Countdown to 1 year old!

Henry is now a mere one month away from making it to the one-year mark! Holy cow! It's hard to know whether to call him a baby or a toddler. On another blog, I read the author's suggestion for the term "wobbler" as the interim stage between babyhood and toddler. That seems about right to me. Henry is now taking several steps at a time, but I'd hesitate to call him a toddler. Instead, I'd say we're in the thralls of wobblerhood. Wobblerhood is a wonderful time of development so far. Henry is not only learning to walk, but also really soaking up all of what we say and do around him. Some recent developments:

Brushing his teeth and hair. Often with the wrong tool. First, he picked up on using his hairbrush to make a brushing gesture against his head. It was a very sweet, if completely ineffective, attempt at grooming himself. Then, when I gave him his toothbrush the other day, he mimicked me and "brushed" his teeth. Again, pretty ineffective, but totally adorable. I can see why it would get confusing when he went downstairs and saw his hairbrush, another item he uses to "brush, brush." Brush your teeth vs. brush your hair is a fine distinction to this little wobbler. And maybe not that important a distinction, since his food often winds up in his hair anyway.

How does his food wind up in his hair, you may ask? Well, Henry is very interested in feeding himself. Most of his meals are self-fed meals, where he gets small chunks of whatever we're eating. On occasions when Henry's menu includes something requiring a spoon, oh boy are we in trouble. Henry hasn't quite gotten the idea that you can't necessarily grab whatever substance is on the spoon and put it directly into your mouth. Yogurt, for instance, works a lot better on the spoon than in the palm of your hand. Try telling that to Henry. And what gets on Henry's hands goes in Henry's hair. So, tooth brush, hair brush, whatever.

Other 11 month Henry facts...

• He lovvveeess dogs. Whether they're on TV, at a friend's house, or walking down the street, Henry greets them with a squeal of delight. I think he's already begun lobbying for a dog of his own.
• Henry also loves monkeys. Usually he only sees them on TV or in the form of stuffed animals. He saw them in a few murals at Trader Joe's this week and started squealing and laughing. It took me a while to figure out that he wasn't excited about pita chips, he was excited about painted monkeys. We can't wait to take Henry to the zoo this spring to see the monkeys in person.
• Henry loves TV. Okay, not really; but the previous two items would seem to indicate that I sit him in front of the TV all day. I do sometimes sit with him on my lap in front of the TV while he takes a bottle, but that's about it for watching. He'll sit still for approximately 10 minutes to watch Curious George, Sesame Street, or occasionally the Animal Planet channel. Otherwise, he's got better things to do.
• Monday through Friday, Henry lives for 5:45 pm. This is the time when Brian arrives home from work. Henry gets very excited when he hears either the car pull in the driveway or the door start to open. He looks at me, and either waits for me to say "daddy's home" or starts saying "da" himself while heading for the door. Then he gives Brian and big grin and hug around the legs. And he melts our hearts.
• The minute I walk into Henry's room in the morning, he starts pointing and saying "eh?" and doesn't stop until he goes to sleep at night. He wants to know the name of everything around him. It's getting much easier to figure out what Henry is pointing toward, as he's begun using his pointer finger more effectively. Up until this week, his "eh?" was accompanied by using his whole hand to gesture. Now he's managing to isolate his pointer finger when he wants to know the name of something.
  
• Henry's a dance machine. He especially likes motown. I especially like his squat and groove move.
  

There are, of course, a million other cute and fascinating facts about Henry that I could include here. If I had time to write them, that is. But I hear the little g-unit upstairs pouding on his crib. That is code for: Mooooommmmmm, I've been up here napping for two hours!! Now get up here and let's play!! I've got things to do and learn!!

A pox on your house

When is winter going to end? Winter, with all that it has wrought and brought this year, has been tough as a stay at home mom of a baby. There is the snow. There is the cold. There is the ice. There is the sickness. Oh, the sickness.

It seems as if Henry's tally of sick vs. healthy days this winter has been skewed to the former. And a recent threat of chicken pox is about to push me over the edge! He was apparently, accidentally exposed to the virus at our baby and toddler story time this week. An unknowing mother brought her pox ridden child to the story hour, and sat him in the circle of our small, closed room. I can practically see the highly contagious spores of varicella virus swirling in the air, making their way to my poor, soon-to-be vaccinated child. You see, the CDC, AAP, and AAFP now all advise vaccinating children against chicken pox for the first time between 12 and 15 months of age. Henry is now 11 months old (more about that later). The child in question at story hour is, I believe, either 14 or 15 months old, which makes me wonder about his vaccination status. Was he vaccinated, and somehow still contracted the disease? Or did his mother opt out, as do an increasing number of parents today?

