If only I could get Joe to grow a matching mustache ...
I think you all get the idea how we got here. It's the same way we got to the Chili powder pile and the sauce sea. It's the same reason his carseat is perpetually full of snacks. The kid likes to dump his food all over the whole world, then splash around in it. He has a zest for life.
We gave Truman his first haircut last weekend, removing the hockey-hair mullet that had been amassing for months. I cut one side and Joe clipped the other; then I evened the whole thing out.
What emerged was a little boy with an almost immediately thinner face. It's been fun to watch him explore the world with his new hair the last few days. The hair is just an outward sign of an inward transformation.
At 14 months it's becoming more and more apparent how physically adept Truman is. He is impeccably aware of his feet and their position. When placed on a tall surface he will move his upper body while keeping his feet still and firmly planted. He runs "drills" in the house, dodging various obstacles at high speeds and loves to flip (with my aid) and spin. Last night he discovered he could look upside down through his legs if he bends his head down all the way to the ground.
He continues to concentrate heavily on finer motor skill tasks, as well, and is now able to twist lids on and off. He can use a spoon, but prefers his hands. Actually, he prefers tipping an entire bowl up to his mouth as though he were Winnie The Pooh. He still loves food on a stick and can now hold a tooth pick.
He's doing well with potty learning and is starting to tell me when he has to go more often, though the signals are varied and I sometimes get confused until after the fact. Yesterday he even tried to sit on the potty by himself.
He's seems to be taking a detour in the spoken language department, but continues to find more and more non-verbal ways to communicate and continues to enjoy music, exhibiting good rhythm when he plays the keyboard, other instruments or in his dancing.
He loves to kiss and hug and snuggle. He has become incredibly secure with himself while exploring the world and understands that Joe and I have to leave him occasionally but that we come back.
He is incredibly independent when we are out and wants to explore the whole world without holding my hand; yet when we're home he usually wants me near him.
Truman in the grass at 10 weeks:
and now:
He got his first balloon at Trader Joe's this week. His face lit up when he saw it. He kept wiggling his wrist to make the balloon move and once he figured out I could pull it close to him, kept asking me to bring it close so he could stare at it. Then he took a nap with it in the car.
Truman's one. His birthday was a wonderful family get-together involving delcious food and cake. I have more photos and video of him digging in to share, but it may take a bit to blog about. So for now enjoy this:
At twelve months Truman is a 25 pounds on-the-go toddler. It's hard to believe that a year ago I was still waiting for him to come out and say hello. Or, "Hi, I'm new here," to be more exact.
There is so much accomplishment that comes with this birthday for Truman, but also for Joe and I. He has grown from a little, nearly-helpless being into a pint-sized boy who feeds himself, uses the potty, signs for milk and calls my name when he's looking for me. He sings along to music in his own little language, much of which I am convinced is real words pronounced strangely because he hasn't yet mastered the art of uttering them. He says mom, dad, poop, pee and boo often and he has said peak-a-boo, book and hi a few times.
We watched him journey from rolling over at two-and-a-half months to walking at 5 days before ten. Now he runs all over our lawn in his little red shoes bearing the four slow-to-arrive teeth he has.
At a year he loves music, looking at books himself but not reading them, and anything that involves stacking things or placing lids on things. He will sit for 5-15 minutes if concentrating on a task or studying if something will fit inside or stick to something else. As a result, we call him a little scientist or engineer.
Of course with his cool red kicks and harmonica (our birthday gift to him) he looks a lot like a little rocker, too.
I am an entirely different person than I was a year ago. I am calmer, happier and more confident, even if I'm running all over the place chasing a toddler and telling him that crayons are not food for the 100th time. Parenthood is as amazing as everyone said it was going to be and I can't wait for the adventures yet to come. He's a kid now and we're ready to explore the world together.
Rest assured it will be a rock'n, well photographed adventure.
