Philip's Big Day

Yesterday, I took Philip to his pediatrician for his 12-month check-up. His stats are as follows: Height: 28.5 inches (17%); Weight: 19 lbs. 2 oz.(7%); Head: 95% (not sure of inches). Dr. Shelly said he looks great and is just built like her daughters were: big head, little body! It amazes me that most kids of his same age are bigger than him as I think he is getting so big. She said 7% is actually a good jump up from where he was last time; he had dropped below the curve and was charting his own path then. God always gives us what we can handle and Philip is just the right size for me. He's quite hefty in my mind and my back can attest to that. She said although he's not hit the 20 pound mark, we can turn his car seat front-facing as he is plenty strong enough to hold his head steady (Mommy will just have to remember to not make any sudden stops!). Also, his menu is wide-open, just have to look out for choking hazard type foods.

That brings us to the next part of our day: new foods. After the check-up, we met Daddy and his co-worker Mike on their lunch break at Holmes Hot Dogs. Philip enjoyed his first hotdog cut into little pieces with melted American cheese on it. He also ate pieces of the bun separately. Not sure if more hotdog ended up in his stomach or the floor, but we all seemed to leave full. For dinner, Matthew cooked Chicken Fried Rice in the wok. It's a great pre-made mix from Sam's that includes rice, chicken, pieces of egg and carrots, and peas. It's Philip's new favorite! I did have to spend about 10 minutes picking up pieces of rice from the carpet around his chair so next time we'll put a garbage bag under him. Not to go into detail, but I don't think he chewed all the peas!!

Finally, Matthew and I sat on the livingroom floor with Philip after dinner and he WALKED!! We sat about four feet apart and faced Philip toward whomever was not holding him. He took several good face-forward falls into our arms, but slowly but surely, he began to take one step then fall, two steps then fall, and then four steps without falling! It was great. Thankfully we did videotape it. Matthew then went to the office to save it on the computer. Philip was standing at the coffee table when I brought his evening bottle into the livingroom. I held it out and he took probably six steps to get to it! We've got a walker on our hands. He's been plenty strong enough for a while. I knew it was just a courage issue, and we may have broken through that. I'll let you know how things progress.