The 13th Month

Gabe picked up these skills in his 13th month.

Drinking from a Straw
At jemmy's mummy's suggestion, I attempted training by controlling the flow of water from a short straw, releasing water only when he makes an effort similar to sucking. I'm not sure it paid off, either due to my inconsistency or whether gabe was not really ready for it. But one day, I had enough of the stage-3 top of the pigeon mag mag (washed and sterilized) sitting in the cabinet and thought, what the heck, let's just try it. With both mother and baby persisting for about five to ten minutes, gabe's startled eyes widened and later squinted in delight as he felt a rush of water in his mouth. I too saw movement in the straw. So there you have it. My baby is now drinking heartily from the straw. Now the next step, the cup...

Putting Things Into a Bucket
instead of just being obsessed with violently emptying it, though one has to admit there's a teeny bit more throw than drop in the action.

Go Down!
With his ability to communicate this intention, gabe has attempted journeys down from bed, couch, chairs... and... yesterday, we found him standing happily next to the coffee table when three seconds ago, we had left him on the couch. I got no less than a fiery lecture from my mother, but that is another story altogether.

I'd figured that since it was but a matter of time that we got to this phase, it was imperative that he gets the butt-first method drilled in. So since a couple of months ago, many times when I let him down, I'll first turn him around and aid him in the climb, though I'm not sure the extent this has in fueling the thought of independent action.

Complete the Song
Currently, it's the "star" to Twinkle Twinkle, and the "nose" to Sing a Song of Sixpence.

Two Syllable Words
Taxi and lorry (pronounced lorr-lei) loud, clear, and done daily in a broken-record fashion.