Cooper recently has taken a big interest into how things balance. He especially seems to enjoy balancing his stacking rings on their edges, which is quite challenging for him. Matt and I are pretty amazed that he learned to do this himself (we did ask the babysitter, and she denied teaching him how to do it) and it is funny to watch him balance one or two, and then act really proud of his work. He get soooo frustrated with the purple and tan rings (the two biggest ones) because they are the toughest ones to balance- he sometimes stomps off in a huff when they finally drive him nuts. We let him fail to balance these all the time, and try not to giggle at his little tantrums, because Matt and I agree it is very good for him to try and fail at this sort of baby-learning task.
He also likes balancing big things on little things. Like empty milk jugs on top of coffee mugs, or a book on top of a toy. And he like to stack his cars on top of each other, which makes me giggle because they often look like they are mating. Yes, I know that is all in my head, but it is still funny.
Last but not least, he's learned that he can climb stuff by throwing his outstretched foot onto the edge of it. As opposed to the technique he employs for the stairs, which is all about his knees, this is more versatile and allows for conquering taller objects. The two things he most often climbs onto using his new foot-stretching technique is the back and front deck. Which is cute, but of course then he has to get down. We are still working on safe methods for getting off the decks!
Saturday, March 21, 2009
Friday, March 13, 2009
Leaving Lake Wobegon
Cooper has his one year well-child checkup yesterday and, as always, received only the highest praise from our doctor and nurse. One thing, though, was really different. He's no longer above average weight.
In fact, the kid is skinny. So skinny that I demanded he be weighed again in case there was a mistake. He's only at 20% percentile for weight, in fact. I was a bit worried about this- remember, he was born at 90%, and then stayed steady at 75% since then. Until now.
Well, I brought this up with the doctor and after watching Cooper run around in the exam room for a while, she asked when he learned to walk. He got good at it before he was 10 months old, I said, and has been going faster ever since. And so the doctor kindly informed me that early walkers tend to not gain a lot of weight after they learn to walk- far less weight than average age walkers that are still mostly sitting and crawling at this age. Which made perfect sense to me, when she put it that way.
For height, he's at 50%. Cool. Matt and I are both only a tad taller than average, so that makes a lot of sense to me. He's actually been most consistent with height of all his measurements, ever since he was born.
As for his other skills, he continues his regular trends. His gross motor skills (walking, running, squatting, balance) are far, far beyond his age. His fine motor skills are somewhat above average (picking up little objects, using toys, using a spoon, pointing, grabbing). His social and verbal skills are totally normal (a few words, some gestures, being a bit shy with new people and places, lots of babble and nonsense sounds).
He's doin' great, she says. Hooray!
In fact, the kid is skinny. So skinny that I demanded he be weighed again in case there was a mistake. He's only at 20% percentile for weight, in fact. I was a bit worried about this- remember, he was born at 90%, and then stayed steady at 75% since then. Until now.
Well, I brought this up with the doctor and after watching Cooper run around in the exam room for a while, she asked when he learned to walk. He got good at it before he was 10 months old, I said, and has been going faster ever since. And so the doctor kindly informed me that early walkers tend to not gain a lot of weight after they learn to walk- far less weight than average age walkers that are still mostly sitting and crawling at this age. Which made perfect sense to me, when she put it that way.
For height, he's at 50%. Cool. Matt and I are both only a tad taller than average, so that makes a lot of sense to me. He's actually been most consistent with height of all his measurements, ever since he was born.
As for his other skills, he continues his regular trends. His gross motor skills (walking, running, squatting, balance) are far, far beyond his age. His fine motor skills are somewhat above average (picking up little objects, using toys, using a spoon, pointing, grabbing). His social and verbal skills are totally normal (a few words, some gestures, being a bit shy with new people and places, lots of babble and nonsense sounds).
He's doin' great, she says. Hooray!
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Happy Birthday!
Yeee haw Happy Birthday Cooper!
So far, he has celebrated by sleeping late, running around the house, eating blueberries (his favorite food), and taking a nap.
If only all birthdays could be this delightful.
We are having his party on Sunday for scheduling reasons. All are welcome! 4pm at Radwood Family Farm.
So far, he has celebrated by sleeping late, running around the house, eating blueberries (his favorite food), and taking a nap.
If only all birthdays could be this delightful.
We are having his party on Sunday for scheduling reasons. All are welcome! 4pm at Radwood Family Farm.
Sunday, March 8, 2009
The big move
We did it yesterday- we moved Cooper into his own room. His new room, the downstairs bedroom, is a good (although not perfect) spot for him. Lots of natural light, nice closet, plenty of space for our futon, his crib, his changing table/dresser combo, his laundry, and other baby items.
