Henry is 11 months old.

Why is it that we get sad as our babies get closer to one year? I'm sure it's not every mom, but I know I'm not alone in the wish for a time machine to go back or, at the very least, to freeze time. I've loved every new stage but I miss the newborn. And it's not that I want another newborn... I want Henry as a newborn. I've thought about it a lot lately, and maybe it's because he's so different from the baby I met eleven months ago. When you've known a grown-up for 11 months they are pretty much the same now as they were back then. But eleven months ago I met a tiny newborn baby and fell in love with him right away. I have loved the three month old, the eight month old, and so on, but that little baby is so completely different now (an improvement, in many ways) and the time I had with the baby I first met was too fleeting. 

Okay. That was silly. Here's what Henry is up to as an eleven month old:

- Henry finally got his first tooth. Then his second, third, and fourth. There is a big ol' gap between his upper teeth and it's really cute (that's what I try to tell myself. And what I'll tell him if the gap remains).

- He says ball and duck. Or maybe it's dog or truck. Basically, "dut" means whatever he's looking at that's making him excited.

- No new motor milestones since last month, just continues to be even more steady standing, walking along furniture, or walking behind something he's pushing. He really enjoys sliding toys along the wood floor. This started with little toy cars - crawling while "driving" the car in his hand. But he'll use anything - a piece of mail, remote control, sock - whatever he can slide.

- Henry loves dogs and has had a couple recent opportunities to play with and crawl around them. He is so completely comfortable with them, having no problem with them being close to him or even licking his face.

- He had a cold last month, his worst time being sick yet. He slept okay and his mood was still pretty cheery, though. His appetite was adversely affected and still seems less than it used to be. He gets mad at us if we try to get him to eat more than he wants, which isn't much.

- Henry's interest in what's inside our cupboards has increased, which is aggravating. We haven't added any child-locks to cupboards because we're renting and don't want to add any permanent fixtures to the cupboard doors if we don't have to. But we might have to. His favorite cupboards/drawers contain the recycling bin, the skillets and the plastic wrap. Long gone are the days when he could barely reach the drawer with the harmless dish towels inside.

Those are a handful of the new things about Henry this month. Next month... a one year old!