Mommy Wow, I'm a Big Boy Now!

  March 2009                                                              March 2010

Is it truly possible that an entire year has gone by? My teeny tiny 6 lb bundle of love is now a very energetic stubborn inquisitive laughing little boy! David and I have truly been blessed as parents, and Jordan has made parenting easy (so far!).  We'll see what happens when he turns 2 :) 

At the age of ONE (!), Jordan is showing us that he is very much emerging into being a 'big boy'.  Jordan is helping with getting dressed - he will hold out his feet when it is time to put shoes and socks on.   He also will step out of his pants for us, one leg at a time ... even when all I need to do is change his diaper, he's determined to help me by taking off his pants.  He's not so great at helping put his pants back on however. 

Jordan loves his bath time and does not want to get out until the water has drained completely - even then, he is content to keep playing with his toys.  Something he loves to do is stick his face in the water and even lay down while holding his head above water.  Future swimmer? We'll find out this summer!

We have also entered the lovely stage I like to call "kid, you are testing my limits by refusing to eat your food!".  Jordan, the boy who used to scarf everything down has now become a picky eater.  Lord help me - it sure tests my patience.  Yes, those of you who know me are laughing b/c I myself am a picky eater, but I was really hoping Jordan would take after his father in this area! It would not be such a concern if he were above the 5th percentile in weight but since he's not, I get nervous when he refuses to eat his veggies and only wants to eat fruit.  Even putting cheerios in things does not help - he just plucks out the cheerio and eats that.  I could write a blog just on the subject of new things I try to trick Jordan into eating his food!

When the frustration passes and Jordan gives me a huge toothy grin, I remember just how blessed I am and really, how easy it is to be his momma :)

Don't Bother Me, I'm Eating

This month in eating, it has been about table foods & finger foods.  Bye bye pureed/chunky baby food and hello wonderful messy big boy food! It is a relief to reach this stage, even when it seems like I spend more time preparing meals and even more time cleaning up.  Jordan eats almost everything and lets me know when he's full by squashing the food between his fingers and flinging it on the ground.  Oh joy. 

Other happenings this month include Jordan learning gross motor skills - being more and more brave in walking with his push-toy.  Once again, while I am excited for Jordan to walk on his own, I am happy at the moment, especially when I saw how fast he walked with his push-toy!! We took him outside to go for a 'walk' and he had fun using the push-toy, and even more fun stopping to pick up leaves or examine small cracks in the sidewalk.  Such a boy!!

Along with using the push-toy, Jordan is slowly but surely gaining confidence in walking by holding on with just one hand! Okay, so he cries half the time as I nudge him gently and encourage (force) him to walk one handed, but he's usually more than happy to show off when someone is waiting for him on the other side of the room (like his daddy).  It all depends on his mood ... takes after his mommy that way :)

As for fine motor skills, Jordan has learned the fine art of pointing ... at everything :) Still grabs a bunch of cheerios at one time and shoves them in his mouth, but hey, he knows how to point to the bag!

Last but certainly not least - let the temper tantrums begin!! We had our first 'big' tantrum last week and I stood my ground, I "won"! This stubborn boy is going to learn real quick that his momma is way more stubborn than he is!

No No JoJo!

As the title of the blog suggets, I am quite often saying 'no' to Jordan these days! I should rephrase that - I say "that is not for you", "you may not touch the curtain", "Jordan, the cat's toy does not belong in your mouth" and yesterday, "Jordan, it is not okay to poke Liam in the eye".  My goal is to only use the word "no" when he's in a dangerous situation and needs to be stopped immediately.  At first, I thought it would be difficult since "no" is the first thing that comes to mind.  With practice, it has become second nature to use alternative ways of saying no ... and I've been having a lot of practice lately :) At 10 1/2 months, Jordan is increasingly finding new things that he really should be staying away from.  Lately, the only way to get him to stop doing something is to remove him from the situation.  Sometimes he'll crawl back with a grin on his face, but most times he's easy to distract and stays away (for a while).

Quick Updates:

Jordan is crawling "normal" and my goodness, does he go everywhere (and fast!)! I tell people I look forward to him walking, but most days I wish to retract that statement since I have a hard time keeping up with him already! 

Lesson learned: always go into a room before Jordan, otherwise he'll close the door on you then proceed to wiggle and get himself stuck between the door and the frame when you try to open the door.  

