Officially 10 months!

Last week Hunter officially turned 10 months old!
These are all the things he can do:
Physical:
Crawl (quickly)
Walk pushing a toy
Climb stairs
Bend down and pick up a toy and stand back up
Pull himself to a stand and "cruise"
Stand while clapping or drinking his sippy cup
Dance without holding onto anything

It is very clear to me that Hunter has both the balance and the coordination to walk. I expect it to happen any day now!

Cognitive:
Turn pages of a book
Remember where to touch on touchy books
Anticipate (for example when i come towards him with a wipe he closes his eyes and turns away)
Put sunglasses on his face by himself!
Kiss
Clap
Understand "no!" and "yay" and "yes"
Recognize words (ball, balloon, more, cheese, banana, hungry, bottle, mommy, daddy, dog, Thor, Nala, words to songs) and probably more that I can't think of right now

This week Hunter said his first word: balloon. He is obsessed with balloons and if you say the word he looks up at the ceiling (where his balloon has been resting for the past 4 days). He can also say Mommy, Daddy, ball and is working on "dog".

We are so very proud of our little guy. He's feeding himself with his hands (i'm not brave enough to try the spoon yet). He gives me an adorable little smile when he's doing something that he knows is troublesome - like squeezing the banana through his fingers to make mush instead of eating it!

My very favorite thing that he does is look at me in my eyes, because I know that he is entirely in love with me as I am with him. His giggle melts my heart and his smile (grin) makes me fall in love with him every time. There really is something special about this little guy.

When we're out in public he recognizes "big kids" and wants to watch them. If given the chance he will try to play with them. If he is around a younger baby he is very gentle and will nicely pat their head. I know for sure that this little guy wants siblings because of the way he interacts with others. He seems to understand the merits of sharing, and frequently takes food out of his mouth to put it into mine. He thinks that this is the funniest thing ever.

When he cries, Nala howls or whines. He's figured out the cause and effect, and when he's done crying he will frequently make crying sounds and then pause, wait for her to cry, then do it again.

When he's trying to learn a new word he watches my mouth intently, trying to understand the way I am forming the words. Then he attempts to parrot me. His words do not sound like the way I pronounce my words, but it is evident that he is trying to say what I am saying, so I give him full credit.

In other news, my brother found out that he matched for his residency program, but we will not find out where he is going until Thursday. I am so very proud of him!

Grandpa Terry and Hunter look at the balloon. Hunter plays with the dogs (and the dog door, which he has pretty much figured out at this point). He plays with his friend, Ty, who is 13 months and fully walking on his own. These boys are going to cause trouble together one day!





We were also lucky to have Jaclyn and Andrew (12 months) come visit us last week. Andrew is a VERY big boy - so he dwarfs Hunter. He was kind enough to let Hunter hitch a ride in the back of his stroller. Hunter also played with Daddy while daddy assembled his potty (yes, we are starting potty training) and played in Metlox plaza.

It was a fun week. We can't wait for another one!