Fourteen Months

Douwe reached a sort of "golden" milestone, fourteen months old on November 14th.

He has been walking for about 4 weeks now, likes to use a fork (but can't pierce the food himself), begs to go outside all the time, hates putting on a winter coat. He is doing ok with his orthotic shoes which must be worn 24/7. He is cutting teeth #9 and #10. He is much slimmer, has held at about 24 pounds since earlier this summer and seems to be getting taller. He does not really cry long when I leave him, just plaintively repeats, "Mama? Mamamama? Mama? Mama?" turning his palms up questioningly. He loves his stacking/nesting blocks, and the toy that blows balls through a tube and up in the air. He talks with his own words but we usually can understand him because of his inflections. He gets very excited to see schoolbuses, trucks, stop signs, dogs, buses.

I find it humorous how he treats his books. There are about 30 great options to choose from but only 8 he will allow to be read. Let not those 8 become arrogant though or think they are inherently superior, for suddenly two days later, 1 of the favorites is arbitrarily swatted away to the reject pile and a formerly rejected book is now one of the chosen few. First 100 Things that Move and How Do Dinosaurs Eat Their Food? are getting the top billing at the moment.