11 Months!

What?!? How did this happen? Quinn is already enjoying his last month of infanthood. It's so hard to believe that nearly a year has passed since we were first introduced to our precious baby boy.

Quinn is still the busy boy that he's always been (with the exception of in utero), but lately he's been developing more social interests as well. He can get where he wants to go, and he loves to explore. Outside is one of Quinn's favorite places to be (who can blame him)? Thankfully, the rain doesn't seem to bother him one bit, either. When I take Quinn to a park, he loves to watch the other kids and then he tries to befriend them. He loves little playmates and so one of my goals is to work at getting involved in some playgroups with kids his age. I do participate in a stroller workout group called Stroller Strides, and once the moms finish working out the kids play together. That tends to be the highlight of both Quinn and my day most days.

We have been lucky enough to spend a lot of our time this past month with family, and Pat and I are thrilled to see how Quinn is bonding with his grandparents. He loves his time with grandparents which solidifies, once again, our decision to move closer. The only problem now is we wish that they were just down the street!

Quinn is turning into quite the ham. Lately he's been cognisant of what he can do to entertain others, and then he does it over and over and over again. A couple of weeks ago Will and Lisa were visiting us and Will was letting Quinn take pictures with his camera. Every time he pressed the button (for whatever reason) we thought it was hilarious. Quinn must have taken 35 pictures and after he pressed the button he'd look at us and wait for us to giggle. It got to the point where he'd prompt us with a really fake laugh deep in his throat. He loves to see people around him happy, and he'll do what he can to make sure that he is surrounded by happiness. His contagious laughter keeps this pretty easy, seeing as all he has to do is laugh to keep his audience entertained and laughing with him.

As American Idol came to a finish, Quinn started watching with me a bit during the day. This is when I discovered his most recent (and not yet mastered skill), dancing! You know, the baby bounce that we call dancing? Once I saw him bounce a little I have tried to encourage it, but it's pretty hit and miss at this point. We do have video, but I'm pretty convinced it's one that is only entertaining to Pat and me! I'm hoping that he continues to hone this skill and develops a love for dancing. This way I can have a partner to accompany me in my foolish dancing around the house when nobody else is around to watch!

This past month Quinn has been developing a love of being read to (as long as there isn't something more entertaining around, i.e. people). When it's just the two of us, he'll bring me books to read to him, help me turn the pages, and when they come to an end he'll cry a little and encourage me to read them over again. I love to see him enjoying books, and hope that this interest doesn't fizzle away as he gets older.

Quinn is a great eater, and has recently been completely weaned from me. We were both ready, and it was a gradual enough process that I wasn't even emotionally traumatized from the experience. He'll eat just about anything that I give him, but his favorites seem to be cheese and fruit so far. He's doesn't seem to enjoy meat very often, but does love teriyaki chicken! I am grateful for his willingness to try most foods, but I'm prepared for this to become challenging at some point. For now, I'm just enjoying the ease!

Quinn is developing new sounds and he babbles away most of the day, but I have no idea what he's saying! He did point at Lucy and say "goose" (or so I thought), which is one of her many nicknames and so that was pretty fun. It's happened only once. He also points to her and says something that resembles "gud grl". I excitedly told Pat that Quinn said "good girl" but was afraid to admit it to anyone else, knowing that it was probably a stretch. However, we've been with Grandma Cathy for the past few days and she heard him say it as well so I'm putting it out there. I know it's a stretch, but it's the only word we've got so I'm going with it! Sadly for me, Quinn is not interested in the "m" sound and so I haven't been fortunate enough to hear him mutter the word "mama". I look forward to this moment so much! I think I've been so distracted waiting for him to learn the "m" sound that I've failed to recognize the other sounds that he is developing!

It goes without saying, our love for Quinn only continues to develop and grow and we marvel at each new development and milestone that he reaches. Thanks for enriching our lives beyond explanation, Quinn. We love you!!