Which brings me to my soapbox. Upon which I rarely stand. You probably didn't even know I had a soapbox. But I'm in the midst of a 10-20 day incubation period, during which I must wait to find out if Henry has chicken pox. And after the 10-20 day incubation period, I may just have to deal with the chicken pox themselves. Sure, it probably wouldn't be the end of the world if he did contract chicken pox. In most kids his age, it's typically pretty mild. But when there's a vaccine for this, I don't want to have to worry about it. I realize that most parents (especially all the wonderful, caring parents I know) make what they feel to be the best decision for their child. And it is every parent's right to make these decisions, including in regard to vaccinations. In fact, I myself did a fair amount of research and reading into the current hot topic of vaccines. I also considered an alternate vaccination schedule, and weighed out the pros and cons of specific vaccines. In the end, the research I did and the conversation I had with Henry's pediatrician led me to conclude that the current, AAP recommended vaccination schedule was the way to go. Whenh I made this decision, I also bore in mind the public health issues related to vaccination. Because really, it's not just a personal, family decision. It is a matter of public health and responsibility. Diseases that have been nearly erradicated by strict adherence to the vaccine schedules pop up again at alarming rates when often unsubstantiated fears cause parents to refuse physician recommended vaccines. For example, measles has been making a comeback in the UK as a result of lower vaccination rates. The drop-off in vaccination rates was related to an unsubtantiated link between the MMR vaccine and autism. So, I will just say this: do your research; make your best decision for your child; but remember that it's not just a decision about your child, but the health of society as a whole. 'Nuf said.

Walk this way

As a birthday treat, Brian took the day off of work today and spent it with me and Henry. We started the day with a relaxing breakfast out together. Later we went to the open gym time at Gymboree. Brian was able to capture a few of Henry's steps on camera!

Will walk for food

A baby's first steps must be a scary thing. Venturing out on your own, unsteady and unknowing, doing this thing you've only watched the big people do. So what did it take for Henry to gather his courage and take his first wobbly steps? Hunger. This is true to form for our dear little boy with the big appetite. And I have never been so thankful for his appetite in all his ten and a half months. Not because it motivated him to walk, but because we've had a few unsettling days of Henry eating and drinking very little. Naive, new mother that I am, I never thought I would see a day where Henry wasn't interested in food; but now I've seen three days of no interest in eating. Henry's on the heels (I hope!) of a nasty cold, throat, ear infection combo that left him a shadow of his healthy self. This afternoon Henry began to rebound from his sickness, and finally ate some lunch. I'd offered him bananas, thinking they were a bland, inoffensive food for an unhappy little tummy. Did Henry want bananas? No, he wanted my lunch, which was a pungent garlic and spinach pasta dish. So, garlic pasta it was. Later in the afternoon I grabbed a few cheddar flavored rice crackers for a snack while I watched Henry play. Not one to miss a snack, Henry picked right up on the sound of the crinkling bag and came to investigate. Since I had spent the past three days fearing that Henry would starve and whither away to nothingness, I couldn't turn down his pleading glances toward the crackers. Yes, I'm a sucker. I squatted down and gave him one small piece. And then another and another. Eventually he was standing up before me grabbing the pieces faster than I could break them off. Seeing my opportunity, I backed away a few steps, and the hungry babe slowly creeped one foot forward in my direction. He fell on this attempt. But a few minutes later, success! Henry took four tentative little steps toward me (okay, toward the rice crackers that I happened to be holding)! He repeated this feat a few more times before satisfying his hunger and wandering off to climb the stairs. Watch out world, here comes Henry!

Around and around

Henry has never met a set of wheels he didn't like. He loves to overturn his toy buses and cars to spin the wheels. Sometimes he even enjoys rolling them back and forth right-side-up on the wheels. He loves to ride in or on wheeled vehicles. And he loves to listen to and accompany the classic "Wheels on the Bus" song with his own crazy wheeling motion. Let's just say, it looks like the axel's busted on that bus, but Henry enjoys his attempts at the motion. And so do we, of course.

Here Henry is at Noodle Noggin n Bean, looking very much the little boy, and trying his hand at a small riding car.

NNnB was a fun-filled adventure with cousins Liam and Evan. Henry had a great time finding lots of another fave, balls. Among other themed rooms, he spent a little time in what would have been my favorite room as a child (okay, it's still my favorite room there as a grown up, too). As you can see below, this room is mini diner and kitchen, complete with seating, a stocked fridge, grocery carts, and much more. Cousin Evan treated me and Henry to a gourmet meal of asparagus and lemon cookies. Mmmm.
Though it's a little pricey, NNnB does deliver when it comes to providing something for everyone. Even the hallways had toys hanging from the walls.
Our trip to NNnB followed a big "first" for us. While I attended a meeting of a local child development committee, I left Henry with a babysitter who was provided for meeting attendees. Believe it or not, this was the first time I have left Henry with a non-family member. And it only took 10 months to do it! As with pretty much every major change or development so far, I worried much more than necessary. Henry survived. Phew! In fact, Henry did more than survive. From the report of the babysitter, he was happy as a clam. A busy, non-stop clam. I'm pretty sure the woman who watched him needed to go home and take a nap after her time with Henry. She greeted me with "Wow, you have your hands full with that one! He gets into everything!" That's my son.

