1 Year Update

Here's what Cole is up to these days:-)

Eating: He is eating really well these days. He likes lots of different foods. Proteins (including cheese & dairy) seem to be his favorites:-) He doesn't really care for pasta, but he loves gnocchi and will eat just about any bread. I just found out he loves mandarin oranges. I've also discovered that he likes any food that is 'hot'--by 'hot' I mean it's something I just made and have cooled off for him, but since it is still a little warm, I tell him it's HOT in baby signs. So far, he's liked everything that I've served him HOT. So HOT is now the word for "I like", "yummy" etc. He also will still refer to a food as HOT even the next day when I serve it cold! He's too funny. I keep saying, "I'm glad you like this, but it is not hot anymore, it's cold". It's "HOT"--is usually how he responds to that statement:-)

Talking: He is up to 16 baby signs that he produces (some much more than others of course). He is constantly babbling. I'm starting to make out some more consistent sounds. For example, I caught him saying "Ah-Dah" after I'd said "all done". Also he points all the time and says "Ah-Shoe" or "Ah-Tshoe", which I think translates to "what's that?". He makes the sounds for several animals and makes car/truck/vehicle noises.

Walking: He can take 2-3 steps with some prompting, but he prefers to cruise or, more often, push his walker around. I dropped him off at daycare a few days ago and the first thing he did was crawl back into the back of the room and then shortly re-emerged pushing his walker (he has the same one at home)--I don't even know how he know it was there!

Health: We've had quite the eventful month. Started out with pneumonia, which led to an x-ray of his back, which led to a scoliosis diagnosis, which led to a visit with an orthopedic specialist, which led to an all-clear, two thumbs-up prognosis! We discovered he has a slight curvature in the back caused by some differences in muscle tightness, most likely something he was born with and something he should grow out of as he starts walking and as his muscles strengthen and loose some of their baby flexibility. He weighs in at 221/2 lb and is 31 inches tall (44th and 86th percentile respectively).

Milk: He is now 3/4 of the way off of breastmilk. I still nurse him in the morning, but this will be short lived. He does really well with regular milk and does fine with just a sippy cup before bed. If he gets too tired or hungry, he will still look to me for his source of food. Most of the time it's best to have Nick put him to bed. Also, Nick is the one who gets up with him if he wakes up in the middle of the night, which he still seems to do every night, but all it takes is a little pat on the back and he is back down.

Social: He is definitely a little social butterfly. He just learned to wave at people and the responses he is getting from everyone is just encouraging this behavior! We finally met a boy his age in our neighborhood, so we are looking forward to many play dates.

I know this entry is long, but it really helps me to remember how much Cole has changed over time. I find myself reading last month's milestones and realize just how much he has grown. He is such a joy to us and we are so blessed to be his parents!