Age = 1 year 3 months 14 days

On the right of this blog you’ll see a link that says “Photos of Linus”. This is where I upload the best of the Linus photos, so if you’re interested in checking them out (and if you’re reading this blog, you probably are!), check them out! The only thing is that you have to sign up to Flickr/Yahoo and get my approval before you’ll be able to see my Linus photos, so no more anonymity!!

I know Gaga and Pop-pop etc. are already signed up, so this message is for people who I know aren’t signed up, such as former colleagues who are leaving for South America in a few weeks, and Auckland wives of my husband’s colleagues who I’ve never met!

Age = 1 year 3 months 10 days

Linus’s language skills seem to have suddenly sprung into life over the past month or so.

Understanding

Linus understands a huge number of words now, some accompanied by signs, but most of them verbal only. A sample of the words he definitely understands (when he’s concentrating, at least!):

• shoes
• Mummy
• Daddy
• Nana
• eat
• food
• couch (this refers to his mini-couch, not our main couches)
• duck
• dog
• cat
• ball
• Hairy Maclary

This isn’t really related to language, but he also knows what it means when the phone rings (he points at it) and when the doorbell rings or the front door opens.

Making Sounds

For quite a while Linus has been making a noise like “ouse” (rhymes with house), and we’ve copied him and he’s copied us back, but in the past week or so he’s started copying other noises when we prompt him:

• mama
• dada
• gaga
• pop-pop (although this sounds more like “poppa” when he says it)

There’s been little luck yet on “Nana“, and none on “Granny” or “Claire” or “Andi“. But when we ask him to repeat a word (Linus, can you say “Jasper”?), you can tell by the look on his face that he’s struggling to work out how to go about making the sounds (even though he doesn’t usually make any noise).

It’s so exciting to think that soon he’ll be able to say “Mama” and “Dada” and know what they mean.

Of course it’s also a dreadful thought… he already breaks our hearts when he cries when we leave him somewhere… how much worse is it going to be when he’s calling out our names?!?!

Age = 1 year 3 months 3 days

I’ve been a bit disgusted with myself this weekend. I’ve been feeling full (to the point of feeling sick!) the entire weekend due to the ridiculous amount of gut-rot that’s been leftover since my birthday a couple of weeks ago. It was a fatal combination of chocolate + lolly cake + a complete lack of self-control.

BUT

between bouts of self-flagellation, it occurred to me this afternoon that the “full” feeling could also be described as “nausea”, and a little light bulb went off in my head.

A quick test to the chemist and my suspicion was confirmed – WE’RE PREGNANT!

Age = 1 year 2 months 23 days

For a few months now I’ve given Linus a simple massage when we get him out of the bath. The massage happens thus:

1. After being dried, Linus is laid naked on his back on (ideally) the warm sheepskin in front of the fire;
2. I get the lavender-scented baby lotion out;
3. I put some lotion on my hands and rub it around to warm it up;
4. I put my hands on his shoulders, then slowly rub my hands all the way down his body over his chest, tummy (or detour to the arms), hips, thighs, legs and feet, saying “it puts the lotion on the skin” *.
5. Repeat steps 3 and 4.
6. Sometimes I’ll get Linus to roll over onto his tummy or hands and knees, and I’ll give his back the same treatment.

Linus’s reaction to this massage is great! His eyes light up and look straight at me, he gets a goofy, toothy smile on his face, his arms and legs go stiff, and sometimes he’ll even shudder a bit with excitement.

I don’t know if it’s relaxing for him, but it sure is fun for me! (I’ve even started doing the massage occasionally when he’s got clothes on – although I don’t use the lotion for those ones!)

* This is a quote from the movie The Silence of the Lambs, but we know it better as being quoted on The Family Guy.

Age = 1 year 2 months 23 days

Linus has been feeding himself finger food for a while, but recently I decided to let him try to feed himself with a spoon. This will mean that we’re less tied down to him at his mealtimes, and will also let him have some more control – in a small way – over his own life.

We’ve been giving him the chance to spoon-feed himself once every day or two, and he’s getting better and better at it.

That’s not to say there aren’t some downsides:

1. The mess;
2. The time – 45 minutes instead of 15 minutes;
3. The fact that when he’s “finished” he’s probably managed to get just 1/4 of the food into his mouth (hence we feel like we should still feed him something);
4. The waste.

The self-spoon-feeding works best when you get the food exactly the right consistency so that it will stick to the spoon – Weetbix and a banana mashed up with a little bit of milk is excellent.

Because of the time it takes to let him spoon-feed himself, we also can only afford to do it at some mealtimes: breakfasts on days when Bob and I have to go to work is not an option, and we hardly ever have any time to spare in the evenings. (Ha! If we had time to spare in the evenings, I’d bathe my son occasionally!)