Darling Arlo turned one nearly three months ago & what a year (plus a few months) it has been! After the initial adjustment to caring for five little ones it seems as though time is flying & he is growing & changing every single day. He surprised us by being a speedy walker earlier than his older siblings which actually doesn't surprise us as he is happy to keep up with the chasing the best he can. Not only is he walking 100% of the time but he is quite the chatterbox. He's sweet, the most cuddly baby out of our nest & loved beyond by words.
Here we go! All about Arlo Benton at ONE year old...give or take 3 months : )
At his one year appointment:
20.6 pounds
29 inches
He is an average sized boy & perfectly squeezable in every way. We often joke saying "I'm so hungry, I think I might eat Arlo for lunch." Then we go onto say what we would nibble first. For me it's a toss up between his cheeks & his tootsie toes. Then we pretend to get our nibbles followed by saying our tummies are full. He doesn't mind the attention since it feels like he's being tickled the whole time. I would HATE that!
Here he is on the move. He was going full speed to the tree that his big brothers & sisters were attempting to scale. Once he convinced them to come down with his squeals he enjoyed their performance of "I'm bringing home a baby bumble-bee." He was all smiles!
What Darling Arlo is up to at one year old:
- goes by the nicknames: Arley, doodle, doodle-bug, ba-doodle, bubberoni, goo-ghee, "my chubbiness" by Owen & in the past week he has been deemed "my little snuglet" by Anson, ha!
- loves bath time & copies everything the twins do whether it's dunking their heads underwater or attempting to slide down the back of the tub. He also likes to pour water over the side....not sure who taught him that.
- became a full time walker by Thanksgiving & when he wants to move fast he leans forward & his little feet get movin'!
- he "talks" to you making all sorts of sounds with inflection but no actual words. He is pleased when you converse with him saying "No way! Are you serious? Oh yeah, I like that too!"
- spends a lot of time everyday making cars go down ramps & cheering for himself
- could win the baby division of a sprint to the front door followed by a speedy staircase climb...Usain Bolt is his hero. Should have shielded his eyes from the Rio coverage last summer!
- he has evaluated the self soothing techniques of four older siblings & decided on a combination of sucking his thumb & rubbing his bellybutton. On a stressful day his button ends up SO red!
- when he is headed down stairs he gets on his belly & goes feet first also at record speed. It's almost like there is no bumping along....just sliding
- thinks it's hilarious to pinch people (it really does hurt!) but makes us laugh with how he throws his head back & gives a good belly laugh, screams & does it again
- he's extremely tough whether attacking or being attacked
- says "guh" constantly declaring what he would like by stretching out his arm & extending his hand. Robby says he would be great in the service industry.
- LOVES Bella & calls her "lellelah" over & over as he moves in for a rough pat down
- he is under the impression that he cannot make a sound in the car & would win the Quiet game by a long shot time & time again
- he's so quiet at home sometimes we forget he's there. I was leaving the other afternoon & Rob said as I was walking out the door "Where's Arlo?" I pointed at the baby in a high chair a mere five feet away & we both laughed. It's nice that someone can be quiet around here ; )
- drools so much we call him droolia-childs & droolia-goolia
- every time we walk down the stairs past a 1990's original security system key pad he gets really excited saying "guh guh guh" faster & faster until I hold him up where he can reach it & I start saying "beep beep beep beep" while he presses the keys. There is actually another keypad over his crib in the boys' room. That should keep him busy for hours!
- got his first haircut Thanksgiving week & hated every millisecond of it
- he has five teeth, one of those which just popped through the other day
- would swing as long as you keep swinging him
- enjoys a leisurely ride in the wagon
- he's really great at following directions so long as they are along the lines of "put your hands in the toilet" or "pull out the dirty silverware & lick it" YUCK!
Dreamland: I am not sure what is wrong with the Nest between the hours of 3 & 7 am but it is certainly far from restful at the moment! This cutie contributes by waking up once. We would still love for him to room with the buckaroos but sleep is more important right now so the less people can disrupt each other the better. He in in the guestroom with a beautiful floral duvet cover. Someday he can have more masculine surroundings. Around his birthday he was taking naps from about 9:30-11 & 1:45-3:45 but has dropped the morning nap. He practically begs to go to bed around 1:30 & sometimes sleeps for 3 hours. Nighttime sleep starts around 6:45pm & he's up & at 'em by 7:15 saying "guh" requesting his breakfast. Arlo is a happy boy when you lay him down. He snuggles up with a quilt, pops his thumb in his mouth, offers a heart melting sleepy-eyed grin & he's out like a light.
Well, I must come to a close but leave you with one last picture of our little snuglet as Anson would say. I smiled while snapping this photo thinking about how a newly walking toddler is a bittersweet sight knowing that they are literally a step closer to independence. For now he's still our baby : )
