Such a big boy!

I thought that maybe we should start out with a photo-shoot:




:)

Matt and I are very much enjoying Miles' current stage. All stages have their joys (and hardships), and we tend to say "this is the best stage" as each new stage arrives. But something is different right now...we can just tell that over all of the stages that our children go through, this one will be one of the top few.

Miles has quite a few words that he uses now. Some he uses only if we use them first, some he uses only if the object is right in front of him, and some depending on need. Here's a non-exhaustive list:
ball (baaah)
car (caaah)
light (dight)
milk (gilk)
book (gook)
all done (all dah)
bye-bye
hi (hhhhhi)
up (bup)
down (duh)
baby
uh-oh (uh....(long pause)....oh)
tickle, tickle, tickle (tikuh, tikuh, tikuh, while moving fingers in the air. so cute!)
tweet-tweet (tee, tee, tee, tee, tee)
roof-roof (this has been his staple for a long time. now he bobs his head when he barks. ??)
cocoa (all dogs are called cocoa :))
banana (nah)
truck (tuck)
kick (kick-kick-kick)

And the best part is all of the words that he recognizes receptively. There are many things that we ask him to get/do, or we tell him what we're going to do (bath, na-night, go outside, play basketball, etc., etc.), and he understands. This is so fun. We love to tell him to go give something to Daddy/Mommy because he gets so excited and gives a hug along with his delivery.

Bath time is a riot now. He has figured out how to pour water over his head, and does this over and over, sometimes throwing the water over his shoulder and missing his body completely. He screams, laughs, and splashes every time because he's so excited.

He also loves to play "soccer" by walking with the ball in front of his feet, which inadvertently kicks the ball forward each time. He says, "kick-kick-kick-kick" the whole time.

Reading books is a lot of fun with him now, too, because he knows what's coming in a book. For example, there is a page in the book "Knuffle Bunny" where the baby cries, and right before we turn to that page, Miles starts crying. Or in a book where a bear goes, "Boom, boom, boom", Miles says, "bah, bah, bah" right before we turn to that page. He also has definite opinions about which books he would like to read. If he's bored with one, he closes it, pushes it away, and hands you another one. If it's a book he likes, he'll turn back to the front after we have read the whole thing. Multiple times. Over and over throughout the day, he'll go get a book, come to you holding the book up, and say "gook". Once you take it, he says "gup?" (to be up on your lap). He could easily sit on our lap and look at books for hours at a time.

Oh, for those of you who haven't seen him for a while, he's walking all over the place. Once he started there was no going back. One of his favorite games right now is putting the bottom of a piece of tupperware over his mouth and walking around talking loudly...we call this the tupperware monster. We run away and he chases us.

He's also been showing a bit of a naughty side. He was in nursery this past Wednesday while I was in our church Mom's group. They said that he was stealing everyone's toys and doing things he knew he wasn't supposed to while smiling at them. He also seems to have a little bit of a short fuse. If something doesn't go his way, he'll get really frustrated and throw it or just lay down on his back and whine. This is whether we're in the room with him or not. I think he's also getting his two year molars in because he keeps sticking things way back in his mouth, and drooling a TON.

We haven't taken him outside a ton this winter, because, let's face it, it takes forever to dress/undress the kid, and he doesn't even seem to enjoy it one lick. Once we find a good deal on some boots we'll try again.

At Miles' last doctor's appointment, he was in the 70th percentile for height, and the 20th for weight. He's thinning out and getting his daddy's build.

Well, that's it for now. I'm sure there's a ton more I could say, but I wanted to be sure to post something for all of Miles' fans out there (this one is especially dedicated to "Uncle" Chris, "Aunt" Emily, and Great-Grandpa Jack). Thanks to everyone for the love and care that you have for Miles, whether near or far.

Here are a few more pics:

Helping Mom with some baking

Pouty Mc-Poutster :(

Playing peek-a-boo with Uncle Nathan

Such a big boy!

I finally caved in!

Friends,
I finally had to cave in. I have a facebook account. I will be updating more regularly on facebook than here on blogger. If there are huge updates, I will post them here, but for photos check my facebook account.

As for updates on the boy:

*Miles has like 12 teeth all of a sudden! Ouch!
*Miles has been taking up to 10 steps on his own, but then gets nervous and sits down.
*I've been putting in some hours in the Ed. Department at Calvin, and Miles has been going to a babysitter for a few hours. He's all of a sudden a little more "clingy" and "needy" when I'm around (people tell me that the minute I leave he's fine). So far, Matt and I feel this is a healthy thing, but we will continue to monitor:)
*Miles has some regular words: "dight" for light (while pointing to any lamp-on or off-, any light, sunrise, sunset...) "gook" for book, "gewk" for milk, "dada" for Matt, "dada" for Megan unless he's crying in which case he carries the vowels out and says "maaaaamaaaaa".
*Miles can point to his nose when asked, gives noises for the animals on his audio puzzle (not by name, but by mimic), claps "normally" now, and initiates waving bye-bye once someone picks up keys or puts their coat on
*Miles is all of a sudden going through a shy stage, as he rests his head on my shoulder when a new person says hi to him.
*I cut the back of Miles' hair last night--no more mullet!--he looks even more grown up!
*Check out my facebook account for a few fall photos of Mr. Miles.

