13 Months

13 months!

Okay everyone, I made it to my goal of "official" monthly pictures and milestone markers for the first 12 months of Ezra's life.  It just about pushed me over the edge especially near the end, but I will say it feels good to have stuck with it.  Now you get the relaxed version and updates.  ;)

At 13 months we have an active little guy.  He has been walking most of this month but just in the last week is gaining his confidence to walk all over the house and a little in the community.  It's pretty hysterical to watch him, arms up, smile on his face, and charging around the house.  And depending on how his balance is sometimes he is grabbing his head, or his hair, or death grip on his tummy.  Sometimes I imagine the whole world walking around this way and what I funny sight it would be.

He kicked off his thirteenth month with the church games night and enjoying time playing with the kids, and his last evening with Grandma Jolliff visiting.

Games night at church

Playing with a friend

He has 2 new teeth this month, one and incisor and I think one of them is a molar!  Both teeth are on the bottom row.  And I don't delve in there much to explore because I value my fingers too much.

He also loaded up on his one year old shots/vaccinations along with the flu shot last week which was the most unpleasant trip to date.  Two shots in the arm and two shots in the leg and he goes back in for one more shot in a few more weeks because apparently the first flu shot has to be given in 2 separate shots instead of one that you would get any other year.  But all in all, after he recovered from the pain of actually getting the shots he was in mostly good spirits the rest of the week.

He is also kicking off Christmas celebrations and learning how to be a good little Canadian in going out in the cold for walks and wintertime festivities.  Last weekend was the Santa Claus parade which was a great time even though we accidentally left his mittens in the van and I spend a good portion of the time holding his hands or trying to wrap them in my scarf which he had no interest in.  Before the winter officially moved in to stay, we were able to get out and enjoy Chickadee Trail where you can hike a trail and have some birdseed ready to periodically stop and offer the seed and the chickadees will eat straight out of your hand.

Chickadee Trail with Dad

Getting ready for the parade with Mom

Anticipating the start of the parade

He also now has a strong affinity for certain books and toys and it is fun to watch him explore and experiment with his toys in new ways.  His favourite animal sound is a lion roar and he loved any repetitive rhyme with the "d" sound.  Hence Dr. Seuss' "Hand, Hand, Fingers, Thumb" with the repetition of dum, ditty, dum, ditty, dum, dum, dum is a real hit.  He also is a dancer and groover, enjoying music around the house or when Nate plays the guitar for him.

A few of his favourite things

1 Year Old

48 Weeks
Grandma and Grandpa Wiebe arrived this week as did another tooth.  We enjoyed lots of sunshine and Ezra began using his single word "Dada" for all things under the sun.  He seemed quite proud of his linguistic accomplishments.  He also kept his audience entertained.  He enjoys people coming over and showing off his speedy crawling and clapping.  And he continues to enjoy his evening ritual of stripping down to diaper before PJ's go on and playing on the sheepskin and charging back and forth across the living room with clothes over his head.
49 Weeks
Canadian Thanksgiving was this week and we also did a small preview celebration of Ezra's birthday while Grandma and Grandpa Wiebe were visiting, at the same time.  Cousins from Calgary were able to join us and we had a tasty meal and fun afternoon visiting.  Ezra also was able to enjoy some time with a doggy friend that came with the cousins.  This senior pooch quickly found a spot on the couch just out of Ezra's curious hands.
50 Weeks
Paster and Spouse Retreat!!!  Our annual getaway is something we always look forward to, and this was no exception.  Especially since friends agreed to take Ezra for the 3 days and 2 nights we were away in Banff.  Ezra did great and wore himself out keeping up with the other kids in the house and exploring his new surroundings.  And we had several days child-free to be able to listen to the speaker and calm dinners, and strolls around downtown.  Unfortunately, Nate got a cold right before we left and wasn't feeling 100% but we made the most of it anyway.  And it was great to get back and see Ez's smile again.
51 Weeks
After noticing Ez continue to want to suck his fingers and thumb we agreed to try to reintroduce the soother.  He refused the soother a number of months ago and I had since packed them all away, but after finding the box they were stuck in, Ez took a day or two to remember the art of keeping that soother in before locking it in.  We also decided to turn Ezra's car seat around after observing his legs climbing up the van seat, and not resting on his own carseat.  It resulted in a fussier baby as he was not sure about this change, or perhaps he wasn't feeling well.  Either way, it made a trip up to Edmonton extra long to pick up a washer and dryer, as he cried a good portion of the way up and back.
52 Weeks
Grandma Jolliff arrived this week to celebrate Ezra's first birthday with the family.  Ezra enjoyed his play time with Grandma as well as time with a few friends at his birthday party on Saturday.  Thanks to sneak treats in the last month or so, Ez took to his chocolate cupcake with no problem!  And finished it without hesitation.  Overall, Ezra was on the fussier side as he is clearly working on another tooth or two, but with the help of some Tylenol everyone had a good visit.  Ezra is growing in confidence in standing and taking a few steps between people and as luck had it, he started walking between Mommy and Daddy 3-5 steps on his own the day Grandma Jolliff had headed home.  All Grandma's practice paid off, and fortunately we were even able to video some of it for sharing.