On Saturday you turned ONE! Sorry I didn't post this sooner, but did you know you picked a very busy time of year to be born? Well, you did. Plus, I wanted to be able to tell you all about your special day in addition to the rest of our busy month.
This was a very fun-filled month, my guess is December always will be. The normal excitement of the holidays was heightened by the arrival of snow! Real snow! In Portland! It even stuck around for Christmas. It was a lot of fun to get you out in the powder for the first time. I also got you one of my favorite books The Snowy Day and got to read it to you multiple times a day. You were quite fascinated by the white stuff. I am sorry to say that it is not typical for Portland to have the kind of snow we did this year, but we'll see. With Global Warming (or Cooling, or whatever) things could be changing. I would not complain if it did (though our environment might retaliate). I would love for you to grow up around the snow as I did. Though I would hope that the city would find a better way to deal with it so that we wouldn't be home-bound for days on end as we were this time around… but I digress. Being home-bound did get a little old after a while, but we had as much fun as we could. You learned to use your Pampers wipes box as a stepping stool to perch yourself at the front window so you could gaze upon all the snow and the big snowplows and trucks going by our house. It quickly became your new favorite activity.
You have had a huge surge in comprehension and verbal development this month. You now can tell us that a cow says "moo," a clock says "tick-tock," you say and sign "shoes" at the same time and you say something that sounds a lot like "balloon" when you look at the book The Red Balloon. Now all these things may be hard for just any normal person to pick up on, but to your father and I they are as clear as day and will only become clearer I'm sure. Our recent cold weather has lead us to have many fires and you are obsessed with telling us that the fire is "hot" while signing it. You also let us know that the oven is hot and the heater in your room—you are very aware of all the hot things in the house and we are grateful for that.
Your motor skills are developing quite nicely as well. Anytime you hear music—whether it be from one of your toys or the stereo—you start dancing. And by dancing I mean bobbing your head and your bottom. You have the cutest baby dance ever. You are working on your walking and now only require one hand from us when walking around the house. If we offer you the other one you quickly bat it away and continue on your path. You are so close to doing it on your own, just a little more confidence and you will be there! You got a really cool walker from your Grandma Kay for Christmas that you love to cruise around the house with now. You do it with a huge grin plastered to your face.
Speaking of Christmas, your first Christmas was so much fun. We had a full house and it was just perfect. Your Grandma Carol and Grandpa Bill were able to be here to celebrate with us and of course, your brother was here as well. You were pretty amazed by all the new toys that you got and I'm sure you were wondering where they all came from. We read some Christmas stories together and listened to Christmas music, but I think next year you will really start to understand a little bit better just what's going on!
Two days after Christmas, of course, it was your birthday! We took down all the Christmas decorations the day after so there wouldn't be any competition on your big day. We invited some of your friends over that have been so wonderful to us this year and had a little party. The whole party centered around you getting your first taste of sugar in the form of a giant cupcake! You absolutely loved it and loved when everyone sang to you and cheered for you as you ate your cake. Seems like you got the love of the spotlight from me. You then got to open even more presents. You are a very lucky boy and loved by so many people. The one dud of the party were the balloons. I thought since you love the book The Red Balloon so much you would be very excited to have some red balloons of your own at your party. You were really interested in them gesturing towards them and saying "balloon!" but as soon as we brought one towards you you screeched! Not in a good way. So, we quickly got rid of all the balloons and your little friends got to take them home with them.
As I write this it is New Year's Eve. Last year we were in the hospital with your jaundice for New Year's. This year you are already tucked safely in your bed snuggled in for sleep. You have made 2008 such a wonderful year for me, it was a challenging year in so many ways for so many people (including me), but you make it all worth it. As I reflect on our first year together, all I can do is just marvel at you. You have gone from this tiny, little, helpless being to this smart, funny, healthy and kind little boy. You are still and will always be my little baby, but it is so fun to watch all your developments. You are such a light in my life and many others lives. I love you more than I can say.
Love Always,
Mama
