Life with Holden: 10.5 Months

Stats:

Weight: 18 pounds (on our home scale)

Length: Approx. 29 inches (give or take)


Diaper: Size 3 in disposables (Huggies Little Movers), Size small in Little Swimmers, & third snap, lowest rise in our cloth.Yes, still. Maybe by 11 months we can change the snap setting? =)

Clothing: All over the place still! He is finally outgrowing a lot of his 6 month stuff, but there are a few things he can still wear (mostly shorts & tees). He is mostly in 9 month stuff, but some of his pants are too small (short) & some are still way too big (??). He is also wearing a few 12 month sized items (mostly C's old shorts) & a few 6-12 items from Old Navy, Gap or J. Crew.

Shoes: Still not wearing shoes much, but he is definitely still a size 3 at the moment so maybe his foot growth has finally calmed down a bit. His sandals, converse & moccs all still fit at the moment. I have one pair of size 4 tennis shoes that C wore, but I won't buy him any other shoes until we see when he moves into the 4s.

Milestones:

--Started pointing at things to indicate that he wants something
--Has started to stand on his own for a few seconds at a time (then sits down on his own)
--Can consistently get down from a standing position by himself now without falling
--Started crawling on his knees (some of the time).

Nursing:

We are doing so well & I am happy to report that things are nearly back to normal. He no longer refuses & often asks to nurse on a regular schedule. I even got him to nurse twice in the car the other day which is a MIRACLE! We got locked out of the house accidentally & I knew he was hungry so I gave it a try. After a very short fight about it, he gave in & actually ate! I was shocked, but figured it was a one off because he was starving. Later the same day I got him to do it again while we were out & about for the day in Spokane. I had brought the pump just in case, but figured I would try first. Well, color me surprised when he actually took to it. I hope that this means more nursing on the go in the future & that it wasn't just a one day thing. Regardless, I will definitely be taking the hand pump still JIC. As of now he is still nursing about every 3-4 hours during the day & about 5-6 times daily depending on how the day goes. Now, this does not mean that he's only nursing 5-6 times in a 24 hour period, oh no, just 5-6 times during THE DAY. We shall touch on that in the sleep section though... He will still take a bottle when needed, but for some reason he still prefers to take that from me as well so it's little consolation. It's not going to be a big deal at all to take the bottle away since he rarely has one these days so that's a blessing in the least.

Solids:

Getting a little bit more picky, but definitely still our little foodie! He eats a ton & he eats super fast. He is NOTHING like his brother right now who is the exact opposite. I have still been having to make sure that he has food on his tray prior to putting him in his highchair. There is nothing in the world that makes him more angry then having to wait for food (except maybe a dirty diaper, but that's another story). His current favorite foods are still chicken, graham crackers & all things Mexican, but he is also loving baby goldfish crackers, mandarin oranges & cheese. He has no issues feeding himself & more often then not uses his pincher grasp now unless he is REALLY shoveling it in. He also still prefers to drink from a regular cup & seems to have no real interest in sippys at this time other then to use them as toys. Currently, he is still only drinking BM & very small amounts of water. He remains toothless at this point, but can manage all types of food in pretty decent sized bites. The only foods we continue to avoid for now are honey, cow's milk & peanut butter.


Sleep:

Oh boy...will sleep ever NOT be an issue for our little guy? Every time it seems as if he may start sleeping well his teething pain flares up & it goes back to crap. =( He's basically been waking between at least 2-3 times nightly between bedtime (around 7:30/8PM) & 8-9AM (when he usually wakes up for the day) & he nurses at EVERY wake-up. Again, if he wants to I will continue nursing him in the middle of the night for now & until he starts to gain weight more regularly. As long as he is off the growth chart, I will give him every opportunity to eat. He pretty much has no pattern to his wake-ups either at the moment & it seems like there is no end in sight. My guess is going to be that he won't sleep well during the nighttime ever again until he finally gets some teeth. Basically, we're all (but especially me) hoping that it will be soon. He naps surprisingly well though in comparison & takes a least two daily like clockwork. Most days he naps in the late morning & then again mid-afternoon from anywhere between 1-2 hours, but usually 1.5 hours on average. He generally likes to nurse before going to sleep, but very rarely does he actually fall asleep while nursing anymore. He usually goes down drowsy, but awake for both naps & bedtime. He is still taking a paci to sleep & as well as other times during the day. We have no plans to take it away anytime soon. He also really likes to cuddle with blankets while he's sleeping or getting ready to go to sleep, but does not have a particular favorite lovey at the moment. He's been sleeping in his crib every night, all night with the exception of once while we had guests & he wouldn't stop fussing & so I brought him in our bed for a few hours. He will ONLY sleep in his crib, that PNP (if at someone else's house) or in the car...he is definitely not a fall asleep anywhere kid (but neither was C at his age).

