I mean, c'mon. my baby turns 13 months tomorrow (and still not walking, thank you very much) and here I am doing his 12 month post?! At the rate I'm going, we'll celebrate Christmas mid-February. Which is unacceptable, so I better get my booty in gear. Double time. Here we go...
As we all know, the sad day came where my baby became a one-year-old and moved from baby stage to toddler stage. Although, I still call him my baby. Crazily enough, when Laylah was his age, I was 8 months pregnant with Jonah. I'll pause while you gasp.
I know, right?! Crazy to think back on it.
Anyway, isn't this guy just plain cute?
Sadie is not a fan of this behavior. She tolerates him, even when he's quite abusive towards her. And she doesn't quite know what to do when he decides to take over her bed. She sits there and paces around until he decides to crawl out and then she hops in and doesn't leave for fear he might come back. It's really fun to watch.
He's become much more smiley, cheesy and laughy (is that a word? It is now). I'll miss these serious-deep-in-thought-Baby-M-faces. They are few and far between now-a-days.
He still enjoys movies and tv. It's nice when I need a half hour to do something and it keeps him out of trouble. Which, by the way.... he's major trouble. It's funny how quickly you forget what a mess this age can make. I just follow the trail of destruction (everything pulled out of every cupboard/drawer he can reach) and I'll find him at the end of it with a spatula in one hand and a bowl in the other, happily smiling and banging them together.
And boy oh boy, can this kid throw a tantrum. You probably don't remember, but I mentioned in a post way back when he was a bitty newborn about how when he cries, he squels like a pig. And we have called him "piggy" ever since then when he is throwing a tantrum. He still squeals, but it is magnified 100-fold because now he is quite large and quite loud. We are in the middle of teaching him that he just can't do certain things and he can't get into certain things. He doesn't like that "no" word at all. It amazes me how much he understands and how he knows exactly what I'm saying when I talk to him. And he has started testing everything. For example, he loves to play with the blinds. He isn't supposed to (because the blinds in our rental home are cheap and they break when you barely touch them) and he'll stand right by the window, look for me (to make sure I'm watching, no doubt), point his chubby little finger towards those blinds with a silly little grin on his face and move that finger closer and closer until he's nearly touching them. He'll wait for me to say "no Magnus" and then he grabs them as fast as he can with the death-grip because he knows I'll be there to wisk him away and all the while he laughs like it's the funniest game in the world. Babies are really so clever.
Oh, this kid. I want to squish him and kiss him all day long. He is quite a snuggler and he allows it for the most part.
He's really hit that independant stage where he wants to start doing everything on his own. He finally learned to hold his own sippy (well, he learned that he has to tip it up to get a drink, he's been holding it for months) and he's starting to use a fork and spoon. But mostly he just makes a mess. I can hardly believe how big he's getting. I really wish he would walk, he is so stubborn and immedietly sits down when you set him on his feet. We have spotted him testing his balance and standing for longer periods of time and also taking a few steps here and there, but for the most part he's still crawling everywhere. I hope it's soon. He weighed 30 pounds at his 12 month appointment, and that is hard for this mama to lug around on a dialy basis. He was 33 inches tall (or 34? I can't remember) and the kid is just a brute. He's in 2T clothing, but he has been for a couple months, so I think his growth just might be slowing down.
I finally weaned him about a week before his birthday and he was just plain mad at me for several days after that. He would throw a fit each and every morning that I got him out of his crib and didn't go directly to our chair to let him nurse. I felt bad, but it was time to be done. I had to get him the shirt he's wearing in the picture above because I joked that he was my little crab. He would sit and pinch me the entire time he would nurse. It didn't hurt exactly, but it was quite annoying. And if I tried to hold his hand or make him stop, he would throw an absolute tantrum, so I just let him be. Oh, the things we do for our kids, right? Good thing they're worth it :)I can't even describe the joy and happiness this baby brings to me and our family. He is doted upon, adored, and spoiled completely rotten. He will definitely be the bratty baby of the family. And I don't even care. At least right now. I love you my little Magna-Doodle.
We ran some errands that day, played at the park, snuggled my (giant 1 year old) baby and made a cake.
I had been wanting to try 
The kids loved how it looked like a giant oreo cookie before I frosted it.
This has got to be one of the best things I have ever tasted. Divine.
I really thought he would love this balloon. Turns out, he was scared of it and wouldn't take his eyes off of it once I tied it to his highchair. Until the food distracted him, of course :)
We had all of his favorite foods for dinner: (not that he told me this info or anything. I just based it upon what he eats the most of :) grilled burgers, homemade fries with frysauce, deviled eggs, oranges, and broccoli.
I love how much all of my older kids adore their baby brother. Baron really wasn't sad. He just hates pictures lately and refuses to do anything I want him to do. Like smile. Stinker.
I guess he got over his aversion to the Big Scary Balloon
I was surprised how much Magnus enjoyed opening gifts. He loved getting the wrapping paper off, and once he realized there was something fun inside of each brightly wrapped package, he would happily open the next one. He received a ramp and car toy from my parents, new jammies and a book from Andy's parents, a baby cell phone from the kids, and walker/ride-on toy that plays music and talks from Andy and I. He also receievd some money from great grandparents and aunts and uncles. He loved it all!
Thanks to the walker toy, he almost has walking down. But not quite.
Cake time!
He just loved it, and wouldn't stop. He had a fit when it was gone and I pulled him out of his highchair to bathe him.
Still got that fork in his hand. There was no way was he letting it go...
Bathtime baby (and you can't see it, but he's got that fork in his right hand still)
Clean and fresh in his new jammies. Still has that fork...
He ended up going to bed with it and was still holding it the next morning. I guess I should let him feed himself more often if he really enjoys it that much :)
He had them in for 10 days, and our pediatrician took them out. All in all, it wasn't too bad! I don't know, maybe Bear would disagree :)