"Springing" into 10 Months!

Spring is here in full bloom all around us from the daffodils in our garden to happy birds chirping away getting fat on worms. Warmer, longer, and sunnier days allow us to be outside more and more. And Judah does not want to miss it. He himself has seemed to blossom socially and developmentally this month just like spring-time.

In particular, Judah just took off walking; I tell people he is walking at ten months and I get this surprised look like "already" and "oh my, you have your hands full!" On a Monday (April 13) he took his first step. On Tuesday, he took 4-5 steps by himself. By Wednesday, he was taking 10-12 steps and finally by the next weekend he was walking across the room. Judah just walks constantly across the room from one thing to another. Rarely does he stop to play with a toy but instead goes from one toy to another. It is as if his walking has become his entertainment. Perhaps his favorite thing to walk after is Maestro. He especially likes to walk up to Maestro and attack then proceeding to follow him as he walks away. Like sibling rivalry, Maestro and Judah continue to play this game over and over. Maestro has yet figured out that he should move to higher ground and Judah just thinks it is so funny to chase him and pull his tail or his hair. Judah has officially worn out his first pair of shoes (little black soft soled shoes) with all his walking.

This new means of getting around has allowed Judah to see his world in a whole new way. He can now reach things on tables (and so now I am moving things again out of his reach yet again). He has learned how to open cupboards and cabinets which we quickly put safety locks on. He figured out how to turn on the radio and control the sound. He also discovered the picture frames in our room, pulling them down to look at.

Judah does still play some with his toys, hopping mostly from one toy to another. We are slowly transitioning the toys out with more age appropriate toys. At church, Judah is at the age now to switch to the older nursery but we have yet to do so because he seems to like the people in the younger nursery and knows where to get the toys. He does like to push his car and a walker around the living room at home. Judah observed his first science experiment when I put two pop bottles together full of blue water with a special gadget to allow the water to make a tornado. Other times, we spend our time making forts and playing underneath them.

Judah is a happy little boy who talks and chatters, chatters and talks. Mr. Social often carries a conversation with you as he walks around. This month he officially said his first words (both Tim and I heard him) of "woof" and "cat." Maestro certainly does not go "woof." He does however like to hiss back at Maestro when Maestro is hissing at him. We are practicing the "High 5" signal and he mastered the "So Big" trick, putting his arms in the air. He finally mastered waving hello and goodbye but the wave from the wrist looks like he is posing as the high school prom king. He also lifts his shirt up and exposes his belly giving you just enough time to tickle his belly button. Occasionally he has become a little flirt especially if he thinks people are laughing at him. If we are with a group of adults and something is funny causing us all to laugh, he thinks we are laughing at him and will purposely laugh or try to be silly.

Since the weather has become warmer, Judah has relished all the outdoor activity. We continue to stroll to the park and around the block. Judah took his first ride in the swing at the park; he loved the wind blowing in his hair. In the driveway, Judah has started throwing his balls. Most of all though, Judah loves to help me in the garden by picking my flowers (I just planted), eating dirt, and digging in the mulch. Many a time, I have put him in the Excer Saucer while I plant so that he will stop picking my flowers. Judah is still unsure at times of the grass. He will play with his ball only to have it fall in the grass where he stops short of getting it. We did take some days to go enjoy the flowering trees and flowers at Grays Lake and Waterworks Park this spring. Walking among the blossoms and breathing in the soft sent of flowers, you feel like you are walking in an avenue. Judah got to experience the petals falling around him from the trees and sitting in the daffodils.

The weather has changed so much that we are still going between heat at night to some shorts during the day. Judah though has officially transitioned into big boy pajamas. He has also started sleeping with his green blanket (with silky edges). Bed time has become associated with reading books and then laying him in the crib with his blanket. He especially likes it when you wave it over him first. Then as we tuck him in and say, "good night little Pookie, I love you and love you (from the bedtime story of Goodnight Little Pookie)".


Judah has been in a period of no naps due to teething from the top two teeth still making their way through. At the most, he will take just one nap a day, usually in the morning for a couple of hours. Other days, I try and try to put him down for a nap letting him scream or play in his crib for a half hour or more. So I put him in his swing and put him in front of the television to watch Baby Einstein for thirty minutes. Finally as a last resort, on a few occasions, I have loaded him up to take him for a drive in the car where every time he falls asleep within the first five minutes. In fact one night I used this method at 2:00am in the morning only to have him be awake when I arrived home (grr). By that time, I am so tired myself, that I drive back home and carry him inside in his seat and crash on the couch until he wakes up a half hour later. Also, he has started waking up early in the morning sometime between 3-5am, hungry, as if in another growth spurt.

His teeth are not the only thing that are growing. Judah has outgrown another stack of clothes in time for summer. He is now wearing twelve month clothes. He even seems to have grown just a tad bit taller causing him to hit his head underneath the table. At the table, Judah has really started eating more and more finger foods including transitioning to whole peas, cut green beans, cut carrots, and peach slices. In addition, he started cottage cheese, grapes, potatoes, beef, egg yolk, and lentils.

Tim's workload increased with wrapping up the Youth Leadership Program for the school year with the last few classes of the school season and planning ahead to graduation along with orientating next year's students. He took on additional administrative responsibilities with the Boys and Girls Club in addition to his full schedule including helping out the interim Executive Director. Tim spent about four days in Dallas attending the annual National Leadership Conference.

With the weather turning warmer, we saw more company or traveled ourselves. Judah celebrated his first Easter weekend in Cedar Falls. The following weekend, Grandma Kreis visited a few days, followed by Aunt Amy, and then by the weekend, our friend Christy stayed with us on her way back to Colorado. Then the third week, Uncle Matt and Aunt Hilary hung out a few days with Judah and I since they had a concert in town. And finally we were able to nab Miss Lynn over from campaigning to visit for a day. By the end of the month Papa and Gigi visited us too.

My whole life changed drastically this month as Judah started walking. Most of my time was spent chasing Judah, moving things out of reach, and getting him from something. With what time I did have, Judah and I started herb, vegetable, and flowers seedlings for the garden. Also, we finished up our Thursday night small group sessions for the year. On Friday mornings, Judah and I went downtown to the Des Moines Public Library for story time. And finally, the Reeves came over a few times to play and enjoy the nice weather with us.