11.5 Months

So, I've been uber bad about my weekly Carter posts & have missed too many weeks to count. =( I always feel like not much has changed from one week to the next when in reality (looking back) a lot does. I think instead of doing weekly post on C I will start doing month & month.5 posts. =)

A lot has happened since the 6th.

We started introducing WCM at the turn of 11 months. We're began pretty slowly with mixing bottles of 2/3 BM to 1/3 WCM. We did not do Organic & just started regular Whole Vitamin D milk. We have now moved up to a half/half mix with no complaints from C thus far. The only thing that seems to have changed with this introduction is his stool & maybe a slight bit more gas. Otherwise, all is going well. Starting after his first birthday, he will take 100% WCM bottles while at my parents/the ILs houses. He will still nurse in the AM before I go to work & hopefully before bed if we can work it out. The plan on nursing at this point is to continue until C doesn't want to anymore. He's down to 3-4 sessions daily when I'm home. No plans just yet to take away the bottle altogether, but we will encourage the sippy more.

C also had his first LONG car ride (over 5 hours) the weekend of the 14th when we took a family trip to Sun River. We went with my brother & parents & had a marvelous time. C got to swim at the water park (test out his new life jacket-still too big), ride the mini train (twice), play, stroll, eat pizza & experience his first taste of ice cream (which he rejected by the way-too cold, maybe?). He also got to visit Crater Lake for the first time. He did pretty well for such long car rides both ways & did a lot of sleeping (thank goodness!). I can't wait until our trip next year as we may be turning this into an annual thing. We only went for a long weekend this time, but next trip will be at least a week for sure. =)

Other then that, things have been pretty crazy in our house recently. We've been trying to add a large addition onto our existing deck & are about 3/4 of the way done. *Fingers Crossed* that we finish this project before Carter's birthday party on the 5th.

Speaking of C's party, if you've seen my previous post you'll know that I've been crafting away on decorations this past couple weeks. I've now finished the balloon wreath, the birthday banner, both cupcake stands & the high chair banner. I'm excited to do my table decoration next & see what else is needed from there. The RSVPs for the party are streaming in now (thanks in part to FB...Ha!) & this small party is turning into a bigger deal then expected. Not quite sure I'm ready for that! Yikes.

Not much has changed on the sleep front. We are still sleeping 10-11 hours overnight & napping 3 or so hours daily. Some days it's one nap, but most days it's still two. Getting him down is still hit or miss on either juncture, but seems to go a lot easier when teething is not involved. Thankfully, I don't believe we are teething at the moment since 4 teeth came in all at once last month. Hopefully, we shall have a short break now.

C has also started talking a lot more this past couple weeks. He said his first (intelligable) word other them Mama & Dada on July 11. He had been working on "Doggie" for a while, but on that day he actually pointed to the picture of a dog in his book & said "doggie." He also nearly has "Kitty" and car down.. He's working on key & kiss as well. The kid never ceases to amaze me with how smart & thoughtful he is for such a little one.

This past few weeks his loves have not really changed:

-water activities (bath tub, swimming, water table, sippy cup spill? lol)
-animals (especially dogs)
-stuffed animals (he's REALLY gotten into these lately & will even kiss & cuddle/wrestle with them. Adorable!)
-pinwheels or anything that spins really including ceiling fans
-having his tummy tickled or nommed
-being upside down, tossed around or riding on shoulders
-Jack (our pom) He's finally figured out how to pet nicely, well most of the time
-Mimi (he's developed a major attachment to my mom, to the point where it hurts my feelings a little bit when he chooses her over me =( )
-whispering
-climbing stairs & rolling off things (especially pillows)
-reading (looking at books alone or with us)

Dislikes also haven't changed much:

-diaper changes (getting increasingly difficult)
-getting dressed
-bed time
-pacifiers (these are going to be done away with since his interest has majorly waned recently)
-waiting (especially for milk ie. nursing or food)
-being in his carseat or highchair for any length of time

Forgot to add: C also tried apple juice for the first time (not a fan & we won't be giving anymore juice for a while) & we moved up to Size 4 diapers officially.