He is an incredibly fun little mix of spunky and sweet. When he was born he was so calm and mellow, but every day he has a little more spunk to him. He is still sweet and lovey and snuggly, but when he wants something he shows off his fierce determination. Most of the time though, he is happy, smiley and on the move.
He loves to dance, sing and imitate everything his brother does. He really, really, really loves to eat. I fear for my grocery bill when he's a teenager. He loves to play basketball at our little hoop and he likes to sneak into the bathroom and steal my toothbrush. He has the most adorable laugh in the world and he loves to be tickled, which is convenient because then we can hear him laugh. :-) He also loves to be chased around the house and to climb into the toy box.
His favorite thing is baths. He loves them so much this needs it's own paragraph. I need a raincoat to give him his bath. He splashes and plays. He dumps water over his head to try to wash his own hair. He dunks his head into the water and under the faucet if it's on. Nothing about water phases him. Ever. It's scary. And there are almost always tears when bath time is over. He would stay in there forever if it was up to him. He wore his helmet for five months and had a bath every single night during that time to wash his hair and still it was traumatic every time he had to get out. The boy loves water.
He loves to be outside and never wants to come back in. When we are outside he is most interested in pushing the red car around. As soon as I get it out he pushes it straight down the driveway and onto the sidewalk towards the park. When I stop him before he gets to the corner to cross the street (every single time) he totally melts down. He is a boy on a mission and his mission is to push that car to the park without any help. Despite the fact that I'm never actually going to let him do it, he gives it a valiant effort every time.
Right before his birthday Carsten finally got his helmet off. Yay! It was a good day to walk out without it on his little head. We actually started going to appointments for physical therapy when he was two months old, so walking out ten months later knowing we didn't need to go back felt really good. And a little weird. Carsten must have felt that way too because while he was giddy about having the helmet off, he went over to our doctor, John, and gave him a big snuggle and didn't want to get off of his lap! It was pretty cute. When we went out to the waiting room to get jackets on he went around from chair to chair rubbing his head on every seat. I'm sure it felt so good to have it off!
All that said, I also think he misses the feeling of it. He loves wearing hats! He wears them constantly around our house. Because of their fair skin and light hair, I always want my boys wearing hats when they're outside, but I was afraid he would never want to wear one again. It's the opposite. He goes and finds them and puts them on. There are many times that he won't even take it off for his naps. And his favorite is Tyler's red hat. Thankfully his brother doesn't usually mind letting him wear it. When I put other hats on Carsten he usually takes it off and finds the red one instead.
At twelve months Carsten says uh-oh, mama and dada very clearly. He also says (less clearly, but we still know what he's saying) peek-a-boo, so big, ball, more, and our very favorite, (are you ready for this?) awkward! It's so funny. I'm so glad that was one of his first words. It's the best. He also moos like a cow and roars like a dinosaur or bear. And he blows the cutest little kisses. He is 20 1/2 pounds (40th percentile) and 31 1/8 inches (80th percentile).
Carsten, you bring so much laughter and joy into our home. We love you more than you will ever know. We love watching you grow and learn new things and we are excited to see who you grow up to be. We love your always happy little personality and your sweet snuggles, hugs and kisses. You are so precious and are such a gift to us.
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