Flight of the Henry Bee

A long overdue post...with a fun video from our musician in the making. Henry loves music, as you can see below. More photos and updates to come.

More monkeying around

First of all, can you believe I've posted multiple times this week?! I'm making up for my weeks of absence earlier this spring/winter.

Really, I couldn't resist posting some of these photos. This morning Henry invited his stuffed animals to breakfast. He first tried throwing them into the seat of his high chair before breakfast. Then when I lifted him into the seat, he kept whining and pointing at his animals until I placed them in the high chair with him. I think he intended to feed them some breakfast, too, because it looked at first like he was attempting to find their mouths and open them. He then opted just to feed himself and repeatedly cuddle and point to their eyes (or "iz," as Henry says). Henry's other cuddle buddy, Yellow Doggie, also got some quality time in the high chair.

"This is awesome. I get my breakfast and my monkey!"
"Just don't go stealing my waffle. Deal?"
"Iz!" (eyes)
"Ahhh. Me and my animals."

I'll never...

Chalk up another one to the list of "Things I'll never do as a parent," but then went ahead and did anyway...
The photo above shows Henry wearing his handy child safety/restraint system. Otherwise known as, a leash. Otherwise known as, the monkey on his back. Whatever you choose to call it, it works. For a kid who is always on the go and can move faster every day, finding a way to keep him safely within arms reach is a challenge, but also a top priority for me. I never thought I'd have my child on a "leash," but it's cute and effective, and if it keeps him safe then I'm okay with it.

Yesterday we took a quick road trip to the Providence Children's Museum with our friends Kristina and Griffin. Visiting this museum was a great idea. Going on a rainy day during spring vacation week: not so great an idea. Somehow we didn't manage to put two and two together, until we arrived there and saw the swarms of parents and children heading toward the entrance. Regardless of the crowds, I think the boys still had a fun time. There are many activities at the museum geared toward children sharing Henry's age and interests. His favorite activities involved balls and wheels. Shocking, right? An enclosed area with Tonka trucks and soft, fake rocks was Henry's nirvana. He also enjoyed the water area, where children donning raincoat-like smocks can splash and play with balls in shallow troughs of water. We look forward to exploring more on a day when the museum is less crowded!

It appears that spring has finally sprung here in New England! The mild weather has meant lots more outdoor activity time for me and Henry. Spending time in the fresh air brings much excitement and fun to our lives, as well as some new challenges for me in keeping the ever-curious Henry safe and happy. Our little buddy continues to find the most dangerous or undesirable areas of our property to be the most intriguing. The garage and driveway are his current favorite areas. But, you may say to yourself, you have a fence, so it's okay. Right? Theoretically, yes. Until Henry sets his mind on getting out of the fence and puts all of his 25 pounds into the effort of prying open the fence gate and squeezing through the small gap between the gate and the fence. You've got to give him credit for trying. Last week when Henry wandered into the garage he became fascinated with the recycling bin full of bottles (and sharp-edged cans). Rather than play in the dirty garage, I piled some bottles into his sled and we played the same in-and-out sorting game in the backyard. Moving items from one spot to another has become one of Henry's favored activities. This includes, but is not limited to: emptying and cleaning up the tupperware cabinet, using his sorting bucket of shapes, and placing his dinner in and out of the pocket on his bib. That last one was pretty funny.
Henry's other favorite activities include exploring all of the flowers and greenery around our yard, looking for birds, and playing with his wheeled toys. He also enjoys pushing the stroller around the backyard. See how happy he is with the jogging stroller here?
Alas, that happiness was short lived. Last week I found myself absolutely perplexed on two occasions when Henry abruptly stopped his happy tour around the yard and began throwing a tantrum directed toward his stroller. I thought he might want to go for a ride, so I sat him in the stroller. Definitely not the answer, as indicated by arching of the back and screaming. Okay, I thought to myself, maybe he wants to play with the straps. Another negative. Then I figured maybe was stuck and needed help pushing. Ohhh, nooo sir-ee that was definitely not it either. A day later, when we hit upon the same sequence of frustrated events, I finally figured it out. Henry wanted the stroller turned on it's side so that he could spin the wheels. Now why didn't I figure that out sooner?
Frustration has continued to be a common theme in our household, as we've hit upon a communication impasse. You can only get so far with "ball," "bird," "eyes," "duck," and "vrrooomm" (car or truck) in your vocabulary. Basically if you're not at the zoo or on the highway you're in trouble. The process of language acquistion has been and no doubt will continue to be a mixed bag. It can be a source of great frustration for Henry if we don't guess his desires correctly. However, it is in many respects a delight to see Henry trying to communicate and let us know his needs. I often find it easy to forget just how much Henry understands, given his limited output. But when I narrate certain parts of his day, he clearly knows exactly what I'm saying. For example, if I tell him it's time to eat lunch, he'll walk to his high chair and raise his arms up for me to lift him into the seat. Such neat little developments.

