Caden – 13 Months

To make up for Kamy’s shorter post this month, I have a huge update for Caden.  He has been so busy learning and exploring that he comes up with something new all the time!  In my mind, we’ve crossed from baby to toddler … where did my little baby go?

• We have officially moved to 18 month clothes.  At our last doctor’s appointment, our pediatrician was happy with how Caden is growing and his height / weight ratio is staying pretty consistent, despite slow gradual growth.  Considering he was at the 95th percentile for height at 6 months, hitting the 4oth percent at 12 months wasn’t a concern.  He’s still my skinny little boy though, 15th percentile for weight.  I keep expecting a massive growth spurt to happen sometime soon!  Here is my sweet little man:

• Caden has gotten the walking-thing figured out.  He hardly ever crawls any more and walks nearly everywhere.  He learned how to stand up on his own (without pulling up on something or propping himself up) early in the month and it takes him no time at all to get on his feet.  He’s also quite good at squatting down to reach something and then standing back up instead of sitting all the way down.  Caden’s walking is getting quicker too — it’s not quite a run yet, but he can speed up when he wants to.  For example, if he’s doing something he’s not supposed to do and hears you coming, he’ll turn around and hurry away as fast as his little legs will carry him.  I know it’s only a matter of time before I’m chasing him around everywhere.

• Caden also learned that he can point to indicate that he wants something.  He has been pointing for the last several weeks, and often accompanies his point with a “uh?” to get your attention.  He will also lean toward what he wants if you’re holding him, just in case you missed the rest of his clues.

• One of his favorite things to point at is the pull chain on our ceiling fans.  Both the living room and office have ceiling fans that are not controlled by light switches and only have pull cords.  Caden likes to pull on both the light and fan cords, though the light wins out due to the instant gratification.  I make a point of letting him turn on the living room light first thing each morning.

• Caden’s mouth has been really busy this month too.  He finished cutting his fourth molar and now has twelve teeth!  The next round of teeth usually don’t show up until 16-22 months old, but I have a feeling we’ll be seeing them around 14 or 15 months, if he maintains his current pace (a month or so “early”).  At least we have a little break for a bit and he does not have to wear a bib all the time!

• Caden has started to stick his tongue out when he’s concentrating on something!  It is pretty cute to see him playing around, studying something, figuring out how to climb a new challenge with his tongue hanging out.

• Climbing is an instant draw for Caden.  If he thinks he can get on it, he’ll certainly try.  His favorites include climbing on Kamy’s big girl bed, on random shipping boxes from Amazon, and on Kamy’s rocking chair.  He also loves spending time outside or at the park.  He makes a bee-line stairs and is very comfortable going up and down without a problem.

• Our current nickname for him is “little buddy,” or “buddy” for short.  I use it all the time and Kamy has started using it too.  It’s pretty funny when Caden’s crying and Kamy is yelling at him, “It’s okay little buddy!”  They make me smile every day.

• Board books have become extremely popular lately.  Caden loves to read and he’ll happily sit and flip through board books for thirty minutes with you.  Once a book is finished, you can put him down and tell him to get another book and he will walk over, pick out a new one, bring it back to you, and climb into your lap.  He has also learned to say book, or rather, “boo-p.”  There is no doubt about what he wants when he walks over to you carrying a book saying “boo-p boo-p boo-p!”  He’s particularly fond of the touch and feel books and will usually bring those to read first.  He also likes to take your finger and rub it over the pages while you read to him.  He has started pulling Kamy’s books off her shelf too, which is something we’ll have to address soon.  He is not careful enough to have “floppy” page books but since the kids are both about the same height there aren’t many places I can put them that Kamy can reach but Caden can’t.

• Caden’s language development has really sped up lately.  He understands a lot of what you ask him to do and is trying to mimic the words you say.  He can say “up, down (dow), eat (ah-t), book (boo-p), cat (at), and ball (bah)” in addition to mama and dada.  The ones I hear most frequently are up and ah-t because the poor boy is always starving.  =P

• Along with learning how to express himself clearly, he’s also been trying out a whiny, fussy voice while talking.  The first few times he did it Daddy and I just bust out laughing, it was so pitiful!  He has not learned that is not the way to get what he wants in this house.

 

• Instead of using the pack n play as jail for when he does something he is not allowed to, we’ve transitioned to putting him in his room by himself.  The room is child proofed, so there’s not much he can get into.  It makes him so mad!  He just stands at the door and bawls until you come get him a few minutes later.  Sometimes he even bumps his hand or his head on the door to make sure you can hear him.  Poor baby, maybe he’ll learn the rules quicker this way.  So far we’ve only used it a few times now that he has started to test those rules that he knows — especially standing on the bricks by the wood burning stove.  He knows he’s not allowed there and when he looks right at you as he’s climbing up, you know it is not an issue of comprehension.  Are we to the testing phase with him already?!  Lol.

• Caden loves to tickle and be tickled.  He will come up to you and rub his hands over your tummy or arm or leg (or wherever he can reach), and “dukaduka” until he gets a response.  The bigger the response, the better in his eyes!  He’s tried tickling the cats, but Charley just looks at him like he’s crazy.  And tickling yourself (or the dishwasher!) doesn’t really work either.  Goofy boy!

• Lastly, Caden has a tendency to rummage through the shoe bin by the back door, pick one out, and carry it around the house.  I find solo shoes all over the living room, office, kitchen, and hallway every day.  He mostly grabs Kamy’s or my shoes for some reason, though Daddy’s or his are fair game too.  Caden’s other favorite thing to dig out and carry around are tupperware lids.  He likes to grab a few ziploc lids from the lower cabinet and chew on them while I’m cooking in the kitchen.  I think I wash more lids than anything else these days!

Overall, Caden is such a happy little boy.  He has a goofy personality that is so much fun to be around.  The ladies at the church nursery say he is doing so great and they love spending time with him.  His smile is infectious and he wants to be a part of whatever you are doing.