Simple Suburbia: Carson: 10 Months! [Picture/Video overload]

Carson is now 10 months (as of 3/18!)! Double digits. [Less than] two months away from a year. Hold me!

Carson continues to be all over the place and into everything! Not only is he a speed crawler, but he can walk. Right before he turned 10 months, he took his first steps and it was teetery tottery and oh-so-cute (see the video toward the end of this post)!

Weight: Carson is holding strong at 20lbs. 8oz. (The exact same weight as last month.) I'm not sure if this is just a coincidence or if our scale is different than the doctor's scale. Either way, I know it's normal for his growth to slow down a bit at this point (especially in breastfed babies) so I'm not worried. He's in the 36th percentile.

Height: 29" which is the 57th percentile. The latest game in our house is to say "How big is Carson?!" He throws his arms up in the air and we yell "SO big!" He loves it and it's so cute!

Hair: Carson's hair is still a medium brown (possibly getting a tiny bit lighter?) and straight. He got his third haircut (!) and it was his first "big boy" haircut! (The other two times I asked for a "baby cut" and they didn't use the clippers.) Now he has that straight across line on the back and he looks like SUCH a big boy!

3rd Haircut: Before & After!

Caught his first fish face on camera, haha!

Eyes: Carson's eyes continue to amaze and confuse me. I honestly don't know what color they are! I usually say hazel but they're a mix of gray, green, and honey brown....very cool! He likes to give us this huge smile now and squint his eyes. :)

Diapers: Carson is still in size 4 diapers (3rd month I think?!). We use Pamper's Cruisers and Target diapers.

A favorite pastime: emptying the bookshelf.

Clothes: Carson is still wearing 12 month clothes but he's about ready for 18 month outfits. He wore a few 18 month t-shirts and they fit like a glove but the onesies are still baggy. I guess it depends on the brand! The t-shirts also made him look like a toddler so I put them at the bottom of the drawer. If I dress him in onesies he'll stay a baby forever, right? I did buy some new 18 month clothes during Carter's 50% off sale (I also had a 25% coupon)! I can't wait to put him in his new cute outfits...we just need to get some warmer weather up here in Ohio. Get with the program, Mother Nature!

Here are a few recent playdate pictures:

Eating: Carson is still nursing about 4-5 times a day now and he usually eats 3 "solids" meals each day. For breakfast he usually eats something simple like a pancake or cereal...sometimes with some fruit if he's still hungry. For lunch he has oatmeal with a fruit/veggie and some puffs or yogurt melts. Dinner is his big meal and I try to do a veggie, a grain, and a dairy. Sometimes I do a fruit and a veggie but it depends on how hungry he is that day! I've stopped making purees but we're still using up our freezer stash. I do plan on making some fruit purees still because they're good to mix in with oatmeal and yogurt. He's becoming quite the pro with his finger foods and we continue to try new things. Some of his latest food adventures include tortellini, broccoli, plums, toast, and more! He's a pretty good eater but definitely prefers fruits to veggies (takes after his Mama and Dada)!

Pretending he loves his carrots, ha!

Cheerios for breakfast...which he normally shares with Chip & Dixie, haha!

Squinty smile that I LOVE!

Loves his water! P.S. Who stole my baby? :(

Sleeping: I am so proud of Carson as a sleeper (and in every other way obviously). He continues to sleep through the night (usually 11-12 hours) and he has been doing a great job with naps, too! He still goes to bed around 8:30/9pm and we still do the same routine (lullaby CD, rock him and steal some snuggles for a few minutes). He was consistently taking 2 naps a day, usually anywhere from 30 minutes to 2 hours long (only one long nap a day). Now he's starting to transition to the 1 nap a day schedule. I swear, he thinks he's 3 years old or something. This kid. Anyway, I can't complain about the one nap because it usually lasts a long time (1.5-2 hours on average)! He still goes back and forth between 1 and 2 naps and it usually depends on when he wakes up for the day. Speaking of waking up, he almost always wakes up happy. I love it! Sometimes I don't even know he woke up because he just sits there and plays with his blankie or paci. Sometimes he stands up and turns on his monitor so he can listen to some music. So sweet! He always sleeps on his side or tummy. We give him a lightweight blankie and a crochet blanket that his Memaw made for him....he always uses that one as a pillow! :)

Yes, we're STILL in Christmas jams. Don't judge.

Nicknames: I have noticed Nick likes to call him "Little Man" and I call him "Mister Man" a lot. Now that Carson is walking, he really does seem like such a little man, it's so cute! Also, the oldies but goodies: C, Cars, Snickerdoodle, Snickers, Boog, Sugar, Bubby, etc.

Playing with big bro & sis.

"Come out and play, Chip!"

Exploring!

Favorite Toys: Carson's favorite toys are non-toys (my tupperware, wipe containers, cardboard boxes, remotes, trashcans with flippy lids, dog toys, etc.) I bought a Fisher Price Laugh & Learn house from Craigslist and it has been the best $15 I've spent in a while! Carson LOVES it! He loves to open and close things (wipes containers, doors, cabinets, etc.) so he loves opening and closing the door on this house (especially because it announces "open!" and "closed!"). He also loves to play peek-a-boo with the little window and check for mail in the mailbox. The house is a pretty cute toy and even though it's a "bigger" toy, it doesn't take up too much space! Carson also loves his Baby Einsten Roller-Pillar balls. He likes to shake them like rattles and bang them together. He also has fun rolling them and chasing after them. Another fun game he started was putting them in a container, and taking them out...putting them in, taking them out...repeat x 1,000. :)

Milestones: Remember last month when I said I never would have guessed Carson would be so mobile by 9 months? WELL, I really never would have guessed that he would be walking by 10 months! Don't get me wrong, he isn't running across the room [yet], but he is getting braver by the day! He can currently take about 6-7 unassisted steps and he has to start somewhere where he is supported. In other words, he can't start in the middle of the room without holding onto something. He usually walks from one object to another. (From the couch to a toy, from the ottoman to the couch, etc.) He is a SPEED crawler now and loves to get into anything and everything! He has stood up in the middle of the room a few times (without pulling up on anything) but doesn't do it very often. He's getting way too good at standing without support (especially when he's distracted). We had to put a gate at the bottom of our stairs because he loves climbing them so much!

Carson now has THREE teeth! Last month he had his two bottom teeth but now he has a top tooth! It's not all the way in yet, but it's definitely there. I used to think I would hate it when he got top teeth (because obviously he would look like a 14 year old). Now I think it's pretty darn cute...especially when he gives me his huge squinty eye smile. My heart melts.

Carson's speech is also continuing to develop and he babbles [and shrieks] all day long. We're trying to figure out if "Mama" is officially his first word. There aren't many times when I'm not with him but he only says it when he's with me and he says it almost every time he's crawling toward me. His comprehension is awesome and he can definitely follow simple directions. He totally impressed me when I asked him to put a block "in the hole" one day and he did it! Such a smartie.

We're still working on waving, clapping, and kissing. (Can you tell I'm impatient?) He will give me a kiss (open mouth and slobbery!) if I ask, but still not on a consistent basis and he's less interested in giving other people kisses. Can you blame him? :) He can wave when asked, but still not consistently. As far as clapping, he's thisclose! He clasps his hands together and also waves his arms in the air like he's about to clap. He just can't quite get them together to make the actual clap!