We waited until now to do this for a few reasons. One is that I liked having him in our room. It was easy, simple, space efficient in our little house, and made nursing him at odd hours pretty painless. The other reason we waited until now is that I had one very important criteria for when Cooper would be moved out of our room- and that criteria was that he had to first be consistently sleeping all night. Adult standard all night, not this "5 hours is sleeping through the night" b.s. that the baby books claim.
And sure enough, as a result of a combo of dumb luck, Cooper's nice temperament, and a lot of hard work on Matt and my part, Cooper now can be trusted to sleep from 8pm until 5:30am. Sometimes he's even better- like the time he slept from 7:30pm to 7:15am, very much surprising Matt and me. That was glorious. But this new pattern, which is roughly 7:45 to 5:45 with variation at either end depending on various factors, has met the criteria for consistently sleeping all night. He's been doing it for about 3 weeks, so we are pretty sure he's got it down pat.
Last night was his first night in the new room. We followed all his usual routines and he was asleep snuggled under his favorite blanket by 8pm. He woke up at 6:30am daylight savings time, which I know was really 5:30am, but I don't care. It was great.
Of course, last night I was all worried about him all alone down there. What if he got cold? Miserable? Lonely? Yes, I admit this was a bit irrational. But I woke up repeatedly during the night, worried about him, and only fell back asleep after listening to the quiet whirring of his monitor. It was inches from my head- very reassuring.
Now he's asleep in his very own room again, napping. What a good little guy. I think he's taking this change more in stride then I am.
Last night Matt asked, "Are you going to get this worried when he has his first sleepover, too?" I think it was a rhetorical question.
We waited until now to do this for a few reasons. One is that I liked having him in our room. It was easy, simple, space efficient in our little house, and made nursing him at odd hours pretty painless. The other reason we waited until now is that I had one very important criteria for when Cooper would be moved out of our room- and that criteria was that he had to first be consistently sleeping all night. Adult standard all night, not this "5 hours is sleeping through the night" b.s. that the baby books claim.
And sure enough, as a result of a combo of dumb luck, Cooper's nice temperament, and a lot of hard work on Matt and my part, Cooper now can be trusted to sleep from 8pm until 5:30am. Sometimes he's even better- like the time he slept from 7:30pm to 7:15am, very much surprising Matt and me. That was glorious. But this new pattern, which is roughly 7:45 to 5:45 with variation at either end depending on various factors, has met the criteria for consistently sleeping all night. He's been doing it for about 3 weeks, so we are pretty sure he's got it down pat.
Last night was his first night in the new room. We followed all his usual routines and he was asleep snuggled under his favorite blanket by 8pm. He woke up at 6:30am daylight savings time, which I know was really 5:30am, but I don't care. It was great.
Of course, last night I was all worried about him all alone down there. What if he got cold? Miserable? Lonely? Yes, I admit this was a bit irrational. But I woke up repeatedly during the night, worried about him, and only fell back asleep after listening to the quiet whirring of his monitor. It was inches from my head- very reassuring.
Now he's asleep in his very own room again, napping. What a good little guy. I think he's taking this change more in stride then I am.
Last night Matt asked, "Are you going to get this worried when he has his first sleepover, too?" I think it was a rhetorical question.
Friday, February 27, 2009
Words are starting to come
Cooper's favorite word (which is "good") is now being joined by other words that he seems to have figured out. "Mama" is starting to get said when he's on my lap, or otherwise playing with me, so I think he's actually figured out what that word means. He's also saying "water" when he is drinking water. He'll take a big sip, look at us, say "water," and then take another sip. It's pretty cool. His pronunciation of water is sometimes flawless, and other times quite creative. Cooper also has started showing that he likes something by making a kind of happy yummy sound. He'll be eating something really tasty (like barley lentil soup, inexplicably one of his very favorites) and start just saying "num-num-num-mmmmm-num." It is very cute.
For some reason, "doggie" is no longer being said around here. All of the doggie variants, like Dabney and Go-dee, have also disappeared. It is puzzling.
Of all the things he says, the most common one is totally baffling. He says, "Eh-deh" all the time, with the most meaningful and earnest look. He really, really means it. We just don't know what on earth he means. It is pretty different from his other utterances, and he's almost always making eye contact when he says it, so I really feel like he's trying to tell us something.
Nicole, the babysitter, can often be heard in this quasi-monologue.
Cooper: Eh-deh
Nicole: Who's Ed? Is he your friend?
Cooper: Eh-deh! Eh-deh. Eh-deh?
Nicole: Okay. Is your green car named Ed?
Cooper: Eh-deh!
Nicole: No? Hmm... well does Cooper want a stringbean?
Cooper: Ooo-dah! ("good")
For some reason, "doggie" is no longer being said around here. All of the doggie variants, like Dabney and Go-dee, have also disappeared. It is puzzling.
