Eleven Months Old!

Noah is eleven months old today. Can you believe it?

Some things about him:

• He hates order. If you put his blocks in a bucket, he dumps them out. If you stack his toys into a tower, he knocks them over. If you put his Cheerios in a pile in front of him, he spreads them out. He is very unlike his mother in this.
• He has been clapping for a long time, but he is just now learning to wave. He's been doing it off and on for a few days now, and it's cute.
• He will not pick up any food except for Cheerios, toast, and Gerber puffs. Forget trying to finger-feed him fruit, meat, or just about anything else. He just refuses--most of the time he doesn't even try. I think that maybe he doesn't like wet or squishy things. Which is odd, considering that if it's not food, he'll pick up all manner of wet and squishy things and put them in his mouth.
• He loves to play with water. Not just in the bath (although the splashing can sometimes get a little out of hand, considering the state of my clothes afterward), but in any context. He figured out that if he pinches the nipple on his sippy cup while water is in there, it will sometimes squirt him in the face when he lets go. He LOVES this. He finds it hilarious and exhilarating. So sometimes we just sit there at mealtime while Noah plays with his cup and squirts himself in the face over and over. He also really loves to be squirted with a spray bottle. By his reaction, you'd think it's the most refreshing thing in the world. His mouth opens wide, he blinks his eyes, and he says, "Ahhh!"
• He loves being allowed to do things that we do, and the most recent thing is drinking from a cup. Nathan's mom started giving him the last sip of her hot tea, and although I'm sure he liked that sugary last sip, I am really starting to think that the main part of the thrill is getting to wrap his little hands around a cup, put it to his lips, and do what we do. The reason I think this is that half the time he doesn't even drink. He just puts his mouth to the cup, then he backs off to grin at us really big. Cutie pants.

I cannot believe that Noah is almost a year old!!!