In other Henry news, we had a great time returning to another session of the Baby and Toddler story time. Henry was at his most charming, energetic, and friendly self. His attention span for the stories was on the short side, but that was fine since the "story time" is also comprised of songs, parachute play, and free play time. Henry showed off his new skills by clapping at the end of each story and song. He bopped up and down on his knees during the reprisal of the "Chicken Dance" song (Why the chicken dance at story time? I don't know. It was a little weird, frankly.). He smiled, waved, and babbled to the other kids. It was lovely. Until the parachute. I'm not sure what it is, but my dear son does not like the parachute. Not one bit. We needed to take a short time out while the other kiddos had fun waving the parachute around, hiding under it, and bouncing balls on top of it. All in all, though, it was one of the most fun times I've had with Henry. I'm looking forward to six more weeks of stories, songs, and play with the little guy at this fun opportunity.

Top Ten

In honor of Henry's ten-month "birthday" yesterday and the New Year tendency to reflect and make lists, here is a list of my top ten Henry moments/memories/themes (in no particular order):

1) The first time Henry cooed back at me. Henry was sitting on my lap one day when he began to make little sounds back in response to my own. It was a remarkable moment, recognizing that he was able to communicate in this new (non-crying) way.

2) The first time Henry crawled to Brian after work. Henry became very excited when he saw Brian walk into the room at the end of the day, and crawled over to say hello. Now most days he's waiting eagerly for Brian. I see the connection between Henry and his dad in many ways, but this memory signifies it in a very special way.

3) Sitting in the early spring sunshine with Henry napping on me. Most mornings in the month or two after Henry was born, I would spend a few hours with Henry in the rocking chair in our sunroom. At that time of day and year, the sun would warmly filter through and remind me that summer was on the way. Henry was most content napping on me in those days, so I would sit with him curled against me, drinking my morning coffee and reading a book. I miss those cozy little moments.

4) Tiramisu. It is a little weird, but yes, tiramisu. I had tiramisu every night for dessert when I was in the hospital recovering from the c-section. I'll always associate tiramisu with being taken care of in the hospital, getting to know Henry, and having lots of visits from family. It's all a little hazy due to the combined effect of hormones/pain killers, but the tiramisu and the Henry, I remember.

5) Watching Henry reach for toys on his play mat. He had such focus and intensity as he tried to bat at his toys. Sometimes the effort just wasn't enough to get his wobbly little arm up to the toy, and he would start all over again, reaching, reaching, reaching. Henry's been a determined little boy from the start.

6) Henry's crazy happy face. You know it if you've seen it. And you've seen it in photos here. The wide-open mouth, now with top two teeth showing. Usually this face is accompanied by a breathless sort of "ha ha ha" sound. It makes me laugh every time.

7) Henry's increasingly social nature, and his ability to recognize friends and family. I love watching Henry see a person or even photo of someone he knows. His face lights up, he reaches his arms out, and he recently began doing a cute squeal of happiness when he sees a familiar person. This is especially true for children. Henry loves seeing little kids, including children he doesn't know. When we're around other kids, Henry will smile, reach out, and start babbling at them.

8) The first time Henry pulled up to standing, using me for support. For some reason, this milestone really hit home as far as my continuing awareness of and acceptance for Henry's individuality. He's a little person who can stand on his own two feet.

9) Introducing Henry to new people. I'm a proud mom. I love showing him off. Always have, always will.

10) Taking Henry out in the jogging stroller. Running while pushing Henry in the stroller made me feel like my old self again, with the added bonus of having Henry with me. We got sidelined with my injury, but I'm sure we'll be out there again in the spring. Me and my buddy getting some exercise together.

Bonus item: The first time Henry slept through the night. I remember feeling like a new person. Today, it feels like a distant memory. We're in an ugly sleep phase right now. Very ugly. Like, Henry--and by extension, mommy--was up most of the night between 10 pm and 2 am last night. He was doing what can best be described as shouting. No, not crying or screaming, but shouting. Like his cute babbling, except with the volume turned up to a not-so-cute level. I believe there was also some excited jumping up and down from the sound of the squeaky crib mattress.The good news is, usually these disrupted phases of sleep precede or accompany Henry's big developmental milestones. Since he looks like he's getting very close to walking, I have a sneaking suspicion that we'll see his first steps soon! He also seems very intent in making sentence-like sounds and gesturing while vocalizing, so I think he's working on putting together the mechanics of recognizable speech. That will sure be exciting!

Happy ten months, Henry!

Happy New Year!