11 months...

Little Man,

How on earth did you get to be 11 months old already! I'm really starting to worry now, and please oh please slow down! Now in only 4 weeks time, I will have a one year old... and well, that's just too strange... you have grown up way too fast for my liking. Please slow down!

This one will be a long catch-up, as Mummy didn't get to write you a 10-month letter, so I have to cram 2 months worth of baby developments into one. And boy there's lots of things to mention! Where to start...

At 9 months, you were beginning to wave, and well now, its just a given. Every morning when I come in to get you, there's a big wave for me from the cot. When Daddy wakes up he gets one too. The other morning at 5.15am (when you woke you monster!) when it was dark, you were even waving at the dark, no-one there... was so funny.

Another funny thing you did at 10 months, but haven't so much these days, is bending over and looking through your legs. You would just crawl a little, stop, then randomly stick your little bottom in the air and look through your legs. Daddy would copy you and you would even try to reach for him through your legs... oh, I miss this cute little antic. Why don't you do this anymore?

At 10 months you started saying 'Mama'! Yay!! You can now say 'Dada', 'Bubba', 'Mama', 'Nana' and often there is a mixture... the other day in whinging you said something like 'Dada-nana-Mum'... heehee... Now you also say 'Ba' and 'Da' with real purpose, like you are trying to say other things. And you seem to know which of us is 'Dada' and 'Mama' now. Sometimes you call me 'Mum' now, and it also sounds like you say 'bum', haha. Jaidyn is still trying to get you to say 'Jaja' though...

We had our first family holiday in March. We went for a fairly long drive (5 hours) down to Coffs Harbour. You were mostly well-behaved in the car, but you found it quite a game to throw your toys onto the floor... then Mummy would turn around, pick them up and give them back.... then it was fun to do it all over again! I had a very sore back when we got home from twisting around so much! On this holiday, we had a brief visit to the beach (it rained much of the trip), a little swim in our pool, and lots of walking around in the pram for you really while we looked at stuff and while Dad and Jaidyn did things like go-karting. It was nice to all be together though.

You are such a cheeky cheeky little boy! We quite often refer to you as 'terror' or 'monster' these days... 'the Li-Li (pron lie-lie) Monster' is one of your many nicknames. You are constantly into something you shouldn't be. Usually its standing up belting on the TV, or turning the receiver on and off, or pulling out the xbox controllers from behind the speakers... You have also discovered how to open all the cupboards around the place now. You like to get in the kitchen and open the copboards. So far you are not really going into them too much, but it will only be a week or so... yes, we need to get child locks for them all now. You also like the plastic bags kept in the bottom of the pantry, and love to mess them all over the floor. On a number of occasions we have walked into the toilet to find you have unravelled ALL the toilet paper from the roll. We are learning to keep all those doors closed now, but we still accidentally leave them open sometimes. If you are left to wander, you will head into your room (one of the onyl doors not usually closed) and you've now started going into your bin. Yuck. Have to watch you here... what a pain in the butt you are! If its not the bin, you'll pull everything out of your nappy bag, or if your wardrobe is open then that's lots of fun too. And you also like to climb up on top of your toy basket now too. You really keep us all on our toes! If it goes quiet, I think 'Oh no, where's Eli now', usually to find you messing something up, somewhere...

You are so much closer to walking now my darling! You have now mastered standing up without hanging onto anything. Now you can get up from the ground without using the couch to help you. When you first stood by yourself, you would flap your little arms around, making a panting kind of sound with a funny screwed up grin on your face. You were so chuffed with yourself - it was like you were saying "Look at me Mummy!" We are yet to see any actual steps, but I feel its only a bit away before you are confident enough to give it a try. Really need to get some photos of these things...

One thing I am not so happy with is that you are waking, without fail, between 5 and 5.30am. It really stumps me as to why, but I think its either the guy next-door who gets up early and puts his outdoor light on - which shines right into your room; or it's the kookaburras; or just a terribly yucky body clock thing! I DO NOT like it, and I'm starting to get worried about it with the new baby coming along. I will need my sleep then my darling! And, you will be in with Jaidyn for the first few months, and I really don't need him waking that early everyday too! Usually you will have a nappy change (very wet!), and a bottle and go back to sleep, sometimes... I have tried to just lay you down again with your dummy, but you won't go. Maybe I've put you into a bad routine giving you a bottle at that time. I really wish it would stop and you would just sleep right through till at least 6am!

