11 Months

Want to know what's crazy?  I'm in the midst of planning Jackson's first birthday.  His FIRST birthday.  How did this happen?!?

I have loved the past few months with our boy --- this is such a fun age (my favorite so far, in fact!).   He grows more and more independent each day, learns so fast, and it's so fun to see him make his way all around the house at lightening speed to find trouble.

Here's a recap from the past month:

• Dangerously close to walking.  He started using his walker just about a month ago, and he now cruises along behind it, walks along furniture/walls and stands for a few seconds at a time without holding on to anything.  He hardly braces himself on our hands with walking with us, but the second we try to let go to have him balance completely on his own, he falls to his butt like he's scared of being on his own.
• Likes a few new foods (Goldfish crackers, waffles with fruit puree) but still isn't a fan of picking up too many solids.  He does like more veggie purees though. 
• No new teeth but still lots of drool.
• Still has no desire to hold/drink his own bottle or out of a sippy cup
• Loves to open the kitchen drawers and take out anything he can get his hands on.  His favorite are the clothes pins and the Tupperware that contains them.
• Laughs when I hug (i.e. squeeze) him.
• Takes only one nap (around 1 p.m.) at daycare about 75% of the time.  They often try to put him down for two, but he just gets too distracted.  One day a few weeks ago, he kept standing and playing with the baby girl in the crib next to him.  After moving his crib across the room, he proceeded to do the same thing with the new baby girl he'd been placed next to.
• Figured out how to turn on the light in the infant room on and off at daycare.  There's a little staircase for the babes to practice climbing stairs and it happens to meet the wall right under the light.  His friend Gray figured this out a few months ago, and finally Jackson has mastered this skill.  The same day, he learned out to open the door to the infant room.  Lovely.
• Learned how to climb up on things (i.e. the dishwasher).
• Will not let us brush his teeth anymore, but will 'brush' his own teeth (i.e. chew on the toothbrush)
• Won't wave on command anymore, but will occasionally surprise us with one out of the blue, at appropriate times, like when I lift him up at daycare ---  he'll sometimes wave at his favorite teacher.
• Doesn't dance or clap much anymore.  Sad!
• Loves playing with the dishwasher, washer and remotes on my nightstand, often turning on the TV and clock radio.
• Still loves going out to eat, which we probably take advantage of a little too frequently.
• Has been sleeping from 7:30 p.m. to 6:45 a.m. (weekdays) or 7:15 (weekends) for almost two months now and it's been heavenly. 

Next week, Jackson heads to the toddler room three days a week and will complete the full transition to that room by the end of April.  I can't believe we have such a big boy!