My boy is ten months old.

He is such a sweet, happy boy. Tonight I told Josh that I’ve never known a happier person. He is full of joy: it exudes from his face like sunshine. He smiles, and giggles, and squeals with delight. Even when he’s sick, he has a quick and easy smile for anyone he sees. He likes to lean over backward from the high chairs in restaurants and smile at other patrons. He has a habit of flirting with any stranger who comes near, and then hiding when she looks at him.

He is a very active baby. He never stops moving, from the moment he wakes up (which he does instantly, just like Josh, but with a wide smile). He is crawling rapidly all over the house and climbing up onto everything. He can handle stairs like a pro (on his first and only try as we don’t have any!) and stands on his tippy toes or another object to try and reach things we have pushed out of his reach. He makes messes all over. He is always emptying baskets, boxes, bags, pulling out all the wipes from the container, unrolling the toilet paper, taking my shoes out of their boxes…as fast as I can pick the messes up he makes more!

He changes so much every day! He is now regular-crawling in addition to the army crawl. He still prefers his army crawl because it’s so quick, but he uses true regular crawl to get to his feet faster or climb over obstacles. He says “uh oh!” and it’s the cutest thing ever. He uses it in different ways. We have the standard “uh-oh I dropped something/fell down” and also “uh-oh I’m about to drop something which I will expect you to pick up” or “UH OH I am not sure what is going on!” or “Uh-UH-oh I AM YELLING!” Each use is adorable. He is also waving! It is so cute!! His little hand bends at the wrist with a slight angle. He likes to wave to strangers and win them over to his side. It always works.

Tonight he signed “hungry” twice! I am so excited for him to start communicating with me!!

He claps when he is excited, also. You will see his clap in the pictures on this post!

He has five teeth now, and I am constantly surprised at how big and grown up they are! I can hear him crunching on things with them sometimes and it’s such a funny sound! He occasionally bites me, but I think he’s starting to understand “no.” When Josh or I say “NO” to him very firmly he crinkles up his little face and cries. I think the fact that it makes him sad must signify that he understands. 

He is still a great eater, but is now insisting on eating what we eat. Sometimes I can facilitate this, but oftentimes what we are eating is too crunchy/chewy/spicy for him. He makes a tremendous mess. His new thing is putting food on his head. I have NO idea why. At first Josh kind of scolded me for teaching him that – except that I didn’t! He came up with it on his own. 

He is still nursing. Our goal is still to make it to one year. Some days I think he will never be done by then, and other days I think he won’t make it to a year. I know I’ll have a  really hard time with it when it ends. I am not going to force to persuade him to continue; my plan is to let him decide when he’s done. 

His hair is really taking off! You can see its peak in a lot of these photos.

He is still a very talkative baby. He makes noise pretty much all the time. He can make a clicking sound (I say he is speaking Swahili) and then blabbers on in noises that sound like a conversation. He smacks his lips, which is funny and perplexing. He will make a very serious face and speak right to you. I wish I knew what he was thinking!

His little personality is really coming through now. He bops up and down by bending his knees while standing in his version of “dancing.” He bounces up and down on his knees when he gets excited. He also does this funny head nodding thing where he nods his head vigorously and quickly and sometimes bumps it on a table or the floor. He likes to pick up something soft (like a shirt or a diaper) and shake it with full up-and-down arm and leg extensions while breathing excitedly (like he was hyperventilating). It’s so funny and cute that we just can’t get enough of it. If you hand him a piece of clothing while changing his diaper you can usually get this show.

Nothing is safe from his grasp. We have to keep the toilet seats closed at all times, because he can drop things into them. He figured out how to flush the toilet. He can open drawers and cabinet doors, although it’s on accident and he usually doesn’t…but if you open one, it’s fair game! He will empty that cabinet faster than you can pick it up behind him. 

Lately, he’s been falling asleep when we walk in the evenings, and we will try to keep him awake by saying his name and tipping the stroller back to look at him. He opens his eyes and instantly smiles and flings his arms and legs in the air and then is instantly back asleep. It’s amazing. Tonight he couldn’t stay awake. josh was poking him and playing with his face and he smiled but couldn’t even open his eyes. hehehe.

I love when I’m holding him and he takes his squishy, warm hand and pats my face, or grabs my eyelashes. He has fallen asleep on my chest with one finger through my necklace countless times when he’s in the sling or carrier. He likes to touch my hair, my ears, and hold my hands or pinch my arms (gently now). He still likes to put his fingers in my mouth, usually hooking his pointer finger between my lips and trying to pry them open. When I pretend to bite them he laughs hysterically. He will do this deep chuckle that comes from his belly and then break into a giggle that includes a long “ahhhh!” in between, as though he’s too delighted to even continue laughing. 

I love to sink my lips into those pillowy soft cheeks of his. They are so soft, warm, and inviting. He likes to be kissed and tickled and will giggle the whole time. My favorite sound in the world is his whisper when he wakes up in the morning and snuggles with me. He whispers his gibberish to me in the softest little voice.

Every time I pick him up I squeeze him tightly and have the urge to squish him and keep him this size forever. This age is so fun. As excited as I am for him to walk and talk, I know I’ll miss those baby cheeks, and his cute noises, his chunky thighs and his little chubby hands. Every moment with him is a special gift that I cherish. I wish I could save each one! In the meantime my hard drive and phone fill up with photos, each more cute than the last.

As I am certain you can ascertain by now, I REALLY REALLY love this baby. He is the joy of my life.