Health:

He's been very healthy other then on-going teething issues. He is definitely being put through the paces & I feel so terrible for him because he STILL has no teeth. Every.single.time we think "oh this is it!" nothing happens. I am done trying to predict when those suckers are going to pop through... (THIS THIS THIS!!) The only thing different I can add is that my mom said my first tooth came in exactly at 11 months (she looked in my baby book) so maybe...

Social:

Not much has changed here either, honestly. He can be awesome one minute & the perfect angel & then the very next minute he will be in full-on demon child mode. It sounds harsh for me to say that about my own child, but he is definitely challenging & very, very testing a lot of the time. He definitely is teaching me a major lesson in patience. He whines A LOT & gets really mad when he doesn't get his way or if someone tells him no. He really is an independent little man & gets super frustrated when he can't accomplish something that he thinks he should be able to on his own. I have no idea if this is just his personality or if it has a lot to do with his lack of teeth. I know I blame a lot of his troubles on his teeth, but it has to be hard to be in so much pain all of the time. I guess we will find out if his attitude suddenly changes once some teeth finally poke through. He is a total flirt & loves to make eyes/smile at pretty girls. He also really likes being around other kids/babies & animals. He still thinks his brother is pretty cool & finds just about everything he does to be funny (even if it's not). He is also still enamored with our dog & gets super excited anytime the dog pays him any mind what-so-ever. He's been babbling a bit more lately, but nothing really intelligible still other then mama & dada. He says something occasionally that sounds like "hi", but it's not always in context so it may just be baby babble at this point. We've been trying to read with him more lately, but he is just NOT into it. He squirms so much & no matter how much I try to make the book interesting he just does not want to sit still. I am hoping this will change eventually & that he will love books as much as his brother does someday. He is still not a big cuddle baby unless he's really tired so I take every snuggle I get while I can.

Physical:

He's definitely my little explorer right now & he is ALL ABOUT cause & effect at the moment. He loves crawling around the house & seeing what kind of trouble he can get into. We have to keep all of the doors shut down the hall now as he tries to crawl into the bathroom/laundry room & play in the waste baskets. He also likes to try to climb in the bathtub if we accidentally leave the door open. He has figured out how to pull the socket protectors out & he makes a game of crawling around & removing them all...lovely. He pulls up on everything & cruises like a champ. He can get down from a standing position safely & just recently learned to get off the couch without falling or going head-first. He loves walking around using his little walker & can balance while standing on his own for a little bit at a time before he sits down by himself. He isn't taking unassisted steps yet, but he loves when we hold his hands & walk him around. He really enjoys being outside right now & it is one thing I know I can do to improve his mood instantly. The boys' playset finally arrived a couple of weeks ago & he loves swinging, sliding & playing in the "ball pit". He also really likes to crawl around in the grass & try to taste different things (grass, rocks, leaves). Oi! He points to things all of the time now, but especially likes pointing to body parts (usually our faces) & will give high-fives about 80% of the time on request. He, however, has no interest in clapping or waving at this time.

 Likes: Swimming, bath time, being nakey, swinging, sliding, climbing, Jack, Momma, nursing (yay!), drinking from a cup (Ice Water), chewing on everything, trying to walk, Daddy, his brother, snuggly blankets, his paci, & other babies.

Dislikes: Diaper changes (THIS x 10), being unable to do things by himself, having to wait for ANYTHING, going to the doctor, the sun in his eyes, wearing socks or shoes, having to get dressed, having his hands/face washed/wiped after meals