Eleven Months--A real post

I have wanted to write about Finwe's personality for quite a while. Just knowing if he's standing on his own or trying to walk or talk or teeth or whatnot really isn't helpful in getting his personality across in writing.

To start out succinctly, Finwe is a happy, outgoing boy.

How do I know this? He has a smile for everyone. Never once has he buried his face in my shoulder to avoid a person. (Both Inwe and Larien did this.)

He is interested in everything, with the only exception being the television. He watches his sisters intently. He watches White Dragon when she is outside. That is what he is doing in the picture.

New experiences thrill him. Today, he enjoyed the wind and rain of Ernesto as we picked the girls up early from school. He screamed in delight when a droplet would find its way past the unbrella.

He reaches out to people who come near him. He wants to have people close to him, even if they aren't actually playing with him. He'll crawl to the sunroom and then fuss until either Inwe or Larien or both of them join him. When he spots them walking his way, his fussing changes to squeals of delight.

He is also a baby who knows exactly what he wants even if he cannot communicate it to you. It will be meal time. I will choose applesauce. He will refuse it. I will choose yogurt. He gives a squeal and opens his mouth in expectation of a spoonful. He'll stop eating and make a noise when he wants something to drink.

He will crawl to his crib when he wants to sleep. If we put him in his crib when he doesn't want to sleep, he screams until we get him. But, on the flip side, when he is ready to sleep, he rolls onto his blanket and makes not a sound.

He likes playing with White Dragon. When he sees her chewing on a toy or treat he immediately crawls to her. He then grabs the item. Instead of taking it from her, he offers it to the dog and holds it as she chews on it. White Dragon accepts this. Finwe laughs when her lips or tongue touch his hand.

I have used the words scream and squeal a few times in the paragraphs above. He does this all the time. Don't think that it is a bad squeal. It is far from it. The sound is joy and sometimes just a way to experiment. If Inwe or Larien is trying to speak in the car, Finwe begans to scream drowning their words. After a bath I let him crawl in the hallway while I get the girls wrapped in towels. He moves from location to location testing the echo with his screams. He particularly likes the top of the stairs (gated, of course). The sounds change in pitch and volume. Laughter follows his sound of the moment.

That is my Finwe. That is the 26 pound baby who colors our days with his sparkling eyes and smiles. He wakes too early for my tastes, but I'll live.

And, just to let you know what he is doing developmentally:

• He stands on his own.
• He walks holding on to our hands.
• He can take one step without falling completely.
• He tries to take two steps.
• He has four teeth.
• He doesn't say any words to my ear. Phill may tell you differently. So, might Inwe.
• He plays ball with me.
• He likes to play a making noise game with us. He holds his arms up and waits for us to follow him. When we all have our arms up, he smacks them down on his tray, the table, whatever is in front of him. We do the same. He giggles and repeats the process. This game is very fun. Larien likes to play it with him. She tries to get him to follow her. Sometimes he does.
• He's still sleeping through the night in his crib.
  
• He takes two naps a day.
• He eats anything we give him. Tonight, he enjoyed the mushrooms in our spaghetti.
• He doesn't like Colby cheese.
• He let Phill put him to bed last night. That was a first.