I want to be a furniture mover when I grow up

I haven't updated the blog recently - I have been too busy watching Jacob's every move. He is moving furniture, climbing stairs, sticking his fingers in electrical outlets (they are now covered), trying to run over the cats with his walk-n-ride, pulling out his clothes from drawers, emptying the tupperware cupboard, and kindly reminding me that I need to sweep the floors as he picks up any piece of dirt or lint that he finds and hands it to me. Dennis, er, I mean, Jacob is a very busy little boy.

Look out World!

I hate to say it, but I think it's clear where Jacob got his skills. He drives about as well as I did when I was 16. Hopefully his steering control will improve before he gets his driver's license. Thankfully, we've got a few years to work on this.

They're engaged!

Congratulations on your engagement, Mike and Sarah! We are so happy for you!

Cat toys make me laugh

Mission: Accomplished

After 377 days of breastfeeding I am happy to report that Jacob had his last supper last night. I have been replacing one feeding at a time with whole milk over the last few weeks. For the last week he's been nursing only once before bed. Last night he drank his milk out of his sippee cup around the same time he usually nurses. He had his usual story time and then I think realized he was only getting big-boy milk before bed. He was crying as Scott carried him up the stairs signing "milk" but after a couple of minutes in his crib realized he was plenty full and plenty tired so he went to sleep. He slept all night without a peep and woke up around 8 am this morning. The entire transition was much easier than I had anticipated.

In the early months I wasn't sure how I would ever accomplish this long-term goal. It was a huge commitment but I couldn't be more grateful that we were able to fulfill the task. Thanks to everyone (especially Scott and my nursing mom friends) for your perpetual encouragement and support throughout the year.

Victoria's Secret here I come.

Who pushed fast forward?

Jacob is growing fast! Everyone tells you they grow fast. When you are sleep-deprived and haven't shaved your legs for five weeks it is really hard to believe anything they say. Now, as Jacob is getting a bit more independent and drinking milk from a sippee cup (we're down to one nursing session before bed!) I actually have the chance to sit back and take it all in and it really does feel like someone hit fast-forward.

Jacob has had a busy week. For the past three days he wasn't himself...I think he had a touch of a cold, or is possibly working on cutting a molar. Either way, the poor kid was miserable. Thankfully he slept well last night and it seems he is back to his happy self this morning.

He had his 1 year well check yesterday. He wasn't a big fan of the finger prick to test his hemoglobin but after he got the cool blue crayon band-aid on he thought it was kind of neat. He is just over 20 lbs and his head is still way up there in the 99th percentile.

The other morning I walked in to find him standing up in his crib, he gets to see the world from a front-facing car seat, can get from his tummy to sitting, climbs on his little chair, plays so-big and patty cake, and signs "more" when he wants more to eat. That's a lot going on in a short amount of time for a 1 year old! All I know is that our house is not baby-proofed yet and we had better get on that stat.

We've been trying to sign with him and that helps a bit but you can see the frustration when he is trying to communicate something and can't get his point across. We'll just enjoy these milestones for now. Before we know it he'll be jabbering non-stop. :)

Jacob turns 1!

We celebrated Jacob's first birthday with family and friends on January 1. It was a wonderful day! He thoroughly enjoyed his banana cake that dad made for him. We thought it would be a good idea to try to keep his birthday cake somewhat healthy since he doesn't really get much sugar (other than natural sugar from fruit...I know, I know...we're no fun). For the rest of us, we enjoyed Funfetti cupcakes with Rainbow Chip frosting. Mmmmm! In hindsight, Jacob would have probably enjoyed the cupcake and it would have been fine for him.

It was a fun day. Jacob enjoyed all of his wonderful gifts, the balloons, and even took time to look at his cards.