Jordan is saying "da da" all the time now and even does the sign (close enough) for 'daddy'.  Saying 'ma ma' and signing 'mommy' are not even on the agenda.  If I ask Jordan to say 'ma ma', he looks at me, smiles a big grin and triumphantly goes "da da! da da!".  little stinker.  Lucky for him he's adorable and I love hearing him say/sign da da.  

The teeth are a-coming! Jordan has two bottom teeth, one top tooth, and 3 emerging teeth on top.  Just in case I forget, he likes to put my finger in his mouth and chomp down.  Looks like "Jordan, you may not bite" will be yet another frequent saying :) 

I had to get creative when it came to giving Jordan his bottle.  My little guy is so active that he rarely drinks a bottle in one sitting and it became quite frustrating for me.  Thank you PBS kids and Curious George!! For a half hour, Jordan will sit on the couch and drink his bottle while watching Curious George.  I have no guilt about this and guess what, I enjoy watching the show as well!  

December Wrap-Up

The month of December has flown by and nary an update has been made! Guess it's time to catch everyone up.  Jordan is 9 1/2 months and is still on the move, if not more! He is slowly graduating from an army crawl to the 'normal' crawl (he knows how to crawl the right way, he's just doesn't want to!).  Jordan is also cruising along furniture and is experimenting standing with only one hand to balance himself.  The newest thing is Jordan loves clapping.  He's been able to clap for a while, but if you say "Jordan go clap clap!" he'll get a huge grin on his face and start clapping.  He also will start clapping if you sing Patty Cake.  Then he'll grab your hands to make you clap and sing it again.  Jordan is also starting to communicate in his own way.  When you show him how to do something (example: I was scratching the couch & the pillow to show him the different textures and to hear the sounds it makes), Jordan will take my hand and place it back on the couch and try to move my hand, thus telling me to do it again.  My smart boy :)

Jordan's 1st Christmas was B-U-S-Y!! We celebrated Christmas Eve with my dad's family and Christmas day with my mom's family.  A lot of people, a lot of gifts (where are we going to put all those toys?!) and our little boy loved every minute.

Here are some pictures from Christmas!

Jordan & Mommy - clapping!

Learning Home

Dump truck - he's not supposed to sit IN it, but he's so tiny he fit :)

Rain Rain Go Away

Today was the kind of day that makes you want to sip hot cocoa and curl up on the couch to read a book or watch a good movie.  The steady fall of the rain, the pitter patter on the roof, watching the drops form puddles on the patio.  I took the curtains down from the sliding glass door in the living room so Jordan could see the rain.  He was so excited! He 'danced', talked to himself and banged on the glass.  Several times throughout the day, Jordan would crawl to the window and babble away to himself as he watched the rain. Too cute :)

Talking to himself

Smiley Jordan

"Dancing"

Gobble Til You Wobble

Thanksgiving this year was spent in Oregon with David's family.  Jordan loved being with his Nana & Papa!! He was full of laughs, giggles and funny faces.  I am so thankful for the opportunities to go up there and spend time with them.  We had fun playing games, eating good food, and watching Jordan explore.  His favorite thing to do was turn on the Roomba (he just randomly hit buttons until it turned on!), place his toy on it then follow it around to take his toy back.  My silly boy :)

Here are a few pictures from the trip. 

   Nana & Jordan

 Papa & Jordan

Jordan's favorite way to get around - 'walking'!

"Does this spoon taste good?"

♥

8 Months Already?

On Tuesday, Jordan turned 8 months.  I'm amazed at how he is growing and learning new things - it seems like every day he does something new! There are times I feel like it's all I can do to keep up - moments like this to sit and use the computer are rare. Why? oh you'll see :)

Jordan has discovered 'walking'.  I use 'walking' in this term to mean that he walks when you hold his hands.  Since he has learned this new method of getting around, it means that he refuses to sit down when you try to put him on the floor or in his highchair.   In addition to 'walking', Jordan is learning to pull himself up - first he's on the floor (army crawl), then he gets on his knees, rocks back and forth, and if he's holding onto something, gets up to a standing position.  The result - a very happy baby banging on the coffee table (or mommy's knees).  Jordan is also starting to walk (kind of) behind a push-toy.  He actually likes to bend over the bar to play with the push-toy and then rock back and forth.

Jordan had his first sleepover last weekend! David and I went away for our anniversary, leaving Jordan with his Gram & Grandpa.  He was practically perfect in every way.  After the weekend with the grandparents, Jordan and I left Monday morning to visit friends in Arizona.  We stayed with the Hobsons - their daughter, Kayla, is six months older than Jordan.  Kayla is walking on her own and Jordan wanted me to help him walk with her!