Eli's 12 month check-up

Eli's 12 month check-up was today! I had to wake him up from his nap so that we would make in in time, but after the initial shock, he was fine and happy to be in his stroller. He still LOVES being on the subway (this kid will take any extra opportunities to flirt!) and was literally screaming at people to look at him today. He likes to play peek-a-boo with everyone on the train.

His appointment started off bad, because he had to get his finger pricked (to check to make sure he's not anemic). You would have thought they cut his finger off based on all that screaming. They then put a band aid on his finger and he was SO SO SO upset that it was there. Every 10 seconds, he was trying super hard to get it off. Once Dr. Grant came in, he was fine... a new person to flirt with.

His height (30.5 inches) looked great (62nd percentile), but she was concerned about his weight. At 19.8 lbs, he's dropped down to the 8th percentile. I told her that both me and mike were really skinny little kids AND assured her that this kid EATS WELL. She was less concerned after hearing that, but wants us to up the bottle feeds to 8 oz if we can. sigh.

She was very impressed with his social skills (he kissed her at least 10 times) and his language skills. yay! We were very excited to hear that aside from choking hazards, he has no more dietary restrictions! Eggs, honey, shellfish and peanut butter, here we come!

After the doc appointment, we went to Subway and shared a sub (so cute... I love that he can eat real food now). Then we headed over to the park and met up with Sonali and Tita Ritika. I think Eli was feeling sore/tired from the shots, because every time I put him down, he'd cry and then sit down. Poor baby. He seemed to like the swings for a few minutes....we're working on it!

We had a GREAT time at the farm yesterday with Joanna and Bryce.... AND we got to go over to Dexter's house! It was a busy two days, but fun! Tomorrow, we have NO plans and I'm so looking forward to just hanging out with my little guy. I only have to work Sat and Sun this week because Eli and I are driving up to CT on Monday to PICK JENN UP! Woohoo!

So much is changing!

Every day, I feel like I come home to a new kid. He's such a LITTLE BOY right now.

This guy is CONSTANTLY on the move. he does not sit still. He likes to carry his new puzzle pieces or small toys around to different locations, take his helium balloons (he loves the strings from the sky!) around, take books off of his shelf, bring me books to read (he now stands in front of me and does a little impatient dance as I read them), play with his new fridge magnets (thanks, grandma!), try to hand the balloons or balls to Riley... and as of tonight, spin. (He just kept spinning and spinning...and then he'd stop and fall down.).

Daddy taught him how to make a basket, so now he takes his little basketball over and slam dunks the ball in the hoop. We break out into a large cheer of "yaaaaaay"... he looks at us, so proud of himself, and then goes to get the ball again. Toinght, I told him "Go get the ball" on a few occasions, and he DID. Coincidence? I don't know! It's so wild how he's really starting to understand us.

He still likes to make his kissy face, but isn't responding as much to our requests for a "kiss kiss."

Ooooh - we tried whole milk for the first time today! We're completely out of formula, so it was time to switch cold turkey. He wasn't too interested in any during the day, but I gave it to him at night and he didn't even bat an eye. Just drank the bottle as if it was the same as his formula. Let's hope that continues! SO SO SO SO SO much easier and cheaper!!!! YAAAAY!

Eli has his one year well visit on Thursday. I'm eager to get some questions answered about his diet (are we overfeeding him?). I am not looking forward to the shots, but my little guys is usually a trooper about them.

His Birthday party was SO FUN! It was great to have the babies all together - finally! Tommy's girlfriend Kathryn made a fabulous monkey cake and Eli loved it. He didn't have his second nap that day and started to crash a few times, but he was able to keep it together. :) His buddy Sawyer got him a blue stroller, so now Eli can push it all around, just as he loved pushing Sawyer's! It's cute to see him in here... he prefers to push it around one-handed and make crazy turns with it.

His "Favorite" books have changed these days... he seems to LOVE "Hand, Hand, Fingers, Thumb," "Red Hat, Green hat" and "Daddy Cuddles." He's at the age now where he likes me to read a book over and over. He looks at me when I'm done as if to say - Hellooooo - why are you STOPPING?

Tomorrow, if the weather permits, we hope to make it up to Muscoot Farms to spend time with the Monte babies.... Bryce and Joanna. Should be fun!

I can't believe my baby is 1!!!

Eli's birthday came and went....time is just going SO fast these days. I can't believe my little baby is ONE.

