Peter turns 1 year old

I cannot believe a year has already passed. Although he is now technically a toddler (I am told without question since he is both one and walking), he is still our little bundle of joy. We jointly celebrated our anniversary (same day) and his birthday on the 27th by going to Olive Garden, where he sat at the table in his high chair and behaved very well. He's already started developing those poor eating habits all kids would seem to naturally prefer, scarfing down the bits of breadstick and completely ignoring the delicious parmesan chicken. 

Here is a brief list of his accomplishments to date: 

-Kisses (and lots of them)

-Waves

-Does "SO BIG" (arms up over head)

-Says "bye bye"

-Says "Dada"

-Roars like a lion (actually a gurgling sound in the throat)

-Quacks like a duck

-"Spouts" (?) like a whale (courtesy of our Alaska trip)

-Can kind of blow a kiss

-Walks (started JUST before 11 months)

-Climbs (like out of the bathtub if you're not watching)

-Claps

And there's probably more I'm not thinking of. I hope I can always remember all his different cries. (My favorite being the one that leads up to a yawn (whaa, wha, whoa, oah, ::yawn::). The different looks he gets (waking up my favorite). The funny things he does... I love him so.

Important Milestone Dates

Approx. 5 mo. old - on hands and knees scooting backward, rocking
March 19 - sits upright unsupported
April 1 - crawls forward
April 10 - stands up (holding onto something) by himself
April 26 - first tooth breaks through

Peter's First Movie

I will never forget the first time I watched The Sound of Music. I believe I was about eight years old and we were on our annual two week vacation in Delray Beach at Grandma & Grandpa's house. Although we had quite a library of movies at home, for some reason my parents left out this gem. (Not on purpose, but my guess is probably because it was never playing on TV or owned by a family member for them to record illegally. Thankfully, they don't do that anymore.) I distinctly remember sitting on Grandpa & Grandma's bed and marveling at the delightful story. I was thrilled. And I still love that movie dearly to this day.

A few weeks ago, at less than three months old, Peter watched his first movie: The Sound of Music. He was fussy, and I was out of ideas. I pulled the swing up to the TV, and Maria started serenading him with "The Hills are Alive with the Sound of Music." While he was entertained enough to stop fussing, he did fall asleep about two minutes later.

push-ups

Peter has gotten so strong. This evening I was amazed when I put him on his tummy and he pushed himself up, looking around the room eagerly. I guess it had been a few days since I put him on his tummy! He's figured out how to get his fist to his mouth over the past couple of weeks, and even manages to get his thumb in his mouth sometimes. He's also smiling more and more.

This weekend we enjoyed a visit from Dad Mann & Grammy. We met them in Lexington. We had a great time there, touring the town, despite quite a bit of rain. There was plenty of old architecture to admire and we took a tour of Stonewall Jackson's house. We also enjoyed lunch at a cute little bakery, Sweet Treats, just off main street. I had a gyro.

Peter is sleeping better in his crib (actually a Pack-N-Play) now. He's regularly taking naps there and getting onto a better schedule during the day.

Today he took a pacifier just for the sake of taking a pacifier. Previously we've only been able to "sneak" it into his mouth when he's half asleep.

playing peek-a-boo and first laugh

So many times since Peter was born I have wanted to jump on this website and record some "milestone" moments. But the fact that there is a huge gap from when my hands started to go numb during the pregnancy up to this point has kept me away. However, today I decided that I'll have to fill in the gaps later because too many wonderful things are happening with little Peter to not record them here--this is better than any baby book!

Yesterday Peter and I played peek-a-boo for the first time. I'm not sure if he really understood the entire concept, but I do know that every time I pulled the flannel diaper wipe (yes, it was clean) away from my face and said "PEEK-A-BOO," I could elicit a big smile. Since then I've been able to get some smiles out with peek-a-boo, but I definitely have to have his full attention first. He is starting to get easily distracted. A few things that catch his eye and won't let go: the headboard on the bed and the hutch/bookshelf in the living room. Also the point where the wall meets the ceiling in any room.

And yesterday I heard Peter laugh for the first time. (Thankfully I have recorded the date somewhere on the video camera when he first smiled.) It was late evening and we were standing in the foyer of our apartment building. Peter was very fascinated with the staircase banister. I wish I knew what was so funny, but whatever it was, he was smiling and giggling about it. I love it.

His name is John.

Just kidding! ......We still have to decide on a name. But I was hoping that somebody might see that title and be intrigued to read and perhaps post a name suggestion...

Yesterday I had a "Centering" appointment. I was very thankful that Dustin was able to get off work a little early to meet us at the hospital, where we did a tour. First we watched a video at the doctor's office, which was interesting. Before becoming pregnant and reading about birthing, I had a completely false idea of what pregnancy and birthing was. This video covered the stages of labor. Thankfully, it was not nearly as scary as the last video we watched in class (which covered comfort measures and had a lot of strange women in it making strange noises to "comfort" themselves---which actually made me very uncomfortable). And after going on the hospital tour, I am almost looking forward to the experience. Tammy (one of the three midwives) lead the tour, and after listening to what she had to say, I hope she's the one on call when Baby Mann is born! But actually, they all share a similar philosophy to birthing. I'm so blessed to be able to have a midwife!

One of the things I was most grateful to learn is that they will definitely not push me to get any kind of pain meds or an epidural. In fact, Tammy was even quick to point out all the negative aspects of getting one. At Virginia Baptist Hospital, where Baby Mann will be born, women with an epidural are confined to the bed, must wear baby monitoring hardware continuously, must have an EKG monitor on themselves, and can only have ice chips. Compare that to a natural birth: Can move around freely (which includes use of the in-room whirlpool tub), labor in any position desired, eat and drink freely, and will only have to be bothered by the baby monitoring hardware periodically (except for a 20 minute standard protocol run when you first enter the hospital). And then perhaps the thing I was most excited to hear is that they rarely perform episiotomies and do quite a bit to protect against natural tearing. Tammy said that most women come through "in tact" or with just a few abrasions that do not even require repair. That's encouraging!

Back at the doctor's office, I measured at 30 cm, even though I am 31.5 weeks. Blood pressure was spectacular, and my total weight gain is still within the normal range.