Tripp :: Twelve Months Old

It is official... we made it! You are 12 months, ONE YEAR OLD, and we lived to tell about it!! Kidding, kind of. Buddy, Happy Birthday.... It has been hard for me to muster up the will to write up this little entry for a variety of reasons. One, I am tired. Two, I am kind of in denial that we are actually here. Three, I am too busy. Four, This sentimental momma is just a wreck seeing this chapter come to a close. Now mind you, you are still my little baby... but you are growing into a little boy more and more everyday and I can't believe how rapidly the time passes. You finished out your first year with a bang... read it however you want :)... but there were some really high-highs and some really low-lows... regardless, days with you are precious and not taken for granted. Truly.

 

We will start with your stats.... you weigh 18.14lbs (20%) and you are 31.5in tall (97%).... so, true to the Rector brood, thus far, you are tall and lanky. You are still wearing 9-12 month clothes, size 3 shoes and size 4 diapers. Sadly enough, your 12 month footie jammies fit perfectly, however, this past week I have found two different pair that your large toe has busted through. Yikes. Sorry if you just needed a bigger size, man.

Your schedule.... oh Tripper, you are just killing me. Unfortunately, over a month after daylight savings and you have not figured out that you can adjust yourself to the new time. Come on! It is like clockwork.... every morning in between 6:33-6:42am you beckon us. Before daylight savings I was complaining that it was 7:30... oy vey. So, up at 6:38, take a little cat nap if we are out in the car sometime in the morning, nap from 1-3:15 (even though you don't always sleep, you are in your bed for that time!), bed at 7:30. You are still nursing twice a day.... right when you wake up in the morning and after your nap... weaning is coming, buddy (I think you are ready, too).

 You love yourself some milk and some food.... Boo, we don't even know how to keep up because you eat circles around Eleanor... we are not used to it! You nurse twice and drink about 12 more ounces of whole milk daily, then.... you probably eat about 4 meals and snack in the between times. It is not uncommon that you will inhale 4 squeezies as a snack/daily (um, that is expensive buddy). You love anything we put before you... but you ALWAYS make the most disgusted face on your first bite of something new.... doesn't matter what it is... even if you love it, you make a face like we have given you something sour every time. I love it.

 We celebrated your first Halloween (I'll post on that, later)! We got together with our small group and hosted a block party... you and Eleanor were both chocolate chip cookies (thanks to a sweet book club friend who let me borrow them!) and Momma was the cookie monster. Daddy was in Canada... boo. Of course you didn't understand anything, but you loved the wagon ride and you were one cute cookie.

Unfortunately you got another round of ear infections this month... that makes 5 so far... it just breaks my heart because typically the only tip we have is your sleep schedule. You never really get much of a fever, maybe a little runny nose, but more importantly it is that your naps are not naps, but rather scream sessions... when that happens, it means to the doctor we must go. Tubes may very well be close to your future, but we are praying that either way you start to feel better, soon! You do have your molars coming through, also, so sometimes your pain comes from your mouth. Tylenol has been a close friend this month.

  

So, you don't say much... but see this face above?? You make this face while clinching your fists and screaming at the top of your lungs when you want something or when you are excited or when you are frustrated. Eleanor used to do this, too, but only when she got really excited.... you, though, like do throw it into the mix, often :). You do say: Mama (a lot!), Dada, DotDot, "ah-duh" (all done) and "nanana" (banana). That is it. We are working on it! The only sign-language you know is "all done".

Holy mobility. Boys are from Mars, for sure. There is not a waking time of your day that if you are not snuggling with Momma or Daddy (which admittedly, is a lot of the day you needy little fella) you are not on the move. We catch you climbing chairs, up on tables, cabinets, the slide in the backyard, moving things around so that you can climb them and they will give you a better vantage point... I mean seriously, yikes!! All eyes are on you, buddy - you are everywhere!!

 

You stood up for the very first time (from sitting with no help or no object to prop on) on your birthday right after nap time!!! We screamed and screamed because we were so excited... then you would just laugh and clap for yourself over and over. You were so proud and we are so proud! Fast forward 2-3 days.... you took your first steps! You do not walk yet, but 3-4 steps here and there are very common, now :)!

 You have really started some major separation anxiety... we used to be able to drop you off anywhere with maybe a little fuss, but that would be it. Not anymore.... you are NOT a fan of the nursery at church or at bible study... in fact, many times when we are walking into the buildings you grab hold as tight as you can and start crying with that bottom lip-quiver... then comes the wailing at the classroom. Buddy, we will always come back.

You love when Momma sings to you, you love to dance and you LOVE to be tickled. You have the most insane belly laugh and it is just the greatest thing I have ever heard. You love when Eleanor tickles you, you love to play with her and to clap when she sings, too.

 You started giving some open-mouth smooches... initiated by you and that slobbery goodness is just so cute! You kiss Momma, Daddy and Eleanor all the time and they are just my favorite!

You LOVE being outside - even if it is freezing, which it really hasn't been very cold at all this fall. If the sun is up, you want to be outside playing, climbing, getting dirty, screaming... I mean, you play HARD! The good news is you LOVE bath-time, too..... and now that you are big enough, you and Eleanor bathe together and have so much fun playing with all the toys!

 This past month, we moved to a new house... of course leaving the house that we brought you and Eleanor home in was sad, but seeing as Grandpa and DotDot live there for now, the transition has been really smooth. It did kind of throw you for a loop, though... we have been in the house for just about a month and I would say you are just now realizing that this is your new room, so you don't have to cry as long to fall asleep. Phew, that was a little rough. We spent Thanksgiving at the "old" house / your grandparents house and it is so fun to me to think that the same people that were there this year were all here last year, too... except you. Happy first thanksgiving, buddy... we are SO thankful for YOU!

You and Eleanor play really well together... for the most part. You have definitely learned that she gets in trouble when she does certain things, one of them being when she hurts you.... so I have noticed you instigating her every once in a while... or sometimes just faking it when she has something you want. Buddy, I know that game because I used to play it.... sorry, no dice! But it is FUNNY.

 

Here is the deal... I am going to keep it real. There are days when you are REALLY hard... you can't communicate very well yet and that frustrates you and me, you are just really "needy" in that you love to be held or played with most of the day, you don't take great naps and so we have just had to buckle down and endure teaching you how to nap (still... a year later), you pull my hair (like, a lot. It really hurts and I have little baby hairs everywhere as a result), you bite me when you get too excited and buddy, you are just rough. So I can't lie... some days are really hard. I have been so challenged, broken and reproofed over the course of this year... I thought I had motherhood figured out because I already had one little one.... I was wrong and I am thankful for what the Lord is continuing to teach me and how he is growing me, though rearing you.

But buddy, the hardest day is worth every second. I don't take it for granted and I will patiently enjoy who you are and how you grow. Every time I pick you up (first thing in the morning, after nap, if you are just sitting playing, if you are reaching for me, anytime) you wrap your arms so tight around my neck and bury your face in my neck and kiss my cheek.... every time. I pray for the rest of my life you do this and more importantly, knowing that you won't always do it I pray that I never forget how it feels. If I could keep you little..... oh my, Tripper boy. You are a lover, a snuggler, a hugger, a kisser, a fighter, an adventurer, a competitor, you are my favorite little boy in the whole world. I can't thank God enough for the blessing that you are... for your health, for your life, for your spirit. I love you, I love you, I love you. You are a gift, you are an answered prayer, you are a blessing. Momma and Daddy are so proud of this boy you are..... and look forward with joy to tomorrow, the next day and the next. Happy Birthday, Tripper. We love you, Boo Boo boy.