updates schmupdates

we are in the process of reformatting our home computer and loading some new software ... so it may be a few days before I have new pics and videos to post. I do have some good ones coming though!

updates ... henry is now signing "more" and "please" and he can almost get "bird." we are working really hard on "thank you" and "all done." nothing doing there yet. I also have some of him laughing ... which are funny because he has the classic little, and sometimes big, giggle. it just makes you want to laugh and smile, its precious!

he has tried some new foods ... brunswick stew, chicken corn chowder, strawberry flax seed waffles (they are good-promise!), and lentil soup. loved all of them, especially the lentil soup. this boy LOVES any kind of legume, its wild. tonight he tried mandarin oranges (not crazy about these yet) and some hebrew national beef franks. these are 100% beef franks with no artificial anything ... I've never been a huge fan of hot dogs. they taste fine, but the process and ingredients always grossed me out. my sister in law told us about these franks and they are tasty and non-pork. for those of you that don't know, I gave up pork (along with soft drinks) at the first of the year. gary hasn't really had any either , but is claiming he is on the fence. this has made menu planning during the week a little more challenging since we often made a pork tenderloin or grilled bone-in chops. we have tried to replace that meal with some sort of fish. the hardest part about the non-pork diet is not eating salami, which was a favorite of mine on a sandwich.

henry is not walking yet. he will walk if you hold his hands and will walk around something he can hold on to, but hasn't tried any steps on his own yet. I'm sure it is coming but he can take as much time as his heart desires. he is a very fast crawler now though!

he has learned the commands (not to sound like a dog trainer) "sit down" and "no." we are working on "come" and he responds to that when he wants to ... which can test one's patience at times, but I know he will get it soon enough. we are working on "stay" by using a blanket and trying to get him to stay on the blanket with his toys until we ask him to come. we just started this so it means nothing to him right now.

he is a picky book-reader ... meaning that the books he likes to read he will read over and over and over again. but the books he doesn't like, he tries to close right away and will literally start crying and throwing a fit if you continue to try to read it. I don't know why this happens. any moms out there encountered this? when does this get better? it is weird. any thoughts/comments/suggestions are most welcome!

he has gotten to the point where he is cutting back his morning nap to 45 minutes to an hour so that his afternoon nap will remain the same length. and, from thanksgiving until the new year, he struggled with sleeping at night due to his teeth and being sick. he would rest well a couple nights a week and be up a lot at night the rest of the week. this made for a long six weeks, but no complaints from us because he has always been a good sleeper, and for that we have been thankful. after the first of the year his sleeping went back to normal until mid-january. then went back to being off until mid-week last week. as I write this, I am worried about jinxing things ... anyway, here's hoping that he continues to sleep normal except on occasion rather than the norm.

nursing is done ... he is eating whole milk completely now. I have mixed emotions. looking back it was a fast but long, easy but hard, rewarding but trying, almost 13 months. I could write more but I won't. all in all, I am extremely grateful for that time we spent together. so sweet!

*countdown to Michigan: 4 days!*

well, I spoke to soon ... henry just woke up from sleeping and is crying out for some reason ... so have a great week!