• Wear shoes!  Well, that's a bit of an overstatement.  Daycare said I had to start bringing you in shoes b/c you are all over the place.  So, you have shoes.  I put them on before we get in the car in the morning and usually neither shoes makes it on your foot into daycare.  Their problem, not mine. 
• Got your third tooth on the bottom.  We're still waiting for those top ones to come down.  I did see them, but it looks like they went back up for the time being.
• Crawl everywhere and cruise like you were made for walking.  It's only a matter of time before you are walking!
• Enjoy playing with anything that is not a toy including mom's purse, mom's shoes, mom's earrings, mom's camera, hangers, remotes.  You get the drift...

You are so much fun, baby boy!!  I can't believe only three months left until you are one!  You bring us so much joy and I can't wait to see you learn and discover more new things.

Mom and dad love you, sweet baby boy... always and forever.