His birthday was great - when he woke up, we took him out to the living room to open his presents. He had more fun trying to eat the wrapping paper than anything else and had to be re-directed about 40 times, but we got through them all. We got him a bunch of new books, the popper thing that I had when i was a kid, and a basketball hoop so Daddy can start teaching him how to play. (It was cute....he instantly picked up the ball and started carrying it around. He doesn't understand the role of the hoop in the game but he does like to go around bouncing the ball and then chasing after it!). When he unwrapped the box, he saw the baby on the box and said "baby!" for the first time. Mike and I just looked at each other like - wow, did he just say that? (Of course he hasn't said it again... just enough to taunt us). For breakfast, I made him pancakes (a first for him!) and he scarfed them down (like he does with all foods these days).

After his nap, we got ready to go over to Lolo and Lola's house for his party. We had a very small celebration with Lolo, Lola, Tita Ann and Kuya Jaymin... very fun! Jaymin was so excited to see Eli arrive - it was super cute. I had dressed Eli up in his birthday boy shirt and bib...and to my COMPLETE surprise, he kept his party hat on for most of the time. Shocking. I guess he didn't know it was there. We gave him noodles for lunch (filipino tradition meaning he will have a long life) and then brought out the cake! when we were singing to him, he put his hand in the cake and tasted the icing. Well, just like mommy, this kid loved the icing and instantly went back for more. I broke off a small piece of the cake and he took a little piece... then went back for the rest (in one bite!) He CRAMMED it all in his mouth- so funny. Daddy gave him a second piece and he did it again. Super cute. He also succeeded in rubbing icing all over his face. Good times. NOT fun to clean up. His pants had to be completely changed. We got some nice pictures. He also enjoyed everyone singing to him. :)

When we got home, I gave him his favorite dinner - banana and prunes!!! Mmmm. He loves em. He was tuckered out after his bath.... the day just flew by!!

On Saturday, we're having a little party with his buddies.... Sonali, Dexter and Sawyer. It will be a super full house, but I can't wait!!!

Other happenings....

Now if you ask him "Where's Eli's nose?" ... he'll point to his nose! He then immediately points to his mouth. Cuteness.

Words he can say: "baby" "dada" "mama" "baba" "daddy" "Truck duck" (though it is not by any means clear). "little" (what? i don't know how he can say little and not mommy...but whatever).

He is big into giving kisses right now. If you say "Kiss kiss!" to him... he'll come over and open mouth kiss you on the cheek. super cute. Have to take advantage of this now before kissing becomes "yucky." I have trained him to kiss all of his stuffed animals. He can also give high-5s (and low-5s now!) all the time.

If you say "yaaaay" he stops whatever he's doing and starts clapping. :)

Getting his diaper and/or clothes changed is still the worst thing in the world.

He's figured out how to flush the toilet. If he hears the bathroom door open, he hightails it into the bathroom and goes right over to the flusher. Great.

All this week, we've been playing "I'mmmm gonna get you!" He looks at me and starts laughing and then runs off. He sometimes runs toward me, anticipating the tickle, but he always picks up his speed. Super, super cute and my favorite thing to do. :)

Let the adventures continue!

One hour away!!!

In one hour, my baby will be one. I absolutely cannot believe it. All day, I've been taking myself back to that looooong day when I was in labor with the little guy (aka the day Eli decided he wanted OUT). I remember that day so clearly. I can't believe it's been a year.

Each day, this little guy amazes me in a whole slew of new ways. Yesterday, for example, on a whim I said to him... "Eli, go get Truck Duck (his favorite book)." He looked at me and then walked over to his books, picked up Truck Duck and brought it to me. Coincidence? Maybe. He did it again today. Double coincidence? Maybe. But amazing all the same!

Our favorite thing to do together this week was the following:

Me: "Eli...I'm gonna get you! I'm gonna get youuuuu."

Eli takes one look at me and then takes OFF, giggling the whole way. When I get about halfway there, he turns around and runs TOWARDS me and crashes into me. Super cute.

He's starting to copy more and more words, though most of them still come out as "dada." He's getting closer to being able to say "tita" and can now kind of say "out." He was trying really hard today to say "truck duck" so I think that's next on our list.

His favorite song is still the ABCs and singing it can always, always calm him down. He also likes Twinkle, Twinkle....but oddly won't go for Baa Baa Black Sheep (same tune).

I took Eli this week for the shoe store for the first time! What an experience THAT was. Try to get a pair of shoes on a screaming child. We were in the outlets, so we ended up getting two pairs instead of one. yay! Indoors, he's still barefoot, but outdoors, we have the shoes!

I don't know if I mentioned this last time, so forgive me if I did... He had playdates with Sonali and Sawyer this week and had his first kiss!!! Haha. We were telling Sawyer and Eli to go for the kiss.... Sawyer leaned in...then Eli leaned in.... then kept going and ended up kissing her nose. Super cute and I got it on film! On Friday, he learned how to do the pucker kiss and was kissing away on Saturday and Sunday. At one point, he leaned in to give Sonali a pucker kiss, but she was playing hard to get and just stood there. Haha.

