Ryan is ONE!

It is hard to believe, but the day has come that we can now say our baby boy is ONE! This past year has absolutely flown by. I remember so much so clearly and yet so much is already fuzzy. It is for the later reason that I have tried to keep up with this blog at least with monthly posts so that I can look back and remember certain discoveries and accomplishments of our little man. I find it harder each month to find time to sit down and actually write on the blog, but I keep up with dates and ideas for it all month long on a note in my IPhone. What would I do without that? (paper??! Ha!) So, here goes month 12 for Ryan:

Ryan had his 12 month well-child visit with Dr. Wallace on Tuesday, Feb. 8th and was 32" long (90th%) and 23lb. 5oz. (50th%).  He has stayed pretty consistent all year between 90-95th% on height and between 50-75th% on weight. Ryan gave up nursing the middle of this last month (Jan 18th) while he was sick.  He was randomly not accepting nursing right before bed every couple of nights which I thought was strange, but I honestly thought that would be the hardest one for him to let go of, so was kind of thankful.  Then, a few days later he tried nursing and couldn't breathe because his nose was so stopped up that he just turned away after a minute or two and cried so I fixed him a bottle.  The next day I tried again just to make sure and he rejected it, so I knew he was through. I gave him expressed milk through Jan. 21st then called it quits. I am glad that I went slow with weaning because it was something I was terrified of how painful it might be.  I really didn't notice any discomfort until about day 5 and then had to hand secrete a few glands that were swollen to make sure I didn't get mastitis again.  After about day 11 it seemed to be all gone without any problems. (Sorry for the personal info, but for Moms who might want to know how that went...)

Sleep schedule: 8pm-6:10am was pretty normal during the past month although after moving his bedtime up closer to 7:30pm we've had more nights of sleep until 7:30am and an occasional 8am or later.  Each night is always different as ear infection and teething pains seem to control how the nights go. We have an appointment scheduled with an ENT to look at his ears on Feb. 14th (it was rescheduled from the 2nd due to the ice storms). Ryan is still napping twice a day. These also vary, if he is up early then the morning nap is 2 hrs and the afternoon nap is about 1hr 15 min. However, if he slept in later then sometimes the morning nap is only 1 hr and the afternoon nap is the longer one between 1hr and 30 min to 2 hrs.

Regarding food: Ryan is taking approximately 18-21oz of whole milk each day. (We started whole milk Feb. 1st) He takes closer to 21 oz when I let him have it out of a bottle and less when it's out of his sippy cup. I am currently sticking with the bottle first thing in the morning and right before bed to make sure he gets enough milk that he needs for the day. He likes to take a few sips then do something else during the day so it's hard to get him to drink enough. The Dr. said he should be having close to 24 oz of milk a day and about 30 oz of liquid total when you add any water or juice. (We definitely never hit 30 oz) I am trying to get better about just having it available for him and I know he will drink what he needs. Ryan eats 3 meals a day and usually one snack.  If he has a day of short naps then we usually have 2 snacks instead of just one.

New foods this month include his new favorite: Peanut Butter! goldfish, a whole apple (won't eat it cut in bites...), blueberry waffles, pancakes, goulash, chili, rice cakes, cornbread, hot dogs, pulled pork, cake (at his party Feb. 5th) and whole milk (Feb. 1st).  Some of his favorites still include: graham crackers, Ritz crackers, cream of wheat, adult cinnamon/spice oatmeal, yogurt, sweet potatoes, and guacamole.  Lately, he is very finicky about food temperatures and the way food is presented. For instance, he will eat something that is hot then when it gets room temperature he will spit it out. Or, if I offer something cut up sometimes he won't eat it, but if I let him bite it off of the bigger piece he will. Also, some textures he won't pick up becausethey are "gooey" but if I put it on a spoon and feed it to him he will eat it... Continuing to prove how opinionated our little man is.

Ryan is a big fan of books! He loves for Mike and me to read to him and we probably read 20+ books a day (a few of them several times). I am so thankful that we have received so many fun new books for Christmas and now his birthday that are keeping us busy. He does have his favorites although it varies by week. Lately, the book favorites include: The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Happy Friendly Dragonfly, Elmo's World Flap books, Trucks, and his touch and feel books ESPECIALLY Forest Surprises. (He likes to eat the frog's tongue...) I believe due to his love of books, he is continuing to add to his vocabulary.  This past month the new words were: "neye, neye" (night night), "bubble" (he has a bubble book where he learned this one and will bring me this book by name), "hi", "babow" (bottle), "go", "ah dun" (all done- after eating).

Ryan still likes to bite and chew on just about anything; books, crib side rail, teethers, blocks, toys, and sometimes Mom and Dad... I know some of it is teething related, but we are really trying to break him of the leaning over to bite Mom or Dad when he's tired or frustrated and giving him a teething toy which is appropriate to bite on. I'm amazed at how quickly he can ruin his books from chewing on them...

Listed out, here are some other discoveries and accomplishments that Ryan made this month:

• Climbing on fireplace
• Climbing in/on boxes
• Pulling up the corners of all the area rugs
• Running from one end of the crib to the other after nap time (very proud of himself about it too-usually giggling)
• Finds it entertaining to scoot himself flat on his tummy backwards on the wood floor
• Laundry basket rides
• Toilet Paper unrolling
• Walking with his Dino backwards instead of just forwards to get out of a spot when he's stuck
• Really took off all the time walking Jan. 12th (after 30+ first steps in Hollywood Jan. 2nd) just needed to build his confidence (which was also fun to watch)
• Began standing from the ground without pulling up on anything (Jan. 23rd)
• Started nodding his head 'yes' (Jan. 20th) sometimes just to move his head other times actually answering questions with the nod for 'yes'
• First time alone on the swings at the park (terrified) and on the slide with Mom and Dad (likes that!)
• Putting blocks into a box instead of just pulling them out and throwing them (still does that too!)
• Started dropping things behind his back/head and holding his hands or touching his fingers behind his head.
• 2nd and 3rd snow of his life- he was much more interested in the flakes falling! We were cooped up inside for 4 days due to the ice one week and then another day this week due to sleet and temperatures in the 10's. CRAZY TEXAS WEATHER!!

Overall, it's been such a fun and BUSY month with Ryan. He is developing a LOT of personality and isn't afraid to tell you when he is not getting his way or things aren't going as he had "planned". He keeps me guessing as he tries so hard to communicate and keeps me on the go constantly. I know it will only get more interesting from here. We are so blessed by every hug, smile, and laugh of our little man and will try to continue to focus on those moments during the discipline and challenging times to come as we approach the toddler and "terrible two" phase. Thanks for joining us in love, support and prayer during this journey!