Update

It's hard to believe that Peter has been with us for 4 months already! Our big boy is 13 months old now. Although he was able to walk across the room since 11 months, he is just now finally walking on his own with confidence! This is such a cute stage! He loves his new freedom. He has been going up and down the stairs for a few months now by himself. He is actually the earliest walker of all our children! Hannah walked at 13 mos, Taylor at 14 mos, Greta at 15 months and Ricky at 2 years.
Peter loves bath time, especially if Ricky or Greta is in the tub with him! He still loves meal times best of all. The only food he won't eat is broccoli! He's saying mama and dada and a few other words. He knows so much when we talk to him. He points to things when we ask him to, such as fans, birds, airplanes and highchair. You never need to call him twice for meals! Peter loves sleeping in the same room as Ricky and they have a blast every morning when they wake up at 6:00-6:30. They giggle and play together until someone takes Peter out of his crib. They are really good buddies! Peter loves watching Ricky being silly and you know he's getting ideas for himself!


Peter still takes great naps during the day...about 2-4 hours total! Plus he goes to bed at 7:30 and sleeps until 6:30 or later if Ricky doesn't wake him up! He's a great easy-going kid and we are all really enjoying this stage of his life.

At his 12 month doctor visit, he weighed 23 pounds and has dropped from the 75 % for weight to the 55 %. He still is in the 75 % for height so it looks like he will be a tall, slim guy as he gets older. Peter just gets more and more handsome every day!!!!

Peter's First Birthday!!

We celebrated Peter's first birthday on April 29. Grandma and Grandpa along with lots of cousins and aunts and uncles helped him celebrate. He got his own baby birthday cake and he dug right in to it. Peter absolutely LOVED the chocolate cake with white frosting. After he ate about 1/4 of it we tried to take it away and he cried and covered the cake with one hand while continuing to devour it with the other hand!! He was not going to give it up without a fight!! He sure loved all the attention of everyone singing Happy Birthday to him and he was such a sweet little boy for his party. We thought about his birth mom today and prayed that she would somehow know what a blessing she gave us when she gave him up. Today must have been a hard day for her. He is sure a blessing from above for all that know him. We got a nice email from his foster mom, Brenda on his birthday. It was very special and meant alot to us that she still thinks about him and loves him. Hola Brenda and Natalie!!!!

First Haircut!!

This morning Peter finally got his first haircut. It was way overdue! He did so well sitting in the chair all by himself. He only cried when they cut the hair on the back of his neck and he had to keep his head down. Greta videotaped and did a great job! The picture of him sitting outside is the "after" picture. Then it was off to the bath tub to get off all the hair that fell on his neck and back! He loves playing in the tub with the 20 or so rubber duckies in there!

Update

Peter continues to be a wonderful easy-going child. He loves to play with his siblings and is especially interested in Ricky. Ricky is such a great big brother and is so proud of Peter. We spent the weekend at our lake home with Grandma and Grandpa and our 5 baby kittens. Peter tried feeding his bottle to a kitty! He's still no closer to walking but is capable if he wanted to. He has become afraid of falling so now he won't even try to walk anymore! He's awfully fast getting up and down the steps though. As the weather finally gets nicer, he wants to be outside all the time. He loves it when he gets to go for walks. His big sisters love to take him for walks around the neighborhood too. He is so interested in the ducks and geese in our ponds and especially in the planes in the sky to which he says, "Dada!" when they fly over! Peter takes two nice long naps each day and sleeps about 11-12 hours through the night! A delight for his mommy!!!

Is Spring Ever coming???!!!

We have had some beautiful weather this spring but it never seems to last. As I sit here typing, it is snowing out again!!! Peter spends part of each day going from window to window and looking outside. He loves watching the geese and ducks in the ponds and watching airplanes fly overhead. I know he would love to be outside every minute of the day, but on days like today, it's not going to happen! He is an outdoor boy however. When we do get outside on the nice days, he loves swinging, going for walks in the stroller and eating anything he can put in his mouth!! It is so much fun to experience the world through his eyes as he notices so many new things when we are outside from tiny bugs crawling on the ground to the trees blowing in the breeze...he doesn't miss anything! He continues to be such a blessing to his family!!

Look Who's Walking......

Peter started walking about 3 steps at a time when he was 10 1/2 months. Now he walks up to 10 steps before sitting down or falling!! He's a brave little boy and will be walking everywhere very soon. It's so fun to see how he continues to learn and grow in this stimulating environment of his home. He loves being outside and if the weather here ever gets nice, we will start taking him out to play in the yard and on the swingset!! He enjoys walks around the neighborhood in his stroller. He also loves shopping with Mom!! That's my boy!!!

Easter Pix

We spent Peter's first Easter at our lake home with Grandpa and Grandma. We went to church early in the morning and then stayed for a great brunch afterwards. Peter wasn't too impressed with Easter baskets or hunting for Easter eggs but the other four kids sure were having fun. Their cousins joined us for a fun day with family and a wonderful meal. Peter continues to be a happy well-adjusted little guy. He sleeps through the night and takes one or two nice naps a day. He's a great eater...hasn't met a food he doesn't like. At 9 1/2 months, he learned how to crawl and now he loves exploring his house. He adores his 3 sisters and big brother and they adore him in return!! He is mommy's little sweetheart. Peter really missed Daddy when he was gone most of March for work. We sure love and enjoy our little Chico!!!