11 Months Old - Birthday Countdown.....

Not long now until our little babies become a year old. It's mad how quickly time flies by.When I look back at the early entries on this blog and see how tiny they were in SCBU, it feels like just a month or so ago.

Carl Medical Update

After our holiday we got some blood test results back for Carl. It seems he has some immune system issues which would explain why he keeps on getting sick and takes a long time to recover from the illnesses. It also showed his vaccinations hadn't worked properly so he needs to redo these. The doctor has advised us to keep him away from infection as much as possible for a month to give his immune system a chance to recover and start strengthening so no nursery, no groups and avoiding anyone known to be ill. In addition he's taking preventative antibiotics and will probably be on these all winter.

So far, so good to an extent. He seems to have avoided any major viral infections but has had some stomach bugs. Nowhere near as bad as it previously was though and he's full of life and energy for the most part. It's hard not going to our usual places and it was hard not being able to see our nephews/cousins when they were here due to illness but if it helps then it will have been worth it. We see the doctor again near the end of September and I'm hoping to get the all clear to return to normal life again after that.

General Progress

Carl

Carl now weighs 8.31 kilos / 18lbs 5oz. He is just under the 25th percentile. He is looking healthier and far less scrawny these days. He has learned to 'crawl' so is able to work his way around the ground floor of the house as he likes.

It's not a typical crawl but more like pulling himself along on his belly but he goes very fast. He exerts lots of energy doing this and also in trying to pull himself back into a sitting position from lying down. You can see the effort it takes and I joke that he's going to have an incredible 6 pack of abs soon. He loves standing up but obviously still needs our support. He is looking as if he will try to hold on to furniture in the not too distant future too.

He has begun taking the loaded spoon from me and feeding himself with it and is doing very well at that. We've noticed that he may be left handed as this seems to be the dominant one although he does use both for feeding. Carl holds his bottle totally by himself now which makes milk feeds so much easier as I can give him his and rest him against a beanbag while feeding Ella.

Ella

Ella now weighs 9.0 kilos / 19lbs 13oz. She is just under the 75th percentile which is a huge achievement considering she was hovering around the 9th for so long. She won't be in 9-12 month clothes for much longer so I need to get on and sort out the next size up very soon. She has teeth coming up and coming down and has some bad teething days at times.

She is getting more confident with floor play now and doesn't just stay seated anymore. She goes onto her tummy and rolls between her tummy and her back very well. She can get around the room this way quite easily. When on her tummy she pushes up on her hands very well but doesn't seem able to move forwards. She can turn a complete circle though so this is very helpful for selecting the toys she wants to play with now. She seems very frustrated that her brother can crawl but she can't yet but I think this is really spurring her on to try.

She doesn't like to take the loaded spoon and cries for me to do it. When I hold out she does eventually do it but cries a lot so I think she's just not ready.

She doesn't like to hold the bottle herself either. She is very independent in lots of other ways but wants to be fed still.

Ella loves to clap. She claps along to the clapping parts of songs like 'Wind the bobbin up' and always claps at the ends of songs and when she sees something she likes. She is also very partial to the baby she sees in the mirrors around the house and can happily sit for ages chattering away to that baby!

Playroom

We have finally finished moving Dan's office out into the garden and converting his old office into a playroom for the babies. I am so pleased with it and they seem to love it too. We bought foam floor mats so it's a much softer landing for falls and bumps and we've been able to put lots of bigger toys out which we couldn't do when we just had the space between the sofas. It's perfect timing too now that they are becoming mobile. Uncle Danny arrived with a walker recently which they're enjoying sitting in and we were given a pop up tent which acts like a secret room for them. We had a playdate today with the lovely Poppy and her mum, Rachael and it was so nice seeing them all playing in the room so well. At the moment I'm sitting on beanbags but a small sofa has been ordered which will be a bit more comfortable and also act as another guest bed if needed.

The babies do play together well most of the time but sometimes it can be a bit too much of a rough and tumble. They love each other to bits and that shows physically at times. Carl loves to pat Ella and stroke her hair but Ella is far less gentle and tends to grasp Carl's hair and pull hard. He screams very loudly but never moves away from her even after she's let go. The word 'no' is being used quite a bit these days and they are definitely starting to have a sense of what it means (I think!)

Carseats

We have just made the move to the next size up in carseats. We went for the Britax dualfix as these can be both rearward and forward facing, should last until they're about 4 and can turn around so we can buckle them up facing the door before spinning them round which is much better for our backs. They seem very comfortable in them and they came with huge mirrors to see the driver through. Hopefully the last big expense for a while...