Mother's Day was great!!! I'm not used to being on the receiving end of those wishes! so fun. :) I had to work, but then we went over to Mike's sister Ann's house for a BBQ. Yay! Eli was full of kisses for everyone. He LOVES playing with the big kids and follows his cousin Jaymin all around. So fun to watch.

Ok - more to talk about, but I have to get to bed - the big day is tomorrow!!!

New Favorite things

Eli's new favorite things: taking clothes out of drawers and throwing them, putting toys up on higher surfaces....looking at them for a minute...then taking them back down, making the scrabble box bang to the ground no matter where mommy hides it, moving that silly barricade out of the way so he can get to the kitchen where mommy is, trying to give his toys to Riley, biting the table, etc. :)

It is nearly impossible to get this kid's diaper changed these days. Heaven forbid I should need more than 5 seconds.... our latest distraction that buys me 10 extra seconds is letting him just pull out the wipes from his box... i figure 6 or 7 wasted wipes is worth the price of a smooth diaper change. When both of us are home, it usually takes two of us to change him .... especially if we have to...gasp...also change his outfit.

He learned how to stand up all by himself without holding onto anything, so now there is NO slowing him down.

Eli went to his VERY first Yankees game with Daddy and Lolo (mommy had to work) this Sunday!!! Daddy reported that he had a good time... he loved watching everyone clap, and then after everyone was done, he'd clap. Anything for attention. :) Lolo made us a great movie of the day.... can't wait to show him when he's older!

We're heading to the park to play with Sonali today and will meet up with Sawyer on Thursday! I love baby play dates!

:)

Mr. Copycat

Wow... so much has changed in the last week (as it always does). It's absolutely fascinating watching this little guy grow up and astonishing how quickly he learns things.

He can now say "ouch" and "sock." He likes to try to copy words... he'll stare at your mouth and watch with full interest if you are trying to get him to say a word. He always repeats what you say, though most of the time it still comes out as "dada." He surprised me the other day.... I banged my foot and said OUCH and then I heard a little "ouch." Super cute. I have him say it all the time now (confusing him, contextually, I'm sure) because it's just so cute. He also was trying really hard to say Sock the other day...and finally got it. It comes out more like "sa" but what surprised me the most is when he came up to me when I was putting MY socks on and said "sa." That's the first time he's ever really associated a word with an object and it was pretty fun to see. He was trying hard to get book... he's close but not there yet. He also completely surprised me by trying "little" this morning. He got his tongue to do the right L thing, but then it came out like "lada." I tried to transition from there to Lolo/Lola, but he wasn't going for it. :)

We booked our tickets to LA! We're going June 9th-16th and are super excited to see Carol, Vicki and the rest of the family. We are SUPER excited about meeting baby stella! I'm nervous about how Eli will do on the flight, but am hoping he'll surprise us all and be super well behaved. :)

He is completely unmanageable when trying to change his diaper. I had to hold him down with my leg on top of his chest today and he still managed to get away. If I distract him by kissing his belly (which leads to fits of laughter), I can usually get in and get out. I used to be able to give him electronics/shiny things to distract him, but he doesn't fall for that anymore. usually all I see when I'm trying to change a diaper is a little butt turbo crawling away from me.

The transition to the sippy cup is going well! For the last two days, I've given him only his morning and evening bottles and am giving him his sippy cup (the kind with the straw) during the day. The first few times were rough, but he's starting to get the hang of it. It's going to take some getting used to for mommy to have him carry his drink all around with him and not drink it in one sitting. Not too sure about when we'll try to get rid of the am/pm bottle. I'd like for him to be weaned off the bottle by the time he's one.

(On a happy, unrelated to Eli thought.... I have been eating SUPER SUPER healthy and have cut down my insane portions a ton....and have now lost almost 15 pounds! I'm even less than I was pre-pregnancy. My goal was to get back to my pre-preggo weight by the time Eli turned one... yay!).

