Little Boy Blonde

Mean Face

Colden turned 11-months the other day. It seems like yesterday I was laying in an OB's office, just 13-weeks-pregnant, being told that Matt and I were finally getting our boy. Yet, every morning, to this day, I wake up in absolute awe that I have a son. He is my ray of sunshine. Every day he grows more and more from an infant into a little boy. It's bittersweet. I want him to stay little, sweet and cuddly, yet I am eager to see him grow into a young man. As the weeks and months go by, he becomes less of a cuddle-bug and more of an adventure seeker. Climbing marble stars when I'm not looking (yikes!), climbing into the dishwasher, taking clean clothes out of the laundry basket and throwing them onto the floor. Crawling out of his bedroom and directly into his sisters' room. He adores his sisters and will seek them out if they are not in the same room as he is.

Happy Face

He's a happy baby. So happy that we constantly get compliments from friends and passerby. He loves to make funny faces, call out Lila's name (we think Lila refers to either sister), clap and "dance" along to his sisters' nightly dance recitals.

Sibling Love

He Will Eat Anything

No Bed to Nap In? No problem.

He's an adventurous eater. Curry, fish, fruit, veggies, meat; you name it, he'll eat it. No purees for this baby! He wants the real deal. I've never made his food. He's always ate what we ate (starting at 6.5-months). The first couple of weeks were a bit of a learning curve for me - he did gag quite a bit. But, it passed so quickly, I barely remember those "scary" food moments. It's been so freeing, not making purees for him. No steaming, blending, freezing, etc. What a time saver! And, in fact, it seems silly to me now that I went through all the effort with his sisters!

He has learned to travel well. Actually, he's grown into it. In his 11-months, he has traveled to the United States, Canada, The Netherlands, Spain, Czech Republic and, of course, Germany. We do not travel with strollers and, therefore, he has found comfort sleeping in the Ergo Baby Carrier or a woven wrap. Matt and I were recently discussing how hard we tried to accommodate the girls' naps while traveling in the past, often completely disrupting our sightseeing to get back to a hotel in time for naps. We've relaxed considerably with Colden and don't give naps a second thought. We know he'll nap in a carrier just fine. He won't necessarily sleep in two hour stretches like he does in his own bed, but he will cat nap often enough. We haven't had too many overly-cranky travel moments with him. He's really quite a pleasure to travel with. More pleasurable, in fact, than traveling with a five-year-old and seven-year-old!

His looks are constantly changing. He went from blue eyes and brown hair to dark hazel eyes with blonde hair. Currently, he looks like I did as an infant - but, I'm sure that will change as his features develop more and more from baby into toddler-boy.

We are now happily nursing. The tongue-tie days of nursing angst are long over. I foresee him nursing for many many more months. I'll let him wean himself - so who knows when that will be?

As his first year quickly comes to a close, I'm eager to see what adventures this little man will take us all on. It's going to be a great journey. I just know it!