When I started these monthly updates I told myself I would do them for one year. Every month I would sit down with my notes and pictures and work through picking out and editing my favorite pictures and writing the content to accompany them. It takes quite a bit of time to consolidate everything and put it in a readable format. After his first birthday I breathed a sigh of relief that I was able to cross “blog update” off my list.
Until I missed it…
As we are approaching Chief turning 14 months I realized he has done SO MUCH over the last two months and all the changes/developments are running together – I must write it down somewhere. So here I am, writing another update. Lets do this.
Baby Update:
He visited his first pumpkin patch. Basically we took him for Instagram. He couldn’t have cared less about the pumpkins and don’t get him started on the carousel! He wasn’t a fan. I think in another year or two he’ll be all about it, but for now, it was mainly for Mom.
How he really felt about the pumpkin patch.
He says “Dog.” Well we know he’s saying “dog.” I don’t think everyone would recognize it. We don’t have a dog but he LOVES THEM. He gets so excited when he sees one on our walks. He reaches, points and exclaims “Do, Do, Do, Do!” until it’s completely out of view.
He gave up the bottle. A week after his birthday he had his very last bottle. Such a bittersweet day.
He drove on the ranch. In Chelsea, OK, when you turn one year old, you are legally able to drive in the pasture. It’s a rite of passage. I don’t make the rules.
He played at the park. We’ve taken him to the park several times but he was always indifferent. He didn’t care to climb on the jungle gym and he HATED the swing. I guess he just needed a friend to go with – who knew?!? Chief watched Theodore climb through the tunnel, so he went through the tunnel; Theodore went down the slide, Chief went down the slide (head first!). He had the best time playing follow the leader.
He hid my keys. He’s taken my keys before but I’ve always seen him toss them in the (empty) bathtub, the recycling bin, or coffee cup. This morning in particular I was trying to leave for work and couldn’t find them ANYWHERE. I searched for twenty minutes before I finally resorted to taking the spare set. When I got home I searched for another 3 hours. That evening we were in his room and I noticed he kept tossing things into the laundry hamper – a book, a diaper, a few socks. A lightbulb went off in my head. I instantly started pulling things out of the hamper, and there they were, at the bottom of the hamper just waiting to be washed.
Food has reached a whole new level. With a few exceptions, he eats what we eat and he gets his own meal at restaurants. He has become very vocal about what he does like, what he doesn’t, and what he would rather eat. We are currently in the “throw food on the floor” phase. He’ll hold his arm straight out away from the high chair with his little fist clutched around (insert any food here). He’ll look us square in the eyes and keep us in suspense for what seems like an eternity. Sometimes he’ll pull back and quickly shove it in his mouth, other times he opens that little fist and drops it all over the floor. We never know what’s coming. Maybe I should get a dog. I think it could really help with post meal clean-up.
He’s walking! Short distances, but walking nonetheless. He’ll walk 6-8 feet, take a break, walk another 6-8 feet, take a break, and repeat. The first time we got it on video I shed a few happy tears.
He hasn’t slowed down. Our tiny tornado keeps gaining speed. He’s now climbing in cabinets, fishing whatever he can grab out of drawers, and trying desperately to get out of baby jail (pack n’ play). He loves to switch the laundry – we hand him clothes out of the washer and he puts them in the dryer. He vacuums – if I start it up he walks up next to me, grabs hold and “pushes” it forward and backward with me. I keep telling him if he’s a REALLY good boy, one day he can vacuum all by himself.
Mom Update:
With the weaning from bottles came the weaning of the pump for Mom.
We made it. One year. I feel like I should make myself a certificate, take myself to dinner, or have a trophy made. That was probably the hardest thing I’ve ever consistently done. From figuring out how to do it, to making a stockpile, to mastitis, to pumping at work, to Chief refusing to nurse. We did it. When I went back to work I had the alarm on my phone set for every 3 hours. Do you know how hard it is to stop what you’re doing every three hours to hide in your office for 20-30 minutes, to do it all again in 2.5 hours?! Exhausting.
I’m so thankful we were able to breastfeed, but I’m also really relieved it’s over. I returned my pump to the medical supply store and instantly felt like I lost an arm. It’s amazing how much my appetite has decreased since I stopped pumping. I don’t clear my plate and every other plate around me anymore. It’s a wonderful feeling to feel full again.
Chief reminded me I needed to go to the eye doctor this month. I hadn’t been in 6 years but a tiny finger to the ole looker prompted me to go. The diagnosis? A corneal abrasion across 2/3rds of my eye. He got me good.
Chase spent 7 FULL days in Colorado this month on a hunting trip. I got a small taste for what it would be like to be a single parent, and let me tell ya, there’s a reason it’s intended to be a two person job. I don’t know how single moms/dads do it. Chase brought home a black bear and my sanity.
This stage is messy. It’s physically exhausting, mentally taxing, and emotionally fulfilling. He gives the biggest hugs one minute and throws his bowl of pasta on the floor the next. He’ll snuggle up next to us on the couch then immediately try to dive off of it. We never know what’s coming and we’re loving it.
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