Hello! Caroline…10 Months Old

This past month has been a whirlwind peanut! The holidays, the celebration of the new year…so much to look back on and so  much to look forward to. You’re 10 months old, how can that be?

The Details. You’re into EVERYTHING you can get your hands on. Your attention span for any one toy is about 10 minutes and then you’re on to the next best thing…mommy’s iPhone. I am counting down the days until I can get a new one and you can have a “play” phone of your very own. We’ve tried gifting you every toy phone out on the market yet you only want mine…surprise surprise. Favorite activities right now include riding on your car Mimi and Pappy got you, taking all your toys out of your toy bin, playing with your wooden musical instruments, standing next to the door looking outside, watching Mickey Mouse’s Clubhouse, and dancing to music. You love to help me in the kitchen, especially when it comes to emptying cabinets and banging pots and pans…such fun, such fun. I am now one of “those moms” – I practically let you do anything, as long as it’s not harmful. You have even been known to eat off the floor…five second minute rule applies at our house my friends. (and yes, judge ALL you want for you’d do it too if it kept your little one from screaming at the top of their lungs)

Milestones, Big and Small. You’re still crawling, pulling up on everything, attempting to open every baby gate we have, and cruising back and forth from pieces of furniture. You will take a step by yourself, freak out, and then immediately sit down…it’s hilarious. We discovered your new favorite adventure is to climb up the stairs (supervised of course). You’ll make your way up all by yourself and then as soon as we reach the top you turn around and are ready for me to clap for your big accomplishment. You also learned to say “da-da” this past month and of course your father smiles from ear to ear in excitement…it’s really sweet. Recently, you’ve started trying to say “bottle”…you adorable little piggy. You love to share…blocks, toys, food, and you’ll take every DVD out of the cabinet and hand them to me, one by one, smiling as you know you’re being oh so kind. Sharing is a life lesson it took your mom a lot longer to master and I hope you are better at it than me (yes, Caroline, you can ask all your aunties about this…not my best attribute I assure you). 
Such a Personality. You wave at ANYONE and EVERYONE. It doesn’t matter where we are…the gym, restaurants, the grocery store…if you see someone you think all attention should be focused on you and you get irritated if someone doesn’t go ga-ga over your cuteness. You also babble and converse with yourself all the time…I see all these babies of similar ages sitting there quietly and I just laugh because the only time you’re not “talking” is when you’re asleep.

We changed your routine up a bit this past month to get you on track with eating solids and lessening how much formula you drink each day. You eat solids for breakfast, lunch, and dinner with a small bottle, and then have 2 snacks as well as your nighttime bottle right before bed. You’ve accustomed quite well to the change and are loving trying so many new foods. Your favorites are waffles, grapes, yogurt, cheese, pasta noodles, hot dogs, mashed potatoes, green beans, blueberries, and crackers…not a “well-balanced” diet as of now, but we’ll get there in due time. You sleep about 10-11 hours per night, going down around 8PM and waking up at 7AM and take two 1.5 hour naps each day. You also have 7 teeth and love to give little love bites…ouch that hurt!

Everyone has told me this is their favorite “stage” and I can totally see why…it’s like you’re this little person now and I am constantly mesmerized by everything you do. I thank my lucky stars I am able to spend so much time with you, and we both look forward to the weekends so we can have time together as a family of three…these next few months are going to be crazy with birthday party planning, getting ready for baby #2, and working on designs for the new house so I am doing as much as I can to savor this sweet time you and I have together. I love you Caroline!