Henry, 1 Year!

Hard to believe that this was our baby boy Henry. He was born at 1:34 pm feet first, baby B until the end. On this particular day he is getting released from the hospital a whopping 15 days old. This outfit is a preemie outfit and he looks A-DORABLE and oh so tiny! SO much has changed since he was born and this is what this Henry bear is up to and loving:

Weight: 21lbs, 13oz (he has gained 16lbs, 11oz)
Height: 28.75" (he has grown 10.25")
For the record Henry is heavier (by 4lbs, 13oz) and shorter (by .25") then Evelyn at 12 months.
Wears: Size 12 months clothing and size 4 diapers. He can still wear 9 month pants because he has shorter legs, he is too long for 9 month one-piece outfits.
Teeth: 4 on top, 2 on bottom

Eating: Only things he is familiar with. Henry is the least "adventurous" of the 3. He hates to try new foods (he knows they are new just from their look) and turns his head away. If I do manage to get any into his mouth he spits it out real fast. He loves his sippy's of milk and he still loves bananas, yogurt, snack food and Tuesday he surprised me and chowed down (with out so much as a sour face or spitting it out) BACON! He was delighted with it's greasy goodness...who could blame him! He is much more open to new foods if he can feed himself.

Diapering: Henry is not content to sit for a diaper change. He has to be moving, just not as energetically as Ella. He does like to turn over, grab his dirty diaper, and "explore" uncharted territory.

Movement: Henry LOVES to walk and must hold on to hands to do so. He is slowly gaining confidence and everyday we swear will be "THE day." His crawl is still the same silly one legged crawl, which a friend of our dubbed his "monkey" crawl. It is pretty silly! His new mad skill is standing unassisted. Henry is SO PROUD of this ability and squeals with delight and looks around at everyone to get their praises.

Toys: Henry LOVES balls, and since his first time with them (June 26th) he has been practicing to play baseball. He like to put toys into bowls or holes and then take them out again. He likes to pull toys out of the toy bins, glance at them and then move onto the next one.

Talking: He loves saying ma-ma, but has developed a love of teasing. He was teasing me by repeating da-da over and over and when I'd say ma-ma he'd come back with da-da, then he'd give me a cheeky smile. He has been also saying "gad" whatever that is.

Games: Henry enjoys games but loves to be at the receiving end. He will occasionally put up one arm for "so big" and giggles at peek-a-boo and stinky feet but rarely covers his eyes. His games are more putting toys in your lap, throwing ball with you and of course his favorite: toy handing. He loves to hand toys to people. But beware: if you take one he expects you to continue to be on the receiving end until there are no more toys in the vicinity. He also likes it when you hand the toys back.

Mommy: I am is still his main gal. He always goes straight for me when he needs something or just to give out his sweet hugs.

Sleep: Henry is an early riser. We are lucky to make it to 6:30a with him. He loves to throw "Mr. Bear" over the crib before naps & nights but then cries and whines when it isn't there to cuddle. He needs his bear to sleep well. He prefers sleeping on his side in an L shape. It's so cute with his chubbiness. Whenever I look at him this always make me smile. Hopefully the awake time will change as he gets older and it's possible that our neighbors car door slamming early in the morning is the source of his awakenings.

Siblings: Henry can be quite the brute. He has no problem plowing over and through his siblings to get what he wants. He has been known to physically grab them and throw them down. If he was a wrestler he would definitely be winning. He enjoys exploring his siblings eyes and ears to their dismay. He also loves or poke Grant's belly button (for whatever reason) and they both get a kick out of this. I love watching these relationships develop.

Laugh: Henry laughs the most when you are silly with him. He loves to be thrown into the air now but not super fast and not when you start at the floor. He enjoys being chased and finds different things to smile about everyday. He is still the flirt and uses his shy smiles to catch the ladies eyes. That has not changed since his first smile. Nearly every female stranger we meet calls him a flirt. Watch out ladies (and watch out mama!)

New: We now brush teeth before bed. Our routine is along these lines: 1. Bath (2x a week), clean diaper and pajamas, brush teeth, kisses, and good nights. On June 27th Henry finally clapped for the first time and finally got to see what his chubba feet tasted like. On the night of the 6th of July the babies had their last bottle (woot-woot!) Henry went camping for the first time the week before his birthday and that week was a whole bunch of firsts: first time sleeping in a tent, first time with his feet in Lake Superior (COLD!), first mosquito bites (he's a true MN now), first time swimming in a lake (he specifically loved picking dirt/rocks up and putting them in his mouth-ICK. When I tried to stop him we had a lot of tears), and he "tried (ie spit out) multiple new foods like mandarin oranges.

What we are loving most about Henry right now: his chubba arms and cheeks, the way he squeals with pride while standing solo, his monkey crawl and his speed, how he often falls asleep during breakfast and is the first to fall asleep in the car, the ladies man title, his love of balls and his natural mad throwing skills, the pursed lip look he has when he is exploring toys, the way he looks like his daddy, his more laid-back personality, we adore you Henry!! And love you way, way more then you know!

Normally I would include a ton of pictures of this last month (and there were a lot of adorable ones) but I wanted to keep it simple and show you Henry today.

That's his favorite bear. Recognize that outfit? Yep, it's the same preemie one he wore on the day we took him home from the hospital. I took this picture as a reminder of how much he has grown and how far he has come. We love you, baby boy Henry bear!! We are just excited about the next year as we were for your first. You continue to amaze and bless us daily. We are so awed by God's gift in you and your siblings. You make us so proud!