Merrick at 11 Months

Wow, has it really been a month since my last update? The two weeks of break flew by, and the last two weeks back to work went even faster. Looking back, I posted ten times in the time that I was off, and haven't posted once since returning to work. Life has been busy, what can I say?! I have a few things I've been thinking about and will be posting soon, but for now, all my spare time has been spent with the family, which is a good thing.

On to my update on our sweet little man, Merrick. He has gone through some really fun changes this month, most exciting of which is that he said his first words! His very first word was Ball (sounds more like 'ba'), followed by Dada, Mama, Nye-nye (nigh-night), bye (which is also accompanied by waving), and Bear (our dog). It even sounds like he's trying to say 'sister' sometimes. His words still aren't super clear, but we can tell what he's saying and he uses them in context! He also babbles and imitates sounds a lot. It is really adorable to listen to him 'talking' to us and trying to make new sounds. The other day when I arrived home, I was chewing a piece of gum, and Merrick started smacking his mouth just like he was chewing gum too!

Even though it was cold until this last week, we enjoyed some time outside with the family. Merrick went sledding for the first time:

...we've gone on some little walks:

 And we even went for a little hike at my mom's house and he fell asleep in the baby backpack!

Some of Merrick's favorite things are balls, books with paper he can tear/eat, cars, and his sisters. He also really loves 'Pat-a-cake', clapping, and other finger plays right now. He likes the song, "If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands" and he claps his hands whenever we sing it or hear it on a CD.

 He now has 8 teeth, and gives us this toothy grin a lot:

 Here are some other changes Merrick has made this past month:

• He really wants to be more independent eating and doesn't want to eat a lot of his food pureed anymore.
• Rather than gesturing with his whole hand, he's pointing at things with one finger these days.
• Merrick's schedule has become more regular, and the bedtime routine runs like clockwork. He is tired and ready for bed by 8:30 every night and sleeps until about 5 a.m., when I feed him and then he goes back to sleep until 7:30 or 8:00. He sometimes wakes once in the middle of the night and is getting better about falling back asleep with minimal comforting from us.
• He has grown out of most 9 month clothes and is getting into some 12 month items.
• Merrick can climb the stairs! This isn't such a problem as long as we are right there with him, spotting him in case he slips. But I got a big scare for a moment the other night when we were playing in the basement and I looked over to see him five steps up and all by himself! I was up and behind him in a flash; I don't think I've moved that fast in a while...

I can hardly believe that my next update will be marking Merrick's first year...