Development Updates

Assorted Alex trivia:

Two weeks ago, his four top front teeth came in (all within a day or two of each other). He now has four on top & two on the bottom.

About a week ago, he still weighed about 22 pounds.

He can now crawl about as fast as I can!

He enjoys climbing dresser drawers but hates it when he closes one on his fingers.

He's broken one child-proof lock: the long plastic "U"-shaped device that holds two cabinet doors together. He grabbed one of the long ends and pulled/twisted until it broke off. Took him a couple days to do this. True, he didn't get the cabinet open, but he did end up with a sharp piece of plastic.

He has no interest in stuffed animals, but has identified favorite books. When we put them all in a stack, he'll dig through them all to find his favorites (and then chew on them!).

He's almost walking -- he can stand on his own for a few seconds at a time, or indefinitely with minimal support (barely touching a couch or leg). When we hold his hands, he'll lean forward and walk all over the house. Not wearing shoes yet -- indoors is clean, and outdoors is too cold!

He's crawling in and out of his tent (full of small plastic balls) and will occasionally pull one out and push it around the room. I've also seen him put a few of his toys into the tent -- perhaps he'll learn to clean up on his own soon?

He's also climbing up and down the steps. Up is just like you'd expect; down is exactly the same motion in reverse (on his belly, feet first -- almost sliding down, like a seal). He's really doing well and very, very rarely does anything that would cause a fall. (Of course we're always right below him!)

Bathing, etc.

Before bed each night, he gets a bath. This process includes checking for monsters hiding behind the shower curtain, filling the tub, and then throwing the rubber ducky and soap into the water. After his bottle, he likes to check for monsters under the bed, too. No, I don't know what these monsters look like or who told him about them, but he sure enjoys looking.

Every now and then, we test his blink reflex (Michele, did you take these?) -- he's doing just fine, as you can see!

He's also learned to push the dining room chairs around, moving from one to the next on his journey around the room.

Alex Out In the Snow

Two weeks ago, Alex got bundled up and went outside to play in the snow. He absolutely hated the snow suit, screaming while I put on my coat (possibly because he couldn't roll over!), but seems to enjoy watching Moe, the neighbor's dog. Michele had fun digging her car out from under the snow. And Alex finally got to enjoy his sled, although his face was frozen in this expression the entire time.

Late Pictures

Yeah, it's been nearly a month. We were busy, and Alex has learned to demand attention (or he'll scream, dump a trash can, or climb the stairs on his own - none of which we want him doing!). On the positive side of things, that means we have lots of pictures.

To finish out 2008, we've got Alex learning to ride the bean bag and telling Grandpa Jim how much fun it was. Alex was a real party animal New Year's Eve. A few pictures that didn't get posted earlier: Alex posing by the fireplace, running over his toys, trying to squeeze a large cup into his mouth, mid-yawn, reaching for a drink, smiling in his high chair and investigating his first Christmas present.