FINALLY 5th tooth!

Casey's been runnin with 4 teeth for the longest time, and it's funny because the top two are not the middle ones, but the ones NEXT to the middle ones, so he looks like a little vampire baby. Tonight, though, I finally see number 5 breaking through! It's his top left middle tooth. Too cute! He has also just recently learned to clap, and he made the sign for "bath" today for the first time!

Mr. Bug is ONE!

My sweet baby boy is a year old today! As always, time moves too quickly. I am especially melancholy because there is a high probability that he is my last baby, and this is the last time I'll get to watch a child of mine eat his first birthday cake, or learn to walk, or say his first words...I'm trying to treasure every moment, but life just keeps moving by.

Casey is 19 lbs. (5%) and 30" long (60%), and has taken his first steps but still prefers crawling to walking. He can say Mama, Dada, Dog (Dah!), Diaper (Die-Dah!), Done, Yeah, and Wow. He also shakes his head no, and does the sign for "milk" and "food." He will give high fives, and waves bye-bye.

He loves Gerber veggie cheetos, and refuses to eat baby food. He has started to drink whole milk, but he only likes it if it's warmed up a little. He's still a booby boy, and prefers to nurse over eating solids.

He's getting better at sleeping at night, and usually goes to bed around 8 in his crib. He'll wake up at 11 or 12, then 2 or 3 am, then sometimes 5 am to nurse, before we get up around 8. Lately he'll sleep through one or the other of those times. He usually takes 2-3 naps during the day, but not very long ones (maybe 1/2 hour or so).

He had his first taste of chocolate cake today, though his party isn't till Saturday.

First Steps!

Casey took his first unassisted steps today! He walked 2-3 steps from Daddy to Mommy, and he did it twice. Aaaahhh too soon! LOL

He'll be 11 months tomorrow. I wish they could stay little for just a bit longer.

Visit From Grandpa Earl

Grandpa Earl came down from Vancouver to visit and exchange Christmas presents today. We treasure the times we get to see him, because it's not often! Casey had just woken up from a nap, so he took a while to warm up to his Grandpa, but by the end of the visit he was happy in Grandpa's arms. Grandpa Earl gave Casey some cute PJs, and we gave Grandpa framed photos of Casey. Merry Christmas, Grandpa!

Done!

So far, Casey can say "mama," "dada," and just started saying "diaper." Tonight, after he finished nursing, I made the sign for "all done" and said it to him, and he said "Done!" His vocabulary is growing quickly!

Vampire Baby!

Casey's been pretty fussy for the last few days, and I thought it might be a tooth coming in, so I kept feeling on his bottom gum, expecting the next one to come in next to his first one (on the bottom middle). I didn't feel anything, though, so I figured he must be fussy for some other reason. Well, my instincts were right the first time - he's getting TWO more teeth, just not where I expected them! After I was done nursing him tonight, he threw his head back for a second and I saw two white buds on the TOP gum, but they're the ones beside the middle front ones! So he's gonna look like a vampire when they come all the way out. :)

Santa and Diaper (but not together!)

Today was an eventful day! After we picked Sammie up from school, the kids got all dressed up and we went to see Santa at the mall. The minute I set Casey down on Santa's lap, it was like flipping a switch. My usually-happy little guy just SCREAMED. They got two quick pictures before I scooped him up, at which point he stopped crying immediately.

I'm pretty sure all three of my kids have done this the first time they met Santa. Par for the course, I guess. Something about the suit, maybe? Or is it the beard?

Later in the evening, as I was getting ready to change Casey's diaper, I made the sign for "change diaper," as usual, and said, "Let's change your diaper, Casey!" He replied back with a very clear, "Dia-da!" He did it a few more times, repeating after me, so Casey's third word (after Mama and Dada) is officially "diaper!"