Our Crazy Life: 13 Months Old

Ethan and Mia turned 13 months on January 19th! Ethan has taken his first steps (on January 17th!) He'll take a few here and there but then falls down. He has a tonka truck that he walks behind as he pushes it. He'll do that with anything that will move. He's getting better and better. I really hope that both kids are walking by the time Baby #3 comes! He has added a few new words to his vocabulary. He now says, "oh no" and unfortunately now says the word, "no." I got after him one day and he said to me, "no, no, no, no, no." I couldn't believe my ears. I don't use the word no with the kids because I didn't want them saying it back to me. I couldn't figure out how he learned it until later that night. Ethan got into something and in response, Mike said, "no, no, no, no, no." Ethan says it constantly. It's hard not to laugh when he says it. For example, I was trying to read for a class for work and went into a quiet room. Ethan crawled after me and started banging and crying at the door, so I let him in. He was extremely loud, so I had Mike come and get him. Mike told Ethan to come on and Ethan looked at him and said "no." Mike said it at least 3-4 times and each time, he said "no." Mike and I were both cracking up by the second no. Ethan has developed quite the temper. He gets really mad really fast but it doesn't last long. I think he has Mike's temper. Again, it's hard not to laugh at him when he is throwing a tantrum. He usually gets mad at a toy, which makes it even funnier! I've realized that Ethan is very accident prone. He hurts himself at least 2-3 times per day. He always has at least 2-3 bruises on his head and various bruises and scratches all over his body. He's a tough little boy and doesn't usually cry when he is hurt. The only way I know is when I see the bruises. He had his first fat lip last week. I was playing his favorite game, "I'm gonna get you" and he was crawling away from me as fast as possible and he face-planted it on our floor. Ethan is getting really picky with eating. He used to eat everything we gave him, but not anymore! It's getting hard to get him to eat. He loves yogurt melts, lil crunchies, ritz crackers, peanut butter, english muffins, bananas, peas, yogurt, and anything sweet. If we give him something that isn't on this list, he spits it out.

Mia still doesn't have any teeth. I thought for sure her bottom teeth were coming in. I guess they'll come when they come. She has really started pulling herself up on things. She'll stand and let go for a few seconds but then gets scared and falls down. We've been working with her at walking but she's not quite ready for her first steps. Ethan continues to be the instigator and Mia the follower. She's no innocent little girl though! She joins right in! They make quite the messes together. She still tends to be the aggressive one. She'll pull Ethan's hair, scratch him, and push him. If she sees Ethan crawling towards me, she'll lunge at me, grab onto me, and then either pull his hair or push him. The funny thing is that Ethan is the faster crawler, so he'll take a toy from her and crawl as fast as he can away from her. She usually throws quite the fit! He's passive-aggressive! Mia is my affectionate one. I get dozens of kisses and hugs from her each day. She loves to sit on your lap and be held! Mia is still my little shadow. She follows me everywhere and doesn't get too far away from me! Mia says "uh oh" quite a bit. She uses the same tone of voice as I use when I say it. It's amazing how much they catch onto things. She isn't as picky as Ethan but I can tell that she is getting pickier. Her favorite things to eat are lil crunchies, yogurt melts, yogurt, any kind of fruit, peas, beans, peanut butter, english muffins, ritz crackers, and anything sweet.

Both kids have been sleeping through the night! Hallelujah! (Mia has for months. Ethan, for the past week.) We finally figured out with Ethan that he needs a bedtime snack and then we play with him until he's completely exhausted. They get their bottles and then it's off to bed. They both have been going to bed on the later side, around 9:30pm. Some nights I am ready for bed before they are! They both completely wear us out each day! I can't believe how much energy they have. They crawl all over the place and get into everything. My house is a complete disaster most days!