It's impossible to say how we got here so quickly. It feels like I was just looking at pictures of my niece at 9 months and now she's a year old and Michael's not too far behind her.

Everything is changing so fast with Michael it's hard to remember what I should write.

Michael is on the move. A month ago I thought he was crawling, but that was nothing compared to now. We've had to get a baby gate to keep him out of the kitchen and away from the animal's bowls. Not to mention everything has to be taken off of ground level unless you want him to get a hold of it. His favorite thing?




Pulling out the DVDs.

Besides crawling, he was SO close to pulling himself up last night it wasn't even funny. It ended with a rather loud "thud", but he just sat right back up and started playing with something else. He is at a stage where bumps, bruises, scratches, and scrapes are unavoidable and he doesn't seem to mind. I just hope no one thinks they're from us!

We had to take him to the doctor yesterday because he was lucky enough to inherit his daddy's allergies. He weighed in at about 19 with his diaper on, so I'm thinking he's just below it. It's amazing how in the beginning we were so worried about his weight and now he's just shooting up whenever we glance away!

Michael also has a new found love for the outdoors. While before he enjoyed it, now he fusses until we go outside at least for a few minutes! Two days before we discovered his allergies he was out crawling around in the grass and having a wonderful time. However, since he didn't break out from being in the grass, the doctor did say we can assume for now that's not what's causing his puffy eyes and such.


As for talking, Michael is always making noise. That much hasn't changed. He successfully associates "dada" with Clark and understands when we're trying to tell him what something is (at least I like to think he does). He has said "mama" a couple of times. The first was when we were in Kansas and was very deliberate and wonderfully annunciated. Since then... I think he knows who "mama" is, he just doesn't seem to think it's necessary to verbalize my name. He continues to try to say words and has tarted "meowing" whenever he sees a cat. This also started in Kansas. It's not really a "meow" but more of a humming noise made to imitate the noise the cat makes. Still, he's trying! He's also starting saying "dah" when he sees Luna. Not sure if he'll say it when he sees other dogs, but it's still very exciting!

Right now his favorite foods are: soda crackers, carrot + pineapple, avocado + applesauce, and sweet potatoes. He did try a little bit of plain tuna a couple of times, as well as ground turkey the other day with his sweet potatoes. He was a big fan of both, although I'm not sure if he just liked the turkey because it was pureed with his sweet potatoes. We're still taking it slow when it comes to meats. Oh! He also loves refried beans and will eat toast when give the chance. But his absolute favorite?


Banana.