Sweet Leo

As we approach Leo's first birthday (he'll be 11 months tomorrow), we are suddenly overwhelmed at the personality that he is growing.  It seemed latent for a while; he was happy to sit quietly in the shadow of his brother.  All of a sudden, however, he is stealing the show (much to Patrick's dismay). 

First, the growling and bull-rushing.  He hangs his head low, starts to growl, and will charge at Adam and me at full speed.  Once his rock-hard head makes contact, he'll flail around on the floor laughing hysterically before composing himself to find his next victim.

Then (and this is VERY new), the Uh-Oh's.  This is probably my favorite because it is so new and now everything is an uh-oh.  The best is the preparatory uh-oh, said in announcement that he is going to chuck whatever toy he seems to be holding as hard as he can.  He'll then scramble to retrieve it, hold it up high, yell "uh-oh!" again, throw it....and repeat...and repeat again. 

He's growing increasingly fond of Adam and Patrick and it's obvious that he wants so badly to be a part of their activities.  However, if given the opportunity, he's just as happy sitting on my hip and bumming around the house with me while I attempt chores with one hand.  (And he's heavy...very heavy.  At this point, he is only about 5 pounds less than Patrick.)

Some favorites:

Food: Green beans from the can (one of my favorites, too!), yogurt, blueberries
Things: His little puppy "Scout," a Noah's ark blankie, boxes
Music: Quiet and soft
TV: not really interested
Misc: Backrubs, bedtime play, bathtime with Patrick, laughing, snuggles

Things about which he's not crazy:

Giving up formula
Diaper changes
Sippy cups
Hats