Nicholas turned 11 months old today (I know, you’re probably like me and thinking “11 months?! You’ve got to be wrong. He can’t be that old now….”). But he is.

We spent the long holiday weekend with Granddaddy & GiGi at the lakehouse in Virginia. We spent his birthday (& all weekend long) playing, reading books, making music, and even crawling around the house after Fiona, my parents’ dog who was amused yet terrified something else had shown up in the house that got around on all 4s.

Did you know we’re crawling?! Because we are. And boy, once Nicholas got the hang of it, he was off. He’s a fast, quiet crawler who, like most babies I’m sure, will crawl to the last thing he should be regardless of the obstacles in the way. He’s found his groove when it comes to crawling. My child is no longer content sitting (unless you sit him in front of a mirror and then, like his mama, he would be content for hours). He can get anywhere he wants to these days by crawling. He’s almost gotten the pull up thing down pat, too – he’ll pull himself up in his crib in the morning as he waits for Andy or I to come get him for breakfast.

This past month Nicholas has done a lot of growing. He now has 5 teeth. He’s close to 30″ long and weighs 16 pounds. He’ll never be a chunky baby (I’ve come to terms with that a long time ago). He does look like he’ll take after some of the men in his life and be oh.so.tall (& hopefully not inherit too much of the Moore family husky gene). His hair continues to transform almost daily from blonde to red & back to blonde again.

He’s found his voice. He’s always been a grunter. Never much of a crier. But this month he started communicating verbally using his “words”. So far he’s said “Dada” & “Mama” (he said “Dada” 1st which I blame Andy for- Andy was always quick to want to practice the word “Dada” before any other words). He also says “HI!” while waving at you (a skill he gathered from my mother). He loves waving so much that he waves as we walk around the house. He waves & says “hi!” to the doors, walls, dogs, & even at nothing (or maybe it is someone that he sees that I can’t which would be just fine by me). And this past weekend, he started saying “Hi-Bive” while sticking his hand out – it took us a few minutes but we’re pretty sure he’s saying “High-Five” which is pretty great.

He loves music. He starts to fuss and the sound of music (or his parents singing loudly & usually off-key) quiets him right down. His favorite songs? “5 Little Monkeys Jumping On The Bed” & “Down By The Bay” (Andy & I have what seems like 100 verses to this song if you’d like to hear a comedic rendition of the tune). He loves playing with cars, stuffed animals, playing peek-a-boo, and sitting with mommy & daddy at the dining table.

And boy, does he love. to. eat. Everything. Anything. Everything. So far, we’ve only found 1 food he doesn’t like – peas. But we shouldn’t blame him because, really, who would like to eat mashed up peas? If you would, I’ve got extra in the freezer that will go to waste so come on by & chow down!

Happy birthday to the sweetest, happiest, most kind soul. We love you more than words can say.

On a unrelated, yet will be applicable note, Nicholas turns 1 next month. We’ll be celebrating his birthday with a fundraiser for the NICU families currently facing what we went through. In lieu of gifts for Nicholas we kindly ask that if you feel the need to give in celebration to please drop off a book or baby blanket for us to donate to Golisano Children’s Hospital in Fort Myers, FL. We’re gathering donations now and will take them (& Nicholas) back to the NICU at Christmastime for the families. Thank you!