Well, it's been a while! I've struggled to get myself organised and inspired to write a new post, especially since returning to work. It's definitely a challenge managing my time!
Jack has changed and grown a lot in the last month. I feel that since he's turned 1, he's started to do a lot more.
Mobility
I thought that Jack would be walking by now, but, no, he's quite happy with crawling. He's not that confident with standing up, let alone walking. The other day he did stand up for 2 seconds, until he realised that he was standing up and then he very quickly sat down.
Having said that, he has grown more in his confidence in using walkers. He was a bit wary of them, especially the one at his grandparents, which moved too quickly and he couldn't keep up with it. But, he's happily moving around with a walker and will find anything to use as a walker.
Sleeping
This has been going well most of the time. Jack has been sick for the last few weeks and in the last few days he's developed a cough, which has affected his sleeping at night. He's been coughing quite a lot at night and so we've not been having very good sleeps. We're all pretty tired at the moment.
There have been some days where Jack has not had his morning nap. Sometimes he has taken too long to go to sleep and we've had to go out in the morning, so I've gotten him up without him sleeping. There have been some mornings where he's slept for 2 hours, so it seems that he does need his morning nap. I'll keep persisting with his morning nap and see what happens.
Signing
In my last post I commented that I was starting to teach Jack to sign 'please'. About 2 weeks ago, I started to get more consistent with it and within a couple of days he signed please! I was very excited. It took about 5-6 days of "intensive" practice before he started to do it consistently. Now he does it every time we say, "please" or when I offer him food and I wait for him to sign please. He even signs please when he wants something, without being prompted. I was so impressed that he learnt to sign pretty quickly. I didn't expect it to be that quick. It's so nice to be able to teach him something and then see him do it.
Playing
As I said last post, Jack has moments when he plays really well by himself and other times he wants to be with one of us. The other day we were on the deck and he was really content playing with a truck. He happily played with it for ages while I did various things around the house. I've noticed that he's starting to play with cars and trucks properly now by pushing them along the floor.
Fine Motor Skills and Hand-Eye Co-ordination
A couple of months ago I gave Jack some wooden rings which all pile onto a wooden rod. He loved tipping the rod upside down so that the rings would fall off, and then he'd play with the rings. He had no interest in putting the rings back onto the rod. But, on the day he turned one, he started to try to put the rings onto the rod and he will often try to do it.
Jack loves to move around the house closing doors (he's inherited his Grandfather's obsession with having doors closed!). He'll play for ages opening and closing the back door. He also has a thing with putting things in and out of other things.
Eating
I've stopped breastfeeding totally now. When I returned to work, I dropped his morning feed and then, when he turned 1, I dropped his late afternoon feed. He has coped really well with this. Now that I'm not breastfeeding, he's eating a lot more at meal time. He'll have 2 wheat-bix for breakfast, which I think is pretty impressive. I've been giving him cows milk at breakfast, but he doesn't seem to be all that interested in it. He's very happy drinking water and he can now lift up his sippy cup and drink from it by himself, which is so much easier. He just has a drink whenever he wants to.
Babbling
His babble sounds are expanding more and more. He's experimenting with the 's' sound at the moment. He'll often shout out, "dad!", for no apparent reason. I think he just likes making sounds.
Cuddles
Another thing that Jack has started to do is give cuddles. He's giving us proper hugs now when he wraps his arms around our neck and shoulders and squeezes tight. He's a pretty affectionate little boy. You know when he's comfortable with someone when he gives them a cuddle. When I picked him up from my parents tonight Jack gave mum a hug and then leaned over for my dad to take him and he gave my dad a hug too. It was really sweet.
Routine
Here's what our days when I'm at home are looking like at the moment:
7:00am - Wake, breakfast, play
9.00/9.30am - Nap
10.30/11.00am - Wake, morning tea, play
12.00pm - Lunch
1.00pm - Nap
3.00pm - Wake, afternoon tea, play
6.00pm - Dinner with family
6.30pm - Bath and stories
7.00pm - Bed
On the days I work:
7:00am - Wake, breakfast (sometimes) go to Granny's or Grandma and Grandpa's
9.00/9.30am - Nap
10.30/11.00am - Wake, morning tea, play
12.00pm - Lunch
1.00pm - Nap
3.00pm - Wake, afternoon tea, play
4.00/5.00pm - Get picked up by mum and go home (or stay for dinner)
6.00pm - Dinner with family
6.30pm - Bath and stories
7.00pm - Bed
