One Year Old!

Noe beginning to want to do everything that older kids are doing and isn’t content for mommy and daddy to have all the fun either. He’s not so much demanding of attention as he is demanding to be acknowledged (he does not like entering a room without at least someone acknowledging his presence — if it’s a pretty, young girl, all the better). Speaking of girls, he’s become quite the flirt, and reserves a certain smile just for them that he can turn on and off like a lightbulb.

As for the walking thing…I’m not sure he grasps the point yet, given that he can get around so much faster on four legs rather than two. That’s not to say that he doesn’t spend half his day cruising and standing and getting into things at a height that seemed unimaginable just a month ago.

Still a lover of books, Noe’s much more interested in playing games with people now. He’s taken his peek-a-boo to another level and gets quite glum if strangers on planes, trains, at restaurants, in markets — anywhere — refuse to play the game with him.

 

 

He’s become increasingly affectionate and well-mannered with me, while becoming increasingly whiny and needy around mommy. If mommy’s at work, he’s a really good kid, but the second he knows mommy’s in the house, he becomes a completely different person. Obviously, this has been an unwelcome development, but Lori says its age-appropriate, so I’ll let the two of them sort it out and enjoy my time with Mr. Hyde (while it lasts).

 

 

 

 

The Mister eats everything now, though breastmilk still accounts for 50% of his caloric intake. Gone are the days when we could openly eat and drink in front of him. Whatever we’re eating, he wants it. If he sees us drinking water, he wants his sippy cup. Fortunately, he doesn’t appear to have any allergy restrictions. As part of troubleshooting his recurring respiratory illnesses he had a complete allergy and immunology analysis and the results came back negative for everything.

One of our new nightly traditions is playing peek-a-boo while he’s eating his dinner before he goes to bed. Initially, I was afraid this might rile him up too much before bedtime, but it seems to have no effect on his sleep.

 

If I forget to play peek-a-boo, he stares at me from across the room until I notice him, then his head quickly darts behind whatever semblance of an obstruction he can find. He thinks this is absolutely hysterical.

 

 

 

 

He loves anything having to do with water — EXCEPT TAKING A BATH. For whatever reason, if he is playing in the front yard in his duck tub, he’s really happy. But the second we place him in the same duck tub in our bathtub, he goes berserk — every time without fail.

He loves watching other kids play (particularly older kids) and seems to want nothing more than to be able to join in and do what they are doing. This seems to have the effect on everything except walking.

 

 

Lately, Noe’s adopted a “bored” sort of posture. If we’ve been somewhere too long or there aren’t enough people around to stare at, or if he feels like we’re not giving him enough attention, he makes his feelings quite apparent. Sometimes, he’ll even augment this with a loud and sudden, “BA-BA-BA-BA-BAH!!!” which is pretty hard to ignore.

He’s been facing out in the carrier a lot more. As a result, Lori and I have been using an umbrella a lot more (for sun and rain). The Mister seems to feel it is his solemn duty to help hold the umbrella. It’s not something he seems to find a lot of joy in, as he generally keeps a straight face the whole time. But try and pull it away and look out!

He likes to watch everything we do now — it seems to be far more interesting to him than playing with his toys. So we place him around the house in strategic places in his high chair or wear him and try and get things done.

This also carries over to restaurants and social situations. Whenever we’re out now, he’s very nosy. He wants to listen to everyone’s conversations and points to various things accompanied by an audible “AH.” to signal something interests him. It’s funny because it’s not so much a question as a statement. Is not as if he’s asking, “Hey dad, why is that man picking his nose?” but rather, “Hey! That guy’s picking his nose. Hey! That dog is really fluffy! Hey! That woman’s got a huge butt.”

He’s always been a good sleeper, but has really come into his own this past month. He sleeps the most consistently he’s ever slept — he goes right down a little after 7p. Lori generally gives him a “dream feed” just before her bed time. Then, like clock-work, he wakes up wanting to feed at around 6:30a, then goes back down for another hour or so. Occasionally, if Lori doesn’t do a dream feed, he’ll wake between 12-2, but feeds fully within minutes and will go right back down unless he’s not feeling well.

Naps are a little less consistent, but he usually gets about 2-2.5 hours of napping over 2-3 naps between 9am and 4pm. It just depends on a number of factors. He’ll sleep later to begin with on cloudy/rainy days, and awake earlier on sunny days. If he’s had an eventful and stimulating outing, he’ll sleep better overall throughout the day and over the night.

 

Because of his three respiratory infections, he’s grown accustomed (too accustomed, if you ask me) of taking meds. He loves the stuff! Even the most disgusting, he’ll get really excited.

 

I’m embarrassed to say it, but Noe had actually gotten himself stuck in this picture and wanted daddy to help him out…but after peeking under the table to see where the whining was coming from, all I could do was run to get the camera to snap a quick picture before eventually freeing him.

As mentioned in previous posts, he’s been enjoying looking out the window more. At first, it was just to see what’s going on — usually prompting a foray outside. In the depths of rainy season, that’s getting harder to accommodate, but he still likes staring out.

Now, it’s gotten to the point that around 4p he migrates over to the window and watches for mommy’s big white pickup to come rolling up. He just seems to have a sixth sense of when she’s going to return.

8 thoughts on “One Year Old!”

  1. I am in love with your son!!!!!!

    Reply
  2. Good job on the photos pappa! Looking forward to seeing the young man in the flesh and having some quality time with “Gramps” or the Beer Man. I think a talk with him about his interest in young women is about due!……………..

    Reply
    • Haha, Noe always enjoys your talks! He might even talk (or babble) back to you this time!

      Reply
  3. Shirley L. Northcraft

    You have captured the most precious moments of Noe’s development.

    Reply
  4. can’t get enough Noe stories!!

    Reply
    • We’ll keep them coming…promise! 🙂

      Reply

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