You had your first bout of sickness this month too. We all came down with the tummybug over easter and you got a bit too. There was only a little bit of vomitting, but it really put you off your food, and you're only really getting your appetite back properly in the last week. You also had the runs a bit and such a sore red bottom my darling! You also have a cold, and I think you've had a snotty nose for a good few weeks now, on and off. Now the cough seems to be there. I try to dress you as warm as I can for bed, but sometimes its still warmish when you go to bed, but its rather cold in your room of a morning.

Since being sick, your food tastes have changed somewhat. Suddenly, my mashed vegies for tea are not good enough, and you won't even have one mouthful! We have bought a few of the Heinz jars, which are fine.... you eat them.... you also ate shepherds pie with us the other night, just NOT vegies.... ahhh.... the joys of changing tastebuds. I will not tolerate a fussy child, so I will have to persevere with adding gravy, sauce, cheese, whatever might make it a bit more yummy. And I'll try to vary your diet too sorry babe. Please don't be fussy...

Your have a few favourite games you like to play. Peek-a-boo in the curtains is an all-time fave and you've loved this one for months now. But now its more fun as you can pull the curtain over your face and then when I say 'Where's Eli!?" you pull it off your face and give me the hugest grin. Then we do it again, and again, and again... You also have started loving to play-wrestle with Jai on the loungeroom floor. You often get him in a little headlock between your legs, or you wrap your arms around his neck and she rolls you around on the floor a bit. You both giggle and giggle. Good to see you giving him some back though, and I love watching you play together. You also have this rather particular routine when we walk from your bedroom. I recently painted and put up name letters on your door, so when we walk past your door, you pitch yourself at them to get a touch (sometimes almost falling out of my arms!). I put your hand on each letter as we spell out your name, E-L-I-J-A-H... then we do the same thing on Jaidyn's door, J-A-I-D-Y-N... maybe you'll be able to spell your name early! After we walk past the doors, you lean forward to touch the photoframe (with a family pic pre-Eli) that hangs on the wall next to the kitchen. And it's the same three things every time... so cute. Sometimes you enjoy watching some cartoons on TV. Daddy took these sweet pics the other day as you were watching something exciting. I love the different expressions, even at 11 months!

You are having 2 or 3 sleeps a day still. I tend to try to fit in 3 if we can. If you are up about 6am, you will usually sleep at about 8.30am, then again about 11.30/12pm and then again about 3pm. If you sleep a bit later, you may only have two, but you are more of a problem of a late afternoon then! You sleep about 30mins - 1.5 hours usually. You usually go to bed about 6.30/7pm.

Daddy lost his job a bout 7 weeks ago, so has been home EVERY day with us! You really like having him around. Mummy may be going a little crazy with him here everyday, but you have two parents to play with now. You usually stay home with Dad when I go to work on Wed, Thurs and Fridays. And sometimes if I have other things to do too (the busy life of a Mummy!)... we fear we will have a sad baby on our hands when Daddy goes back to working (which we hope is soon!). Daddy has really been enjoying his time with his little man too, and I think he finally realises that being a SAHM is not all Dr Phil and coffees! lol...

You now have 6 little chompers in your mouth. Chewing is a lot easier for you now, no problems. You got your two top inscisors a couple of days apart from each other, then the two middle ones came through a couple of days apart too. There is no sign of the bottom outside ones yet though. You look so cute when you grin your big cheesey toothy grin at us!

You are in despearate need of a haircut too my darling, but you know what, I'm starting to get a bit attached to your wild messy curls. Your hair has certainly gone curlier since being longer, its my curls coming through I think! You are just so cute, good enough to eat!!

Its hard to believe that we have to start planning your 1st birthday party in a week or so! Oh my! I can't beleive you are at that age already sweetie. I will be sad but happy at the same time - my baby is nearly gone :(

We love you to heaven and back darling xxx