Soren Update: 11 Months

Soren and Oliver have moments where they're actually playing together.  They'll chase each other around or play peekaboo from around a piece of furniture.  Soren so clearly loves watching or playing with his big brother and I think how much more exciting everything his for him because he has an older sibling to provide entertainment, either directly or indirectly.

Yet poor Soren has also taken the brunt of Oliver's attention-getting tactics.  Experts say kids crave attention, even if it's negative and every time Oliver shoves Soren over or "bumps" him with a toy, he's proving those experts right.  His "attention-getting" (read: naughty) behavior was so bad one evening that Soren started crying every time Oliver came near him. 

Soren can be a little feisty himself though. He shocked Chris and me when he crawled toward Oliver....and tackled him! He made a beeline for Oliver, who was sitting on the floor, tucked his head, leaned into Oliver's torso, flung his arms around him and knocked him over. It was hilarious and so unexpected. We didn't realize he could even physically do that.  The difference with Soren doing something like this is not only is he smaller than Oliver and less likely to hurt him, but at eleven months old, he's playing, not acting with malice.

Soren now has two bottom teeth and he's so smiley that it's easy to show them off.  And he's tried more kinds of food than your average 11-month-old, no matter how many teeth the kids has.  He's what you'd call a good eater and is game for trying most things.  Of course, he has foods he prefers over others, namely fruit.  I've perfected getting oatmeal the right consistency to make oatmeal wedges, which I make with soy milk, and Soren enjoys that for most breakfasts.  Maybe this is the result of having an older child who's on a set schedule, but for weeks now, Soren has been eating his meals and snacks at the same time as Oliver.  He's still getting bottles of formula on demand, but we mostly give him a bottle to coincide with when he's getting real food. 

Chris went into his room to get Soren up from a nap and he was sitting in his crib clapping.  It's his newest skill.  Soren is still sleeping well at night and taking consistent morning and afternoon naps. I need to start setting my alarm again, because Soren doesn't necessarily cry anymore when he wakes up. Get this, he waits patiently in his crib. Many morning I go in there and he's sitting in his crib happily (and quietly) waiting for someone to come get him. We'll see how long that lasts!

He pulls himself up on everything he can.  Last week he took his first steps while holding onto a pushing a toy cart.  The friction of the wheel rolling across the grass created the perfect speed for him. 

He's wearing his first pair of big boy shoes.  He's gone barefoot all summer since he doesn't walk and he's outgrown his Robeez slipper-like shoes.  I finally dug through a box of Oliver's old sneakers and found a pair of toddler size three shoes.  He pulled at his feet a bunch to try to pull the shoes off.  He must have been confused about what they were, but then gave up.