ONE of a kind

Weight: 25.8 lbs (84 percentile)

Height: 29.5 inches (34 percentile)

Tooth Count: 5 (Two top and three bottom)

Amount of Ice Cream he ate on his B-day: 3/4 a cup (I was disappointed. We think he got a little brain freeze by eating it too fast. Don't worry, he also ate a cookie and a cupcake. He basically refused to eat anything but junk food the whole day. )

Getting Around: Nicholas took his first steps during the Saturday morning session of General Conference. He can take about five or six steps before he falls. He doesn't really bend his legs when he takes a step, so it is more of a waddle. He is very good at standing. When he first started standing by himself, he would laugh loudly every time he did it so he could make sure that we told him how wonderful he was for standing. He has given up his army crawl and only does typical crawling. He caught on that it was a lot easier to hold something when you crawl on all fours.

Hobbies: He loves unloading drawers. I think his paradise involves being surrounded by drawers that are filled with interesting things to put in his mouth. He also loves taking baths.

Food: He doesn't like lunch meat, Ritz crackers, cheese, or bananas by themselves. I'm having a real hard time getting him to eat enough protein. He does like cottage cheese, yogurt, fruit, applesauce, oatmeal, bread, and sometimes eggs. He LOVES grapes. Sometimes I feel like I'm feeding the ducks at the park when I feed Nicholas because I'm always ripping things up and throwing them on his tray. I feel like I am ALWAYS feeding Nicholas. He is always hungry, but he is picky about what he will eat. I am a believer in the theory that it takes about 10 tastes before a child likes a food, so we are just persisting. It took him forever before he started to like pieces of bread and now he will eat a whole slice. He has been getting in trouble lately for throwing food on the floor. It was his way of making sure I didn't try to feed him that piece of food later (or maybe he was saving it for later). He has got in big trouble for that. Now he is starting to give the food he doesn't like back to me.

Popular Tricks: He will give high fives, turn off the lights, and wave Bye-Bye. He can also stand up in the shopping cart even when the little belt is fastened tight. He is also hilarious when he flirts with himself in the mirror.

Words He Will Say: He makes noises that sound like words a lot. Sometimes I think he says keys, up, no, and yes. My favorite noise that he makes is, "Yeah." We ask him questions like, "Does mommy love you?" and he will respond, "Yeah." His response to most questions is "Yeah." Have I mentioned that he is the noisiest critter ever to roam the earth!!! I can't wait until he really starts talking and I get to hear what all these noises that he makes really mean.

Words He Knows: He knows, "No, n0." He now knows to stop doing whatever he is doing when mom says, "No, no." He knows that he will get in trouble when he plays with the garbage can, goes over by the toilet, plays with the VCR, or tries to unload books from the bookshelf. When he first started crawling, it seemed like he was getting into trouble wherever he went. I felt bad for the little guy. Now we have done a lot of baby proofing, so he isn't being told to stop as often.

Favorite Song: "The Wheels on the Bus" He thinks it is the funniest song. When he starts crying in the car, we will sing it. He doesn't like it when you make up verses and he doesn't like the verse about the babies.

Sleeping Habits: He goes to bed at 7 and gets up at 7. We don't have a long bedtime routine. We just turn his static on, give him his pacifier, lay him down, say "Good Night", and turn off the lights. 95% the time, he goes straight to bed. If he doesn't go to bed, we wrap him up in a big blanket rock him for 5 minutes until he is asleep and then put him in bed. He is just as easy to get down for naps. He naps around 9 and then around 1 or 2. He is horrible at napping when we go somewhere. At church, the only way to get him to sleep is to give him his pacifier and then wrap him up really tight so he can't move. Then you have to cover his face so he can't see anything. Finally, you have to rock him (or Joseph just jiggles his belly) for about five or 10 minutes until he gets to sleep.

Pet Peeves: He hates being dressed and getting his diaper changed!! He thinks it is pure torture. He also hates it when you try to get something out of his mouth that he put in there.