Zeke is 15 mo old!

Zeke has changed so much since his birthday! He was 15 months back on August 20th.

Zeke has recently dropped to 1 nap a day (booo!!!) and that transition is ROUGH. He's making it until around 12-12:30 before falling apart. He will sleep 1.5-2 hours and goes to bed around 7-7:30. He is sleeping all night and wakes around 6:30-7:00. Sometimes he will wake up and drink a lot of water and go back to sleep.

He is still a great eater! He loves fruit and pretty much anything. Zeke weaned from nursing soon after he was 15 mo. It went fairly smoothly. Jared handled bedtime for a few days. 

Zeke loves to be outside. He will bring us his shoes when he's ready to go out. :) Just like the other kids, he loves playing in the dirt and getting filthy!

At 15 mo., he had just the 4 teeth....two on top and two on bottom. He has several more ready to break through.

Zeke weighed 22lb 4oz and was 31.5 inches at his 15 mo. check up. That's 42% for weight and 63% for height. He is growing well!

Zeke babbles a lot and I'm starting to understand a bit of it. His "bye bye" is very clear.

Here's Mae at 15 months old. They were doing so much of the same things. 

Zeke is 12 months old!

Zeke's first year flew by to me! He has grown and changed so much in the last couple of months!

• Zeke is still on the same routine as last month, except he's waking a little earlier in the mornings. He is pretty much sleeping all night, but occasionally he will wake up and have trouble going back down. He is waking up around 6:30....sometimes 6 and sometimes 7. Nap #1 is around 8:30-9 for 1.5 hours and nap #2 is around 1:30-2 for 1.5 hours. Bedtime is by 8. I am hoping that he can keep the two naps through the summer to keep the later bedtime. 

•  Zeke finally has a tooth! Just one and it is about half way in. The other bottom one is almost through and his upper gums are swollen, so I think he will get a mouth full of teeth in the next few months. 
• He is still a great eater. He has 3 meals and two snacks a day. His favorite foods are blueberries, cheese, yogurt and any kind of treat. Anytime he sees anyone eating, he will constantly 'ask' for food by whining and pointing.
• Zeke is a pro at picking his own blueberries now. Here's a video.

• He is still nursing in the mornings, after the 2nd nap, and bedtime. 

• Zeke is kind of a quiet baby, but has started saying a few words here and there. He will point at things and say "that", especially when he wants something. He can also say bye bye, Bo, a very hard to understand Thank You, and will occasionally whine "mama" when he is tired. 
• He LOVES to be outside! He plays in the dirt, splashes in any water, explores anything around him, and just has fun.
• Videos:
• Zeke loves to roll around on our new plush rug.
• Zeke fell asleep in the car one day and was snoring when we got home.
• Zeke playing in a small puddle 
• Zeke playing with his toys (before his haircut!)

Zeke had plenty of opportunities to eat birthday cake!

He loved playing with all his birthday cards:

The big kids were excited about his birthday. He had his first powdered donut for breakfast that day. :)

And he had a brownie for a snack:

All the kids at one year old:

Zeke one through twelve months:

Happy Birthday Zeke! 

Zeke is 11 months old!

I can not believe Zeke is already 11 months old! Why am I always surprised when the baby is close to a year old? It goes by so quickly!

• Zeke is still on the same routine as last month. He is sometimes sleeping all night from bedtime until morning and sometimes he will wake around 3. He naps around 9 for 1.5h and again at 1:30 for 1.5h. We've had a couple of short nap days, but he doesn't seem to cranky afterwards. 
• He wakes in the morning around 6:30 if he sleeps all night and 7-7:30 if he woke during the night. Bedtime is dependent on naps, but usually 7:30ish. He is still in our closet at night, but I've just moved him upstairs to the boys' room for naps and that went fine. 
• He is nursing in the morning, after the 2nd nap, bedtime, and during the night if he wakes. I dropped the after 1st nap session just a week ago and have started giving him a sippy of almond milk and a small snack in place of the nursing. He isn't crazy about the almond milk, but will usually drink a couple of ounces. 
• Zeke is eating great still. Breakfast is usually 1/2 banana and either cheerios or part of a waffle with peanut butter. For lunch he either has leftovers from the night before, a small PB sandwich, or a black bean and cheese quesadilla with fruit of some kind. Supper is whatever we are having. Depending on what time we will be eating supper, he may have another fruit in the late afternoon. If we eat supper early, I will usually give him some bites of greek yogurt before bed. He is a great eater! I've noticed he is drinking a lot of water since we've been outside more too. 

• He loves to wave to people and that is one of my favorite things he does! Those little fingers opening and closing are so sweet. He will wave on command and sometimes just when someone new comes into the room or we are leaving somewhere. 
• Zeke is so active! He is all over the place and getting to be a fast walker. He loves to walk and squeal at the same time. I'm glad we've got carpet in the bedrooms because he gets silly sometimes and just falls over. He also does a funny wiggle where he shakes his head side to side. He started doing it when I would change his diaper and was trying to keep him distracted from trying to roll over. Now he will try to walk and wiggle. Here's the video! 
• He loves to mimic us and will stick out his tongue if we do and he tries to make the sounds we make. So far he can pretty clearly say "bye bye" and says "dada" all the time and when Jared comes in the room. 

• As you can see, still no teeth for Zeke! His bottom left one is right there, so it should be in soon! 
• His hair is also getting crazy. I know it needs to be cut. I just haven't taken the time to make an appointment! 

• Zeke LOVES to be outside. He is so content to just wander around and explore and is so easy going! He always seems to have a stick in his hand. 

