After clearing out the too-small clothes

Jack has started flinging his arms towards me when he's ready to be picked up, regardless of whether he has balance or is leaning against something. Usually I manage to catch him before he falls. He's more aggressive with his walker toy, nearly running across the living room, and sharper and faster with his steering. He often tips himself forward over the walker and ends up in a kind of downward dog position where his feet aren't quite touching the floor. Yesterday he pulled himself up, lunged for a toy, tripped and fell on his face. When I helped him stand at the top of the stairs to say goodbye to his dad, he stuck a foot forward and didn't stop until we'd drunkenly stumbled down to the front door.

Yesterday afternoon we bought baby gates.

I also bought him some new clothes and I had to shop in the Toddler section, not the Baby section. I hardly ever buy him clothes. Mostly because the grandmothers do a fairly good job of outfitting him, but I never think the boy clothes, especially the TODDLER boy clothes are very cute. He's too young to demand his dinosaur t-shirt or his bulldozer t-shirt, so why do all of the little boy clothes come plastered with bugs and construction machinery?

It was weird to go to the Giant Baby Store and look at toddler-size clothes and baby gates and high chairs (I hate our hand-me-down high chair with the power of a thousand suns). It won't be long before my baby turns an entire year old. To make myself feel better I poked into the Tiny Baby section and bought a newborn size outfit for the new baby.

On the other hand, my kid is super fun. He can just DO so much now. A new baby will be a shock. Sometimes I catch myself thinking, "I can't wait until he starts walking so we can have FUN at the playground."

This morning I caught him "reading" to himself. And right after that he grabbed hold of the remote control and realized that pressing the up channel button makes him master of the universe.

Of course, his most impressive feat so far is not catching the Sickness Phillip and I have been passing back and forth for the last two weeks. Thank God. Excuse me while I go finish off the last box of Kleenex in our house.

Comments

[Christina]

He is just. SO. cute!!! Seriouly, you must kiss that adorable head a hundred times a day.
Too-small clothes always make me meloncholy... the other day I was in Gapkids and I realized I have no children to buy "toddler" clothes for, and that made me sad. Why must they grow up so quickly??

[Lisa]

Seriously, can that kid GET any cuter? Such a sweetie!

Between bouts of entertaining the baby, I've been sorting through too-small clothes too. I've been marking them so I can pass them on to a cousin who's baby girl is due in a few months. This passing clothes back and forth has been our saving grace. We haven't had to buy a new outfit yet!

[Angela]

Oh, the vision of him lurching across the room with his walker gave me the laugh I've been needing all day!

[annie]

Aren't grandmothers (and aunties and friends....) a WONDERFUL thing? Our baby has been far-less the budget buster that all the magazines said he'd be thanks to the generosity of all those contributing to his wardrobe!

[Tara]

You guys are so smart for getting gates BEFORE your kid starts walking. We were a little slow on that one, and are finally in gated heaven.

I'm so with you on the toddler sizes. When did that happen? And as always, Jack is such a cutie!