Dear Bo, You're 11 months old...

Here's what you're up to (you are so busy that I can't get you to sit in the corner of the crib by your pillow with your name on it anymore...):

• Not sure about your height and weight.  We'll go to the doctor next month and see about that.
• You wear size 4 diapers, 12 month clothes, and size 3 shoes.

• You take four 6 ounce bottles a day (4 ounces amino acid formula/2 ounces hemp milk).  We tried you on dairy this month (regular formula and dairy based yogurt), and it was a no go.  You spit up a ton and stopped going to the bathroom.  So for now, I'm planning on transitioning you to hemp milk rather than whole milk.  You take a cup for your first feeding, and we're going to work on eliminating the bottle at the other feedings this month.  You do great with a cup.
• Your favorite breakfast is plain coconut milk yogurt mixed with banana baby food.  You also eat cereal mixed with hemp milk and a fresh banana for breakfast.

• You're eating more big boy food...black beans, sweet potatoes, green beans, spaghetti and lasagna mashed up, potatoes, avocado, and chicken, turkey, or beef ground up.  You love peas, butternut squash, and applesauce.
• You snack on cheerios and Ritz crackers and have 1/3 juice 2/3 water with your meals.
• You're on the same schedule as last month (and the month before that I think):  wake around 7:30 and have a cup of milk, nap around 9:30 for 2-3 hours, have a bottle and lunch, nap for 2-3 hours around 2:30pm, wake and have a bottle, have supper around 6:00pm, bath around 7:45pm, and bath and bottle after that.  You're like clock work on this schedule.  If you're fussing, we can pretty much look at the clock and see what you need.

• You're doing great with sleeping.  I can't recall a time this month when we had to get up in the middle of the night with you (though you did have several spells where you woke up earlier than usual).  You go down easily though you rarely fall asleep in our arms anymore.  We do our routine and put you in bed, and you're fine.  This seems like such a miracle from where you came from.  You love to tuck your arms under you and stick your hiney in the air to get comfortable.
• You only take your paci during naps and at night time.  You've done great getting off the paci!  I'm planning on taking it away completely when you turn 1.  Yikes!
• You crawl everywhere fast and pull up on absolutely everything.  You crawl to us and pull up on our legs and reach for us, and it melts my heart.  

• Despite being only around 3 people day in and day out, you are a friendly little thing.  You don't cry when you go to new people, and you aren't clingy with us.  You don't really have a preference between me or Daddy; you go to us equally generally.

• You're getting more and more verbal, and you love imitating us making different sounds (coughing, etc.).  
• You still have only 2 teeth on the bottom, but I think you're teething this week so we may see more teeth soon.

• You like when we sing to you and read to you, and you always fuss when we're done with a book.
• You still love your Learning Home, your rings, and your music table.
• You love getting into everything--the fridge, the trash can, the kitchen drawers...nothing is off limits.

• You are a giggle box!  I love, love, love your laugh.
• You're great at giving kisses now, but you're only into open mouth ones and you're not afraid to slip the ol' tongue.

I can't believe that next month you will be one.  I am going to relish this last month of you being a baby...

Just look how you've grown: