Maddie's 1st Birthday

The first little girl in Miles' playgroup just turned 1!!! (It feels like yesterday when we were all fat, pregnant, and eating Mexican food together!) Maddie's parents held her party at The Little Gym where tons (and I mean tons!) of little kids got to run around like chickens with their heads cut off. They put on a fun class, good for kids of all ages, complete with ball time, playing with a parachute, and free play on the mats and bars. Miles loved all the commotion and things to do. Here are some highlights...

Reading with Dad

It's the quiet moments that melt my heart.

Miles Helps with the Laundry

Turns out my busy boy is a wiz at sorting the darks and the lights...

My big boy...

I've been trying to upload photos all night, but the wireless keeps kicking me off. Will try tomorrow when I get connected...

11 months!

Wow. I can't believe Miles has only been with us for 11 months!! Sometimes it feels like he has been with us forever because that is the way it should be - we are whole with him here. But other times, I am amazed at how fast things are going! These days, Miles can:

• -Take steps!! I wouldn't really call it walking, but he can get to his feet, catch his balance without holding onto anything, and then take a step or 2 before he either falls over or squats back down. Inevitably, if we see this happen, we get so excited for him and encourage him, that he gets so excited! Then he tries it again, and aggressively launches his upper body forward without moving his little feet. Oh, well. The good news is that he isn't afraid to fall, and rarely fusses when he does.
• -Give hugs and kisses! For a couple of weeks, Miles has been able to lean in and give you an open mouthed slobbery kiss either when asked or when he feels like it. Now, he can also give hugs. He toddles / crawls over and puts his arms on your shoulders. I think he does it for our reaction which is to just scoop him up, wiggle him, and dote upon him. Come on, for that reaction, who wouldn't do something!
• -Point out things around him. I think he is most enamoured with turning on and off the lights and seeing the cause and effect of the switch on the light in the room. He points and hoots (he is BIG on hooting) and gets all excited until you turn the light off/on again.
• -Feed himself. Again, he has been doing this for a while, but he loves finger food. I also spoon feed him to move the process along, but if I didn't, he has been known to sit in his highchair for up to 45 minutes eating. If we get him something he likes, he still does the "Cheerio Aria" which means he hums along happily while eating. His favorite things these days are blueberries. My goodness, I need to buy stock in Chilean blueberry farms with the amount we go through. We've gotten to the point when we use Costco for our supply - and that is saying something! He also likes tortellini, ham, chicken, turkey and of course the required things like the whole versions of everything he used to eat pureed: sweet potatoes, peas and carrots... On a lark, I tried Lima Beans. To every one's surprise, Miles really liked them... and so did Tim and I! (It used to be on my list...)

He really is such a delight to be around. Monday mornings are all the harder as I just want to be home with my Little and my Big Loves.

When did you grow up?

For whatever reason, Miles has stopped looking like a baby to me. Maybe it's that he points to things, he hoots to get attention, he can go anywhere he wants to, he plays. Maybe it's that he just looks older. Whatever it is, I feel like every time I see him, he has grown up a little more (which is funny to say about someone under the age of 1.) It makes me so happy for him that he is progressing so well and so healthy, but I also find myself a little sad and longing for the days when he would sleep in my arms.

Just love him.

Enamored

Was just going through recent weekly photos of Miles (in the preview thumbnails pane) and I was delighted as I navigated through the series; so I put together this animation to share with everyone. Sorry for the poor resolution - working on a higher quality version.



He's, of course, looking at and interacting with his wonderful Mom. Chrips he's cute!

Thought the expressions deserved a closer look.