11 months old...a bit late but how else would I do it?

( two 11 month pics this time - one in his jammies with his legs spread out so you can see his length better and one in onesie so you can see his adorable chubby legs)

I can't believe that I am writing Cohen's last "monthly" post before we venture into the one year old world!!!
Giddy is the only word I know to describe how I feel about planning Cohen's birthday and concert. I mean really - here we are.. in the countdown to ONE WHOLE YEAR!!!

This past month has been a fun one. Cohen is trying his hardest to sit up and will tripod on a toy or with his hands on his legs( since they don't reach the ground) for brief periods. He's also sitting better with indirect support - like with the boppie around him versus my hands on him. I'm not sure that he'll hit that milestone by a year but he's working hard on it.

Some of his fine motor skills have improved a bit. He has on occasion reached into a container to grab a smaller toy. Still not finger feeding but he does play with the food more so it's progress.

I feel like his looks have really changed recently - his face just looks a little more "boy" and a little less "baby." His hair is definitely thickening up a bit on the side finally and getting really long on top. He def. has some curl in his hair too. It curls and frizzes in the back a good bit and though it doesn't stand up on top near as much anymore now that it's gotten longer - he can still sport a good Mohawk or rooster tail if I just towel dry it and don't "comb" it down. I say comb loosely as I just use my hands to do the job. Mommy isn't a primper herself - you can bet she doesn't primp her boys!!!

He has been doing really well eating solids and continues to progress with eating more "table" food.
I haven't figured out what to do about bottles yet and if I am going to drop them all at a year or wait just a little longer. He still eats in the middle of the night too - something I'm also trying to figure out if I should force him to drop. It's just so hard to know what's right- there's no book for this!!! Sure, he's almost a year old but he's the size of a 2-3 month old - which one do I go on - age, size, or somewhere in between?

We did fight a night time battle this month and won!!! Cohen had started waking twice nightly and was not dropping it on his own. I know he wasn't hungry at 11:00pm at night but it was just easier to feed him and go back to sleep so we did that for a while. Well, one night we decided to let him cry it out a bit and he cried/fussed/and talked off and on for about 30-40 minutes. He would get really mad and kick his feet and wave his hands and scream and then stop and babble a little bit and then cry some more - it was kind of funny( and fun to watch on the video monitor). Then after about 30-40 min. he just stopped crying turned over on his belly and went to sleep. It was nice that he didn't actually cry himself to sleep but actually made the decision to stop and roll over and go to sleep on his own. So, now he's back to one night time waking - usually around 4ish. Crying it out was not really option for us before since he was on oxygen and all - it just didn't really seem appropriate. Not that we never let him cry or fuss without rushing straight to him but just no really prolonged periods. So, it was sort of a big deal for us to try it and am thankful that it went so well.

Speaking of oxygen - it's been out of our house for a month and he hasn't had it in 2 months and he continues to do super well!! This is such a blessing and such and answered prayer!!!

He continues to babble a lot and I keep hoping for a little purposeful "mama" sometime soon! :) He makes all sort of silly noises and will use his hands to manipulate the sounds - it's really cute.

He's been rolling around more and more. He doesn't quite use it to get around but will roll several times in a row to get to a toy or something and he always pops his little head up with big smile!!! He's not near crawling or anything but will push off with his feet sometimes and spin himself around a bit. He's so cute with his little hiney stuck up in the air doing that.

( he was on that blue blanket in the background and turned about 45 degrees)


He's def. gotten a little feistier this month, which is good to see. He has more of an opinion about stuff. He's always trying to grab his spoon or bowl... or trying to get his bib off. He'll really work hard sometimes to get stuff that's out of his reach. It's funny how much your perspective changes when your child has some limits or delays.... I find myself excited about some of those "misbehaviors" and have to remind myself to parent him in those moments too. I read a little email forward one time about how every moment sort of becomes a therapy moment and I can certainly see that to be true as I'll find myself almost encouraging him to throw his cup on the floor or to try to grab the spoon out of my hand. Times that I might say "no, sir" on the outside but am clapping and cheering on the inside.
Ok - I admit sometimes I clap and cheer on the outside when I should probably say "no." :) Hey, we like to celebrate the small victories around here. Cohen has certainly taught me not to take so much for granted, changed my perspective a bit( though I admit probably not enough) and to learn to enjoy the seasons I am in a little more.


Oh, baby Cohen - your about to lose the right to that name - baby Cohen. How weird is that? I so look forward to celebrating your first year of life. And my heart leaps a bit to think of the confidence I have that I will get to celebrate many many more with you. As you approach this first year mark I struggle knowing if I am as well equipped to be your mother as I hope. I pray daily for you - for your strength, health, and your heart sweet boy. I pray daily for me and your dad - that we will have the wisdom to make the right decisions for you. What a blessing you are, Cohen. My love for you is sometimes almost too much to bare.

For those of you who swear he never cries....

The way we have to use sleds here in the south.... Cohen LOVED being pulled around - the faster the better - he just beamed from ear to ear the whole time.


A little time in the exersaucer

I'm cute and I know it...