Arthur, Month Twelve

We have walking! So far he can only cover about ten feet before he falls down again, but he's walking all the same.

Walking was by far the biggest news of the month, but Arthur did also add a few new words and also said his first phrase, "Hi Dad!"

His favorite food is bananas and whenever he's in his high chair, in the grocery store, or any other place where food is present, he will shout "NANA! NANA!" at the top of his voice until you give him one.  Then he bolts it down and shouts "NANA!" again.

Arthur also started his first swimming class, the same one Beatrice did for the last two summers (before graduating to preschool swimming).  Like his sister, he really enjoys the class, but where Beatrice would swim around grinning from ear to ear, kicking and shrieking and splashing, Arthur seems to be concentrating as hard as he can on figuring out how to get it right.

Sadly he isn't smiling in many of his swimming photos, but he really does like it - he's just very serious about it.

Finally smiling - because a pretty lady was clapping for him

Also this month Arthur had his first haircut! It was a much less dramatic change than the one his sister experienced with her first haircut, but it was a nice pre-birthday touch-up.

In fact, he loved getting his hair cut (or more likely, he loved the adoring attention of all the hairdressers) and cried when it was over.

I forgot to take a proper "before" photo, but here's a recent shot that shows him getting a little scruffy:

And here he is now:

And last but not least, his first juice box! Not a very major milestone to most people, but it's one of the things that makes him suddenly seem so much more grown up to me, closer to a toddler than an infant.  He had this juice box at his friend David's third birthday party, and let me tell you, he gave the preschoolers a run for their money: he ate an entire slice of pizza, drank some juice, played on every toy in the indoor playground, and generally had a wonderful time being a "big kid."

Also this month he's discovered books for the first time - he still won't sit still long enough to be read to, but he likes to flip through the pages of books, point to things that interest him, and exclaim "book!" or "hey! book!"

This was the first month in probably half a year that Arthur didn't have a cold and it showed in his happy, cheerful mood - plus I think figuring out walking has made him pretty proud of himself, he's been all smiles lately.  To his many regular favorites, from airplanes to tablecloths, he's added a new one: he loves singing along to music, especially She&Him.  I hope that means he'll enjoy his upcoming music class.

So there you have it - Arthur finished out his first year with a bang! Walking, talking, singing - I can't wait to see all the excitement next year brings.