Eli had a super fun play date with Sawyer yesterday in the park by our house. They fed the ducks, chased each other around in a big field, threw the ball to each other (well....not TO each other...), took the little pink stroller around for a spin, knocked each other over, read to each other, had "dada" conversations, went on the swings (which Sawyer LOVES and eli HATES), the slide, etc etc. Eli did better than I thought he would walking on the bumpy grass and was even able to stand up from sitting a few times on his own! His favorite activity of the day was eating grass, leaves, sticks and whatever else he could find. Most of the time I stopped him, but a few leaves made their way into his digestive system. Roughage. :)

Today, we drove to work (baaaaad traffic) to join mommy and daddy's co-workers for a goodbye lunch for Tita Astra. We hung out with Daddy and friends for a little while and then drove (it took us THREE HOURS) to go visit Dexter. Our visit was cut short since we arrived so late, but the boys had fun feeling each other's hair, tripping each other, playing with the fridge magnets, taking books away from each other, and playing the piano. The hot item of the night was the fire extinguisher... they both kept going back to it. Eli loved opening and closing Tita Rachna's kitchen drawers and pulling out her lunch bags, ziplocs and brita filters. Trying to knock the shades down was another favorite for Eli.

Eli's taken to eating anything he can find on the ground (rogue cheerios are a big hit).... because clearly mommy and daddy don't feed him enough. He likes eating loose parts of the carpet, dried food from his pants and I caught him scraping cat hair off of the chair to pop in his mouth. Mmm. Tasty. I accidentally taught him three bad things today.... that the bathroom sink has a cabinet underneath, that the toilet seat goes up and that there is a trash can in the bathroom. Uh oh.

Let the adventures continue!

Almost One!!!

Wow....I was just reading the last post and so much has happened since then! I'm telling you....baby days are equivalent to 2-3 weeks in real people days, based on how many new things they accomplish.

There have been a ton of things I've been trying to remember to post....so this will be a hodgepodge of sorts.

Eating: Several new things on the eating front. His new favorite thing to do is scream at the top of his lungs, little girl style, when his tray is empty or if mommy/daddy isn't shoveling it in fast enough. Because apparently, the thought of waiting more than 3 seconds for new food is just too terrible to bear. We're moving past the puree stuff... and are starting to really just cut up little pieces of what we're eating to give to him. I gave him turkey sausage yesterday and he LOOOVED it. He also can't get enough chicken....and today we gave him turkey for the first time. Mmmm. Now we just put all of his little foods on his tray and he finger feeds himself. He's pretty good at picking everything up... and even picks up his veggies! After he devoured his peas and carrots tonight, I joked with Mike about how we should take a picture as proof to him in a few years that yes, he did used to like veggies. :) Last weekend, he learned how to spit out (raspberry style) his food. Lovely. We've tried a few things to get him to stop... I think that completely ignoring him (looking away, even) seems to work the best. Tonight when he did it, Mike cleared off his whole tray. THAT got his attention. So hopefully this will stop soon! (ha, I know it won't). Also - yesterday he surprised me by feeding himself with his own spoon!!! He kept putting it up to his mouth, and since we were eating mushy lentils, I was able to get it to stay on his spoon. I'd fill up the spoon and he'd put it up to his mouth. It was so cute!

Still trying to move toward the sippy cup, but he still loves flinging it through the air, smashing it all over his tray/food and dropping/throwing it on the ground. I got him to drink 1 oz of his formula with it yesterday...not much, but an improvement.

READING: This kid is SO funny with his books. He still has his certain favorites (Hop on Pop, Truck Duck, Animal Books, That's Not My Car, etc) and if you attempt reading something to him that is not on his favorite list, he takes it out of your hands and throws it (literally) to the side. It's hysterical and amazing to me that he could have favorites. And WHY doesn't he like Gossie and Gertie? Mommy LOVES them!

WALKING: He's a full fledged walker now! It's so amazing how quickly he has progressed. I love seeing his little balance checks and wobbly-wobbles. He still must be carrying something around with him...usually his remote (we got him his own), a bottle or his blocks. He can walk and make turns and follow mommy anywhere. I'm still not used to it. I walked into the bedroom the other day and was momentarily shocked to see a little person wander in. Or now I'll be reading him a book, and he'll walk up to me and stand there to read it with me. I took him to Central Park yesterday for a playdate with his buddy Sawyer, and I was surprised he was able to walk all over the bumpy field. (lol...and he quickly kidnapped Sawyer's pink stroller so he could push it around. Too funny.). And when I took him to the playground, he could actually walk around! So much more fun! (He's still scared of the swings... I think we're going to have a non-ride kid on our hands here).

He's really starting to copy us much more. All we have to do is show him something once and he does it right away.

He had great fun following around his 2 year old cousin, Bethel, when she was in town for a visit. He LOVED her and kept chasing her around.

Still a great sleeper! We have a cute bedtime routine now. After his bottle, we both take him in the bedroom and lay him on our bed...we take turns giving him hugs and squeezes and kisses. He just lays there laughing and smiling and grabbing mommy's nose and daddy's ears. He also seems to have a great fascination with hitting mike on top of his head.

I know I'm leaving a million things out. To be continued. :)