Theo was 22 lbs 14 oz and 32.5" long at his 12 month check up. He is a big, happy, playful one year old. He took two steps by himself today, but otherwise gets around happily by crawling. He has not shown much interest in walking yet, but instead prefers to explore the vertical plane. He is an adept and adventurous climber. I have found him atop the dining room table and his brothers' bedroom nightstands more than once. He climbed to the top of a workman's ladder unassisted, and frequently goes up three flights of stairs on his own (with me right behind him, of course.) His favorite places to play include on top of Mattie's bed and the Stokke chairs. As recently as one month ago, he still had very little interest in adult food. He has come a long way over the past few weeks, and has really increased his appetite and the list of foods he likes. His favorites are pears, bananas, apples, blackberries, blueberries, cheerios, chocolate chips, grilled cheese and peanut butter (he eats it right out of the jar, like his mom!) He hasn't fallen in love with veggies or meat yet. He still breastfeeds about 5 times per day. Theo is a great communicator as well. He knows a few signs (milk, more, all done,) and says a handful of words. His favorite is "hi" which he says to people (and phones) all day long. He also says mama and dada, wow, and last night wowed us by standing up and saying "up", then plopping down and saying "dow". He has also discovered how to point, and spends much of the day being carried around pointing at things, saying "uh, uh, uh" until he gets what he wants. Much to my dismay, he still will not let me read to him. He either tries to grab the book and throw it on the floor, or just fusses and squirms out of my lap. His favorite song is the Eensy Weensy Spider. It gets us through every diaper change (he hates lying down on the changing table.) I sing, while he does the hand motions. We do the eensy weensy, the big gigantic and the wriggly giggly spiders, which gives me just enough time to change the diaper. I always end by changing the last line of the song (climbed up the spout again,) to "tickled Theo again," which is our family tradition, and always a big hit. He loves the park, and watching his brothers. His favorite person is Ted, which is so cute to see! He cries every day when Ted goes to work.
Theo's first year went by so quickly. I'm sad to see it end. I try to take a moment each day to make a memory of these remarkable times. If I don't remember to pause once in a while, it feels like I might blink, and it will all be gone!