This weekend we enjoyed a fun gathering with the moms/babies/dads we met about a year ago at this time. It's hard to believe how big the kiddos are getting!

Movin' and Groovin'

Now that he's pretty steady on his feet, Henry has been exploring all sorts of new ways to move his body. One of his favorite activities is dancing. Henry adds new moves almost every day. During tonight's dance party he showed Brian his newest dance step--spinning in circles!

If you haven't done so already, you can also check out Brian's blog for some additional videos of Henry. We've been having some technical difficulties on the computer at home, so I've been relying on him to post more videos and pics lately.

Walkin' the walk, talkin' the talk

Wow, has it really been three weeks since I last blogged? I guess I've been busy keeping up with our on-the-go one-year old! Henry has been a walking, talking little character lately. I've found my experiences with him to also be particularly intense lately. Mostly intense in a good way, sometimes intensely challenging. I think this might also be a reason I haven't written lately. In my non-Henry time, I've needed to take a little breather from my buddy and re-energize for my next time with him.

So, the good news or the bad news first?

Bad news: Henry has started throwing temper tantrums and otherwise asserting his will in loud and unpleasant ways. I understand this is a normal developmental milestone, relating to his growing independence and his frustration at being unable to verbalize his wants and needs. That said, it can be a major pain in the a$! And when I say "it can be a major pain"I mean the tantrum, not Henry. If there was ever a time for me to begin using the instructions I've read/given/heard as a family therapist and a mother, it is now. In this spirit: Henry, I love you, but I'm not so crazy about your behavior right now. How about you just quietly tell me what you want instead of screaming and thrashing? Right.

Moving on...

Good news: Henry is SO much fun lately! The boy is funny, he's smart, he's curious, he's a bundle of energy and quite a little character. Not that I'm biased or anything. Each day has brought new developmental skills and revelations in Henry's personality. Some recent Henry fun facts include:

• Henry's pretty funny, and he doesn't mind saying so himself! He's been laughing and giggling more than ever lately--often when cracking himself up. Making faces, playing peek-a-boo, throwing things and chasing after mommy are some favorite reasons for laughing.
• Henry's a speed racer. He's walking quite easily now, occasionally breaking into a near-run. No more crawling for Henry G.
• Henry has a lot to say. If only he had all the words! He's working on it, though. As commonly happens, I think Brian and I are the only ones who understand him. And really, we often aren't sure what he's trying to say. Henry's working his way forward in the alphabet, starting with the letter B. His favorite words are "balloon," "ball," and "bird." He's also starting saying "duck" and "eyes" (we think). Luckily, his handy pointer finger usually clues us in to what "buh" we're supposed to be looking at/going to/getting for Henry.
• Henry's creative. In the past two days he's initiated two new games to play with me, totally out of the blue. His first little game involved pushing on the back of my legs to get me to walk forward. I guess he figures his toys move when he pushes on them, why not try it with mommy? Henry found it pretty hysterical when he was successful in his Go Mommy Go game. Secondly, Henry started a new version of peek-a-boo, where he hides behind me, peers around slyly while I pretend not to find him, and giggles like mad. What a fun little boy he is!
  

Pictures to follow in the next day or two.

Happy Birthday, Henry!

Today is Henry's 1st Birthday! Happy birthday, Henry!

We've had a wonderful few days of celebrations big and small. Today, we had the great treat of a snow day! While I wasn't thrilled with the new 10 inches of snow, I was very excited to have Brian home from work. The three of us enjoyed a quiet day at home, we went for a sled ride down the street, and I cooked a special dinner with Henry's current favorite food, baked sweet potatoes. Yesterday we took Henry to his favorite diner for breakfast. And on Saturday we were joined by friends and family for Henry's first birthday party. It was a joy to see him fulfill his birthday-boy duties; eating his first piece of cake, having fun with his guests, and playing with his new toys. In the picture below, you can see the cake that I made for our birthday boy. The carousel theme was inspired by a gift from my mother. She gave me the pewter, animal-shaped candle holders that circle the inside of Henry's cake, and were used during my own childhood. I can also thank my mother for the gift of creativity that inspired the cake. I fondly remember the fun cakes my mom made for each of our birthdays, among many other projects that reflect her thoughtfulness and creative skills.
Henry's carousel cake was fun to make, an delicious to eat, too!
Before the cake arrived on Henry's tray, he was excited to see it up close. He had watched me assemble the cake the day before, and wanted to get his hands on it right away.
Here we are with the birthday boy.
Henry with his Pops and Nonnie.
And here are a few more cute photos from the past week.