Braylen is ONE!

This little guy...

1 month

is now this big guy...

12 months!

Getting a good giraffe shot was nearly impossible this month.  He will not lay still.  Having someone else wrestle him to get his diaper changed is such a relief to me.  I wish I knew this stage would end, but since I am still fighting with Evie to lay still, it will be another year or two.  Sigh.

But I digress...

Braylen is ONE!  No measurements until 13 months.

(I left my brain in the delivery room at HCGH about 36 months ago... so please bear with me on all the random thoughts in every blog post.  That's why it takes me so long to get anything written- I have serious mommy brain.)

Tidbits about my one year old boy-

Fine Motor Skills
The more simple the toy, the longer Braylen will sit and figure it out.  He likes stacking cups, blocks, stacking rings, and pulling all the pieces out of every puzzle on the shelving unit.  Daddy's old Blackberry is another favorite toy and major source of tension between the kids.  BOTH of them have Blackberries and still fight over them.  I don't even have a Blackberry or Smartphone!  It does amaze me how he will sit there and look like he is texting.

Without fail, the Eagles sweatshirt :)

All 3 of them on their darn phones

My favorite kind of toy- simple, no lights, no sounds

Braylen is getting into one of my favorite phases- putting objects in a box/container.  That means I will have a clean-up helper!

Gross Motor Skills
I thought Braylen was going to walk before Evie did.  He still has a few more days to prove me right though.  He can get around very well holding onto furniture.  No standing alone or walking alone yet.  At this point, I am ready for him to walk on his own.

Braylen is very steady and efficient on the stairs.  He knows to go down backwards and has followed Evie's example of how to lift up your feet to get maximum speed going down.

Luckily Braylen doesn't have that kind of speed yet, but listen as his coach encourages him :)

Sleep

I am trying to get Braylen down to only one nap for selfish reasons (i.e. being able to get out of my house in the morning!), but he is still a solid two naps/day type kid.  He wakes up around 7 AM, naps from 9:30-11 AM, naps again 1:30-3 PM, and goes down to bed around 7:30 PM.  He is still waking up once a night for some mommy snuggles.  For the most part, I can get him back down within 30 minutes (usually with the help of some teething tablets and a few drop of milk- there really can't be much left at this point).

Food/Drink
I packed up the pump and bottles on December 1st.  Neither of us were interested in those things any longer and it was a perfect time to say good-bye to that phase in his life.  He drinks formula, water, and whole milk from a straw cup.  He tried whole milk a few days before his birthday and didn't bat an eyelash.  There are a few scoops of formula left, so he'll get a little bit more over the next few days, then adios formula!  Thank you Braylen for making these transitions so easy!  I still nurse him in the morning and bedtime, but I think he would do fine if I didn't.

Braylen eats four meals a day.  With that mid-morning nap time, it's hard to squeeze in a snack before lunch.  He enjoys mac n cheese, all cheese products in general, chicken, peas, pancakes, toast with butter, straight up hummus, guaco, banana, apple pieces, green beans, and crackers.  Eggs and yogurt are hit or miss.  I need some new ideas for him!  Moms- please pass on some ideas, especially quick snacks.  Raisins give him belly aches.  I will admit that I am slacking on offering veggies since he stopped purees.

Social
As with most babies, Braylen prefers his mommy; however, he really didn't go through a major stranger anxiety/attachment phase.  He stayed in the nursery at church two times and was an angel.  I have a babysitter once a week for the kids and he is content with her.  He's fine while I am gone, but as soon as I come back, he wants me immediately.

Evie is obviously his first (play)mate.  He likes to see what she is doing and be near her.  He puts up with a lot of hits, shoves, and pins from his sister.   Evie will always be the boss, but soon enough he will be pinning her.  On 90% of our play dates, Braylen is the youngest one.  I guess that's the deal with two kids.  I wish Evie had school or something to allow me some alone time with Braylen at a library class or play date geared towards his age group.

Randomness
Braylen loves to imitate his sister.  I will hear the two of them fake burping for minutes.  So inappropriate, but I love hearing them giggle at each other's burps.  Evie is helping Braylen learn to clap.

Even though I give him teething tablets 3 times a day (oops!), no new teeth have popped through.  One year, 6 teeth.

Braylen doesn't have an extensive vocabulary.  "Uh-oh" is about it.  Being around other boys, I know boys tend to be behind girls in this department.  One chatty Cathy is all I need right now.

Braylen is a serious right thumb sucker.  His thumb is raw and chapped from all the sucking.  I try to distract him by giving him a spoon or something else to hold (you might have noticed in video).  Now Braylen hangs out with a spoon or fork hanging out of his mouth.


Excuse me for yelling at Evie... Just keeping it real

Braylen is such a sweetie and has totally changed my heart about wanting a sister for Evie.  He balances out our family.  I am excited for the next year of his life because I know LOTS of changes are coming!