• Zeke loves to play ball! Here's a fun video of him.
• He still does fine in the play pen for independent play time a couple of times a day.
• He is such a joy to us and I can't believe he will be ONE soon!

Here they all are at 11 months old. 

Zeke is 10 Months Old

Zeke is 10 months old! I can't believe how close we are getting to his first birthday. This year has flown by! 

• Zeke's growth has slowed a lot in the last couple of months because he is always moving! He's in a size 4 diaper and 12 mo clothes. 
• Naps are still the same from last month. Two naps a day, each around 1.5 hours long and bedtime about 4 hours after the last nap ends. He goes down for naps with just a little fussing and goes to bed without a peep.
• He is consistently waking once a night and will occasionally sleep through. Once he did 8pm-7am! He usually wakes around 3:00, nurses, and goes right back to sleep. Since we moved, he's been sleeping in the pack and play in my closet. 
• He is continuing to nurse well in the morning, after naps, bedtime, and if he wakes at night. 

• He is eating 3 meals a day now and pretty much loves everything we eat. And he will eat and eat and eat! I went out to supper with some friends a couple of weeks ago and Zeke sat in the high chair and ate for over an hour.
• Zeke is officially walking now! He took his first steps on March 2nd and is now walking more than crawling. He will just toddle around and squeal so happily! 

• Still no teeth for Zeke. I think there's a little swelling on his bottom gums, so maybe they will pop through soon. 

• Zeke has such a fun little personality and will smile anytime you tease or talk to him. He also leans towards other people when they talk to him if I am holding him. He is just such an easy going baby! 
• He is doing so well with independent playtime in the play pen. I have it in the living area over by the stairs, so he can see me from the play pen while I cook supper. I was afraid he would cry to get out, but he is fine playing and looking out the window. He still goes in at least 2 times a day.
• He loves to play chase and peek-a-boo and little songs like "Itsy Bitsy Spider" and "Pat a Cake" and laughs at himself some times. Ha!

• His hair is out of control! I can't believe how long it is!!

• He will occasionally wave on command and babbles a lot. He hasn't said any intentional words that I've noticed. 

• Most mornings we take a walk and Zeke is so content to ride in the stroller and watch the big kids ride their bikes and run around. Thanks to Lindsey for the durable double stroller. We are putting some miles on it! 

•  In the mornings, Zeke comes in bed with me to nurse and the other kids are usually up or getting up. I love when they all pile in bed and snuggle/play!

• Zeke loves to play outside. I've finally accepted that he's old enough to get on the ground and get dirty. He is learning not to eat sticks, rocks, dirt, and grass. :)

All four kids at 10 months old. Who does he favor to you? 

Newborn, 2 months, 4 months, 6 months, 8 months, and 10 months!

Zeke is such a joy to all of us! 

Zeke is 9 months old

NINE months old! How in the world????

• I feel like I could just link to Mae's 9 month post and say "he's doing ALL the same stuff" because he pretty much is! He has so much more hair than any of the other kids did at this age.

• Zeke's 9 month check up is next week, but I am guessing he's easily over 20 lbs....maybe 22? 
• He's in a size 4 diaper and 12 mo clothes.

• His naps are almost always 1.5 hours long now, which is great. He is up around 7, but sometimes I have to wake him up by 7:30. He naps around 9 until 10:30, then again at 1:30-3. He may fuss a few minutes before going to sleep, but it's pretty much easy now (YAY!). Bedtime is around 7 and he almost always falls asleep nursing still. 
• Night sleep was pretty good for the last month. He would wake once around 3-4, but the last few nights he woke around midnight and again early morning. I'm sure some sleep training would fix that, but with moving soon, I think that will disrupt anyway, so I'm just not going to put any effort into it now. I can feed him for 10-15 minutes and be back in bed and asleep quickly.
• He continues to nurse well in the morning, after naps, and at bedtime, then when he wakes at night. 

• Zeke still LOVES to eat. I have added breakfast here and there and hope to get it added daily in the next month. His favorite food is probably bananas. He starts kicking and squealing when I'm peeling it and lunges after it if I'm too slow. He also likes chicken, roast, chili, green beans, black beans, diced grapes, diced blueberries, bits of cheese, crackers, and much more. Here's a video of Zeke eating (and playing). 
• Zeke still doesn't have any teeth! Arabelle and Bo cut their first teeth in their 6th month and Mae was in her 10th month, so he should get some teeth soon. 
• He started bathing in our bathtub without the infant seat and is doing okay with that. Of course, he keeps trying to stand up or pull the drain plug, so he is also learning what "no" means. :)

• Zeke is such a busy boy! He is all over the place, eating anything he finds on the floor, pulling up, letting go and standing alone for a few seconds, cruising along the furniture....just all over! Here he is showing some of his skills. 
• He is doing really well with independent playtime in the play pen. He still fusses for about 5 seconds when I put him in and leave the room, then he's fine. He likes to throw the toys out now. Ha! 
• Zeke woke up from a nap recently and I found him like this....one arm out. Ha! He seemed so confused. A couple of days later, he did it again. 

• He has learned to clap, bounce up and down to music, and will wave bye-bye. He is such a squealer too! 
• I have always said that 9-12 mo is my favorite baby stage and I know why now! Zeke is SO fun! He will mimic what we do. We had company over one afternoon and the other mom was holding Mae upside down. I was holding Zeke and he starts leaning over to the side for me to flip him over. When I did, he laughed and giggled so much!
• Arabelle thinks Zeke is her little toy doll sometimes. 

Zeke is such a fun and easy going baby......we love him so much!