The passage of time catches me by surprise now.

It used to be that I had to seek out projects and invent tasks to fill up the hours. Pre-kids I washed the floor twice a week. I ironed the sheets. I baked cakes. I watched TV. In those days, afternoons felt like days; weeks stretched on for years; time was almost an eternity. But now, it’s all lightening.

How is it that we’re here already? We lived our days and slept our nights, and just like that, we have a one-year-old. My tiny infant who came to us with an easy calm, who slept afternoons in the crook of my arm is now a little boy, delightfully cheeky, into everything, and wants no part of lying quietly in bed with his mother.

Hugo’s one. This post marks the closing of his infancy. It’s bittersweet. I’m so glad he’s growing, learning, and expanding his world. But I sure do miss those days when he was in my arms, just mine.

::Growing::

I can’t say with certainty how big Hugo is now. I imagine he’s not that much bigger than last month, as he had a round of croup and went on a bit of an eating strike. He has shot up though, and does appear much taller and leaner. He can stand on his tippy-toes and reach the top of the table and the surface of my desk. Electronic treasures are no longer safe.

He’s got four teeth now. His top right tooth finally broke through just before his birthday.

::Saying::

Still Mamamamamama, which I assume means me, but might mean nothing at all. He’s started saying DA! for down when we sing itsy-bitsy spider. I’m not sure entirely how much symbolic meaning is attached to that utterance though.

While he’s not saying that much, his receptive skills are advancing. He definitely understands Hugo, nooooooo and when he hears this, he’ll ALWAYS start laughing and doing whatever he’s not supposed to be doing with 100 times more intensity.

He gives kisses on demand, and starts laughing when I say “I am going to get youuuuuuuu”.

He knows ‘susu’ means milk, and recognises that sign, and he understands the sign for ‘all done’. He hasn’t really produced any signs himself, except for maybe an ‘all done’ here and there.

::Learning::

He’s working on walking. I thought for sure he’d be walking by now, as he’s been staring with proficiency for about a month. He can take about three steps, but he’s so eager for momentum that he just throws his body forward without regard for gravity or hard surfaces. All of this means that his walking skills are not very controlled: three steps and he’s face planted on the ground.

::Mastering::

He’s got standing in the bag. He can stand up and crouch down with control. He’s also proficient at locating my wallet at emptying all it’s contents all over the floor; stacking three blocks on top of each other; giving kiss bye with the back of his hand; throwing his food into my plate. I’ll also tell you he’s excellent at giving kisses on demand.

::Playing::

He’s moving on from stacking toys, and is really into things that go into things. He loves to take the storage box where i keep washi tape and dump it out, so he can tidy it up again, and close the lid. A million times. It’s pretty entertaining.

He still loves following along with the big kids, chasing they down the hall. He prefers Stella’s toys to his own, and I don’t think that will change any time soon. He loves to play tickling games and wrestle his sister.

::Moving::

He crawls at about the speed of light, can pull himself up to stand, can cruise along the furniture, and can take three steps. But will always land face first unless an observant adult is close by to prevent disaster. Speaking of, we’ve discovered that Hugo has a bit of a flare for the dramatic. When he falls, even when he’s not hurt, its big, rolling tears and ear-splitting cries, that stop suddenly and then it’s all laughter.

::Eating::

He had croup this month and his appetite really suffered. Former favourites are now being rejected, and where he used to eat with gusto, he now picks slowly at his plate. He will usually tolerate egg, beef, sausage, pasta, rice, berries, yogurt, cheerios, apple, tomatoes, cucumber and watermelon. BUT! He will not eat unless given a spoon with which to practice his hand-eye co-ordination. Which means lots of mess and loooooong mealtimes.

He’s nursing twice a day, about. And loves his bottles.

::Sleeping::

We had to do a bit of a sleep intervention because I was not coping with getting up 6+ times per night. Mr. Chef took night duty for a few nights and that’s sorted things out. Hugo’s waking once for a bottle and maybe once more just because. But that’s a vast improvement on a few months ago, so I won’t complain.

::Loving::

I just discovered that Hugo loves leopards, which, jackpot because leopard print is my boyfriend. He also is crazy for windshield wipers. Again, fortuitous because it’s rainy season. Other loves include bis bottle, his blankie, his sister (who is everything), things that he shouldn’t touch, running away from me when I’m trying to do his diaper, the bath, swimming (PS he JUMPS into the pool from standing on the side!!!), music with a good, dance-y beat.

::Loathing::

Diaper changes. Having beloved forbidden objects removed from his grip, being denied the opportunity to bash my computer into oblivion, being restrained in a car.

::Enjoying::

I’m loving watching how Hugo is coming into his boyness. He’s developing interests in things that are apart from me. Like his love of leopards, I had no part in that. It is such a privilege to watch my children grow into their own, individual humanness.

Hugo 11 Months