Walking by Faith: Miles is 1 Year Old!!

I can't even believe my precious little baby is turning into a little boy!! We went to the doctor last week and here's how Mr. Miles checked out.

Height: 30.25 inches - 50-75%
Weight: 20.19 lbs - 10-25%

They gave me a different type of growth chart this time that only has ranges on it. I almost fell out of my chair when they said his weight was only 20 lbs and that he was in the 10-25% range. This boy LOVES to eat and is HEAVY. He doesn't look all that big but he is a solid hunk of muscle. We had measured him on our scale at home (which apparently needs adjusting) and thought he weighed more like 25 lbs. I actually pulled a muscle in my left arm picking him up a couple of weeks ago. He also got his MMR shot at his doctor visit which made him feel pretty crummy for a couple of days but he's good as new now.

I did this cute questionnaire every month for Clara. It hasn't quite worked out that way for the poor second child but here it is for his first birthday!

My favorite moments: Miles loves to look out the windows at the front of the house. They are low so perfect for a little guy to stare at the neighborhood kids playing, garbage truck, UPS guy, etc. If he hears something outside or hears Abby barking he heads straight for the windows to check it out. He also loves to have a dance party! About 4PM on days when we've been in the house all day we all start to go a little crazy so we crank up the music and have a dance party. Miles loves it! He runs back and forth across the living room and spins around. He grabs the back of Clara's clothes and they play choo choo across the living room. Too adorable. Miles is also still my cuddle bug. When he gets tired I will pick him up and he lays his head on my shoulder and nuzzles up against my neck. LOVE IT! Before I lay him down in his crib at night he still lets me hold him like a baby and rock him in my arms which I think most one year olds wouldn't allow. He will come up to Clara, Brian or I if we are sitting on the floor and lay his head on our chest or shoulder. We call it giving us loves. I can say Miles come give me some more loves and he will do it again and again. He also loves to lay down on soft things. If Clara leaves her blanket or a coat on the floor Miles will crawl onto it and lay his head on it. Such a cutie! By far his favorite toy right now is the plastic lid that we use to cover food in the microwave and store on top of the microwave (which is located in our island so he can reach it). Every day he goes and looks for it and if its there gets it down and walks around the house with it.

Miles has recently been very upset with Brian because he disrupted his afternoon ritual of pulling out all my tupperware by putting child proof locks on some of the kitchen cabinets. For the first several days he would go to one of the cabinets and tug on it then start hollering and walk a lap around the house hollering then go tug on them again. This would go on for at least 30 minutes for several days. Luckily he's finally given up but the determination in this kid is impressive!

We have a toy where you put balls in the top then they funnel down, play music and come back out the bottom. Miles can do it all by himself now and is so proud! He claps for himself every time he puts a ball in. He can also make tractor or car noises with his toy cars and goes vroom vroom with them on the floor. And boy can this kid make a mess! He likes to pull out a toy, examine it a little bit then throw it down and pull out another one. It only takes 20 minutes for the play room to look like something exploded in there!

Nap/Sleep: Miles is finally sleeping all night!! Praise the Lord!!! He sleeps from 8PM till 7AM and takes two naps. From 9:30-10:30 then from 1:30-3:00. They vary some if its a school day for Clara or if we have plans that morning but he's pretty consistent if we are home and will let you know when he's getting tired. He goes down fairly easily now which is wonderful after having to sing, pat, hum, etc. for the last 11 months. Little man loves his paci and his lovey. When you hand him his lovey before bed he puts it up against his face and gives it a big hug.

Eating: Miles LOVES to eat and can eat a mind blowing amount of food for such a little guy. When we go out to eat I often get an adult entree for him and Clara to split because a kids meal isn't enough for him. Although he really likes to eat he's pretty picky. There are very few green foods that he will eat although he loves fruit and meat. I haven't found a single fruit he doesn't like. He also loves black beans and of course milk. I weaned Miles three weeks before his first birthday because Brian and I went on a trip to Germany. It was harder for me than him because he was starting to get so distracted. At first I couldn't get him to drink much milk from a bottle but if he got hold of sister's sippy cup full of almond milk he would drain it. So I started giving him almond milk and he loves it. He has also figured out that sister's pink sippy cups usually have something better in them than his do. I can open the fridge and get his cup out and he shakes his head no and keeps pointing and fussing at the fridge until I give him one of sister's cups. He will also follow Clara around the house if she has her cup waiting for her to put it down. He says juice is way better than that old water mom tries to give me.

Mobility: Miles is walking all over the place and climbing up on anything he can. He has really good balance and loves to climb up on the plastic boxes I use to art supplies or toys in. He can get up but hasn't mastered getting back down get so he climbs up there and looks around super proud of himself then after a few minutes starts fussing for me to come and get him down.

Communication: Miles says mama and dada. He can sign more and all done but will only do it when he feels like it and not always when we ask him. He is usually pretty quiet although he does get in moods sometimes where he babbles a lot but nothing like his sister use to do. Its funny how easily he can get his point across even though he doesn't talk. He can shake his head no, wave and give high fives. He points at things and fusses to let us know he wants something. He also has the biggest most precious smile which never fails to melt my heart. He is still very much a mommy's boy but thinks daddy is pretty cool too now. When he hears Brian's voice on the phone he will look at me and say dada??

Miles we love your sweet, sensitive, loving determined spirit and are so grateful for you!!!

I wish I could say this is there first time he has gotten into my k-cups. Hence the child proof locks. Guess he's gonna be a coffee lover like his mom and dad!