Happy November!
Megan

The Wonder Year

(T-shirt says: MY 1st BIRTHDAY)

Believe it or not, Miles has been alive for a whole year! Well, a year plus a week or two at this point. Apparently I had a moment where I thought I was super-woman, because I planned Miles' birthday party for just 2 weeks after moving into our new home--2 weeks that Matt would not be around for, because of RD and RA training. It all went off without a hitch, though, and it has actually been really great to have the house all unpacked so quickly, because we just get to enjoy it now. Thank you to all of the family and friends who came to celebrate the party with us, especially the distance-travelers. Here are a few photos, mostly documenting the cake-eating, of course. I created a longer slideshow on snapfish, so if you want to see more, just let me know and I can send it to you.

Had to go with a doggy cake, since he barks whenever we say doggy, or he sees/hears one. We debated what noise to teach him (all these big parenting questions!), but he ended up deciding all on his own. He's landed on something that sounds like "Arf, Arf".

This is about as much as he dug into that cake ?!?

Excuse me, guests, while I go get clean...

And then here's the last year in pictures. We took a monthly "chair" -or couch- picture to watch his changing and growing. For some reason his 11-month picture is missing (on a different file or something). I just can't believe how much he's been changing right in front of us, but day to day you hardly notice a difference! It's only a year, people! Crazy. And we only have 17 more of these left with him. Well, in the same house I guess. Still, let's not think about that! Tears.

1 month old

2 months



3 months

4 months

5 months



6 months

7 months

8 months

9 months

10 months

12 months!!! So handsome.

Mr. Persistent

First, let me apologize for not having updated the blog in a looooong time. I did not do anything "extra" with my time while working with the Entrada Program at Calvin. Working full-time, and being "mom" and "wife" and "me" took up all of my time for that month! So worth it though. I love the Entrada program, and loved working with such a great gang for such a great purpose. I thank God for the great opportunity, and the timing of his blessings.

Just to warn you, Miles has grown quite a bit this past month. Don't be shocked. Most notable is his new-found mobility. He has created his own unique method of the army crawl. He also walks (cruises) along furniture. His biggest feat however, which he's been working on for a long time, is finding the strength and persistence to pull himself up. Dad was lucky enough to be home when Miles figured this out for the first time, and was quick enough to grab the camera! Although the last video is a long one, it's definitely amusing. The most hilarious part is when he tries to pull himself up backwards!

We got to go to the Kraay's house for the 4th of July, and we enjoyed a boat ride on the beautiful Thornapple River.

We also went to their house for Henry's 1st Birthday celebration. Here's what the boys did a lot: Henry crawling all over Miles:)

Matt discovered Miles sleeping with his butt way up in the air (even more than you can tell in the picture!)

Is it bad that I think one of his cutest faces is when he's crying?

This is Miles' classic pose these days, except usually he adds his elbow to his knee. Whenever he's army crawling somewhere and needs to assess his direction or speed, he rolls onto his side and strikes this pose.

We spent a weekend with Matt's family "Up North" (Suttons Bay). Miles enjoyed his two furry friends, Cocoa and Chongo. We all relaxed with our books of choice, and some combination of the options to sunbathe, go canoeing, eat yummy snacks, play Boche Ball, watch T.V., and go for walks.

Miles listens intently to Great-Grandpa's musings.

Miles also experienced his first camping trip. We went to Covert Park, a cute private spot along Lake Michigan (near VanBuren State Park).

All in all, it's been a wonderful few weeks. Miles continues to be a great source of joy in our lives, and we love watching him "grow into his own". We find great purpose in raising him, and take seriously the responsibility to raise him in a way that honors and glorifies God. I'm thankful that this blog helps me to take time out of the busyness to savor the moments and memories.

Miles' Mischievous Morning

Miles was in quite the mischievous mood this morning. He's been enjoying a mid-morning snack of cheerios-- on the floor-- for weeks now (I know that highchair makes more sense, but I love sitting on the floor with him and sharing a snack together). Well today he discovered that he can tip the bowl over and make a mess... and then roll onto his tummy and eat them off of the floor! Looks like we're back to the highchair:)







After that mess was cleaned up, Miles discovered our curtains. He likes to roll all around the floor, and this time he rolled himself between the curtain and sliding door. He had fun, but he sure did pull hard on the curtain a few times. I'll have to check the weight that the curtain rod can hold. Stinker!

Roseola!

So this is a picture of how our life has been for the past week: Miles not feeling well, and me feeling bad for him (but I do looooooove the cuddles and couch-naps). Miles came down with a fever while we were at our friends Colin and Sarah's house on Monday night. We left early, and good thing we did! His fever lasted a few days, and today he broke out in a minor rash... Doc says it's Roseola, a common illness with babies and young kids. Luckily the rash is not itchy or even irritating. He's still not himself, though. A little uncomfortable it seems, but still a little extra-cuddly.

It was hilarious to see him on Tylenol. About a 1/2 hour after taking it, his head would start to swirl and bob, and he acted a little drunk before finally falling asleep. So cute (once I was done being concerned)!

I'm glad for his sake and mine that we're on the tail end of this. I'm so ready to experience life outside of this apartment! My girlfriends and I are all going to get our hair cut/done tomorrow morning at the Aveda salon downtown (it's a beauty school, so it's nice and cheap to have students work on your hair...under the supervision of their directors of course:)). I think I'll go back to having bangs again...