Of all the things he says, the most common one is totally baffling. He says, "Eh-deh" all the time, with the most meaningful and earnest look. He really, really means it. We just don't know what on earth he means. It is pretty different from his other utterances, and he's almost always making eye contact when he says it, so I really feel like he's trying to tell us something.
Nicole, the babysitter, can often be heard in this quasi-monologue.
Cooper: Eh-deh
Nicole: Who's Ed? Is he your friend?
Cooper: Eh-deh! Eh-deh. Eh-deh?
Nicole: Okay. Is your green car named Ed?
Cooper: Eh-deh!
Nicole: No? Hmm... well does Cooper want a stringbean?
Cooper: Ooo-dah! ("good")
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Things are "good"
Cooper's second word that he uses according to its meaning (unlike Mama and Dada, which still seem quite unassigned to me and Matt) is "good." We are learning a lot about what Cooper appreciates by what he designates as "good."
Bread cubes soaked in prune juice are good. Blueberries are good. Peas are good. My cell phone is good. Petting the doggie is good. Pretending to eat ice cream is good. Basically, anything he considers enjoyable, but of course he sometimes surprises me with what that exactly encompasses. Like my glasses- stealing my glasses off my face is good. Playing with a block in the early morning sunshine is good. Watching the chickens is good.
Might I add, we don't know how long he's been saying this, because it took us a long while to understand him. He doesn't say good like "goo-dah" or anything. He says "oo-deh." Only after you hear him say it a hundred times, usually when he is smiling, all of a sudden it dawns on you that he's saying "good."
Now that we've decoded this, it is very fun. I give him a nice squishy blueberry and say, "Cooper, is that good?" And he smiles at me, eats it, and says "oo-deh!" proudly.
"Cooper, do you like peas?" "ooo-deh!"
Swipes my glasses off my face as I am putting him in the car seat. Sticks them in his mouth, proudly/mischeiviously looks at me, and says... Oooo-deh!
What interests me is that he can say the G sound pretty well, but he does not use it to say good. I don't know why that is. I sort of wish I was a linguistics specialist right now, as his decisions on when to use sounds fascinate me. When he is really, really upset, sometimes he'll cry ma-ma-ma over and over again. But he never calls me Mama in any context that'd you'd expect. Is that a conscious decision? Or does he just not take my name in vain?
Bread cubes soaked in prune juice are good. Blueberries are good. Peas are good. My cell phone is good. Petting the doggie is good. Pretending to eat ice cream is good. Basically, anything he considers enjoyable, but of course he sometimes surprises me with what that exactly encompasses. Like my glasses- stealing my glasses off my face is good. Playing with a block in the early morning sunshine is good. Watching the chickens is good.
Might I add, we don't know how long he's been saying this, because it took us a long while to understand him. He doesn't say good like "goo-dah" or anything. He says "oo-deh." Only after you hear him say it a hundred times, usually when he is smiling, all of a sudden it dawns on you that he's saying "good."
Now that we've decoded this, it is very fun. I give him a nice squishy blueberry and say, "Cooper, is that good?" And he smiles at me, eats it, and says "oo-deh!" proudly.
"Cooper, do you like peas?" "ooo-deh!"
Swipes my glasses off my face as I am putting him in the car seat. Sticks them in his mouth, proudly/mischeiviously looks at me, and says... Oooo-deh!
What interests me is that he can say the G sound pretty well, but he does not use it to say good. I don't know why that is. I sort of wish I was a linguistics specialist right now, as his decisions on when to use sounds fascinate me. When he is really, really upset, sometimes he'll cry ma-ma-ma over and over again. But he never calls me Mama in any context that'd you'd expect. Is that a conscious decision? Or does he just not take my name in vain?
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Happy 11th Month!
Happy 11 months old, Cooper!
He's gotten really good at walking, and lately likes to amuse himself mostly by wandering around the house while holding random objects. He just walked by, giggling, while dragging a muffin tin in one hand, and holding a square wooden block in the other. Very funny.
Words are still coming and going, so while I know he can say Doggie, he is currently choosing not to. He also says Mama and Dada every once in a while, and does seem to say them to us, but it is so fleeting and infrequent that I'm still not willing to say he knows those words "for real."
His spoon use gets better by the day. Now he seems to keep it correct side up a fair amount of the time, which greatly improves the amount of material that he can shove into his mouth. Nice work, buddy.
He's gotten really good at walking, and lately likes to amuse himself mostly by wandering around the house while holding random objects. He just walked by, giggling, while dragging a muffin tin in one hand, and holding a square wooden block in the other. Very funny.
Words are still coming and going, so while I know he can say Doggie, he is currently choosing not to. He also says Mama and Dada every once in a while, and does seem to say them to us, but it is so fleeting and infrequent that I'm still not willing to say he knows those words "for real."
His spoon use gets better by the day. Now he seems to keep it correct side up a fair amount of the time, which greatly improves the amount of material that he can shove into his mouth. Nice work, buddy.
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