Dear Ain,
There is so much going on in your life right now!! You are a busy, busy boy. I really wish I had kept up with the monthly, or at least semi-monthly updates with you. The time has sped by since your 1st birthday and now we are getting closer to your 2nd birthday. Don’t grow up so fast. I’m sad you are not my baby anymore. 
Since I haven’t really recorded on this blog how you’ve been doing, I want to sum up as much as I can before more time gets away.
July (12-13 months)
2nd – you started climbing the stairs!
3rd – pulled up to standing by the couch – all on your own
5th – climbed up 15 steps (the last two totally on your own)
7th – cruising along the couch, walked with the lion push toy
16th – below is the entry I had written for this day:
It so cute! Ain instigated wanting a bath after climbing up the stairs. So I gave him a bath and let him play. After a bit it seemed like he wanted to stand up, so I asked him if he was “all done” with the bath and he made the sign. And then after putting clothes back on him I decided we would read a bit before I put him to bed. He wanted to read the Small and Tall friends book over and over. After the 4th time, he made the “all done” sign so I went with it and said, “all done”! We closed the blinds and I said it was time to sleep. I could tell that’s what he wanted too. So cool how we could communicate!
31st – hugged me intentionally when I asked!!
August (13-14 months)
4th – first put blocks together and took them apart on your own
11th – said “Momma for the first time!!”
20th – walked with the lion walker on your own
24th – stood briefly for the first time!
September (14-15 months)
7th – took his first two independent steps! (and the last day I breastfed you)
10th – said the word “eyes”
12th – said first sentence, “I did it!”
18th – gave kisses to Momma and Daddy
October (15-16 months)
1st – you really wanted to practice walking today. You can now walk up to 7 steps at a time!
3rd – you finally starting saying Momma regularly now
9th – said “uh-oh”
11th – walking across the room now – 15 steps
14th – you are saying a lot more words now: dad, this, hi, yes, bye, mama, uh oh, woah, yeah and apple
20th – can now climb up both couches on your own
November (16-17 months)
1st – walked outside unassisted
17th – said “I love you” back to me!!
18th – put dishes away and threw trash away for me
20th – can eat yogurt and oatmeal by yourself with a spoon
24th – got braces for your shoes
25th – said “here it is” when I asked where my cell phone was and you were holding it up.
December (17-18 months)
9th – said the correct animal sounds after me while reading Moo, Baa, Lalala
12th – first read a book aloud to yourself
Christmas morning
January (18-19 months)
2nd – helping Momma pack the pantry – you would grab the items out of the lowest shelf and hand them to me so I wouldn’t have to bend over:
Your new words this month were: eat, please, happy, Andy no! (imitated from Parks and Rec), and “where’s the ball?”
February (19-20 months)
Practicing how to be a good big brother:
March (20-21 months)
This month is when your whole world changed!!
Mobility: Since you started in Sept./Oct., you really have been on the move ever since. You have gotten pretty used to the braces, thankfully, and you will be getting smaller braces at your June appointment!
Sleep: Because of your activity, sometimes you don’t want to slow down long enough for a nap. It’s a good day if you get one hour long nap in. Bedtime is between 7 and 7:30pm, but many times it takes you longer to settle down and fall asleep.
Play: You are content playing on your own, but you LOVE playing with others. You are always on the move. You love to:
- help Momma organize things (below you are helping Momma put your little brother’s socks away)
- cook and count with Momma
- bang on “your” drum
Diet: You love oatmeal for breakfast and peanut butter and jelly for lunch. We are so glad that you are okay with consistency in meals. Your appetite varies, but you get enough to eat. Sometimes you are okay trying new foods and like them, sometimes you don’t eat much at all for dinner.
Social: Your favorite words are “hi” and “bye” – you love interacting with people. You are saying a lot of words and sentences now!! From naming things “it’s Mama” or “it’s wash [water]” to asking “where’s the ball?”, “up please?”, talking about his bed as “night night”.
You’ve been a great big brother to Ebron (or as your say, e-bot). We know it was hard at first. You didn’t like sharing our attention. But now, you have seemed to adapt to having Ebron as a part of our family. He’s someone you talk about all the time and give kisses to occasionally.
You are proud of your littler brother. When you meet someone new, you don’t hesitate in pointing Ebron out to them:
We love seeing your personality come out each and every day!!
We love you, little man!
© 2015, Betsy Pool. All rights reserved.
