Thomas at twelve months...

To coincide with Thomas reaching one year old, Surrey Community Health sent us out a little leaflet (Expected Range of Development for Children aged 1 Year of Age), listing all the things that the little one should be able to do by the time they are one (and, thankfully, it makes satisfying reading)... :)

Gross Motor skills - baby should be able to roll over (both ways), sit unsupported (it's amazing to think there was a time when we needed to prop him up with cushions or he would topple over), able to crawl (he was doing that 3 months ago), weight bearing with heels down (oddly, just over the weekend he seems to have stopped doing that, now preferring to walk on tippy toes, but he definitely *can* do it if he wants), pull self to standing and walk around furniture (both of those we checked off at ten months old) and standing alone (which he has only managed to do with any great success in the last week - his best being about eight seconds, yesterday)...

Vision and fine motor skills Thomas should be able to pincer grip (thumb and forefinger) to pick up small objects (his careful ability to pick up single raisins and maneuver them into his mouth impresses me every time I see it) and follow and watch for dropped objects (I'm still amused now about how upset he got when I removed his nectarine one morning, just for a second to put on his bib (which I had forgotten and he was getting in a mess), he didn't see I had popped it safely on the table and was absolutely *convinced* it has fallen on the floor, he was straining at his straps so desperately was he looking around the floor for where it might have gone, if he hadn't been restrained I'm convinced he would have flung himself down to find it...and such pitiful pleas for help...the big smile when I then produced it, magically, from behind his head was heart-melting), but yep, got all of those abilities nailed...

Hearing and Communication - by now baby should be able to point to objects -

- (yep check)...clap and wave hands (his waving has always been excellent, he will (usually) wave when asked to, hand-clapping (albeit silent) is enthusiastically joined in with during songs, good eye contact (yep, that and posing cutely for the camera) -

- syllable babble (yep, including assigning them to people/objects, we had that going on at ten months), make a range of sounds (yep, starting with the raspberry when he was seven months old and more recently copying the Vuvuzela and mimicking animal sounds) -

- comprehension of some words (just off the top of my head, I know he knows drink (he can now ask for a "dink" and make a swallowing noise when he is thirsty), duck (first word), car (current favorite word), Sophie (one of his toys), up (he responds by holding up his arms ready to be picked up), no (although whether he responds or not is another matter, but he definitely knows what it means), come here, horse (responds with clip-clop noise), balloon, mummy, daddy, dog, ball, cat...oh and "take it out" (if he's eating something nasty)...there are loads more, but these are the commonly used ones) oh and of course he is very familiar with his own name (and responds to it)...

Diet and Health - feed self with fingers and spoon (he prefers the finger approach, but will hungrily grab the spoon given the opportunity and get *most* of it in his mouth), eat a varied and balanced diet (there is *nothing* he won't *enthusiastically* eat...well, that we have discovered, anyway), able to tolerate lumpy family foods (while I cut his food up a *bit* smaller than mine, I only do it so he isn't chewing each mouthful for ten minutes, he can even cleverly work his way around stones and cores in fruit, discarding them off the side of the high chair when he is done), use a free flowing beaker (he had that nailed months ago, helping himself to it from the table when he fancies a drink), have 500ml of cows milk a day (he drinks a pint a day, taken at mealtimes - as we don't want milk all going sour in the carpet/sofa), has sustainable bedtime routine and sleeps through the night (he was doing that at three months old and, apart from the odd blip, continues to do so), sleeps in his own cot (he was doing that from two months old), lets an adult brush his teeth twice a day (well, he's much happier doing it himself, but he does submit, eventually) and keep up to date with his jabs (yes, poor little thing)...

So, even though he's lagging a *bit* with the standing unsupported (it's much easier and quicker to crawl than toddle) that's definitely a resounding success...

Well done my clever little boy... ;)