Snowshoeing

We took you on your first snowshoeing trip with Matt and Tina. You did really well packed on Daddy's back. We bought you some new shoes for the trip, I also plugged you in to your giant winter coat in order to keep you warm. It was quite hilarious because you could barely walk. You reminded us of the little boy in 'A Christmas Story'. Your favorite part of the trip was definitely the picnic lunch we had on the side of the mountain.

Chase

Tonight was fabulous. Dad was gone out with his friends so we had some good old quality Mommy and Marcus time. This entailed snuggles, eating, and best of all - chase.

You are so in to being chased after right now. We ran all around the living room and kitchen area and I would chase after you yelling 'fee, fi, fo, fum!" and you shrieked with laughter as I came after you. I jumped out at you from around the side of the couch which would just make you gigle all the more. You practiced your stair skills as you climbed up them and then eagerly looked back at me to make sure I was coming after you. Then, upstairs we played more chase. This entailed running into Daddy's room and climbing up on his sofa in their. This is a sleeper sofa that is very low to the ground. You love it because you can climb on it all by yourself. And you did, multiple times. This was proceeded by then jumping on the sofa. I couldn't help but laugh because you were so adorable and proud of yourself. Of course you would get down and run out of the room babbling and looking behind you to make sure I was on my way after you to chase you down.

You are such a delight. Nights like this are perfect and are exactly what I dreamed of while pregnant with you. You are the best happiness medicine a person could ever ask for.

Happy 1st Birthday Marcus!!

We had your first birthday party celebration on Saturday. It was perfect for a first birthday party. We kept it low key with just family and a few close friends. Your aunts and uncles all came along with Jake, Jessica, Joe, Coco, and Matt and Tina. You were spoiled like crazy and got lots of presents. Although I tried to time your nap, it didn't work out as hoped so you were fairly tired but you were a trooper and made it to the end. You did crash on the way home though!

Your birthday cake was a blueberry chantilly cake that I made from scratch. We had tried the Whole Foods huckleberry chantilly cake a few months back and you loved it, so I was determined to make one similar for your birthday. It was a hit with everyone. The picture below is of your own personal cake, I also made a group cake as well. You were a little overwhelmed by the 'mini' cake I made for you and didn't really dive in to the cake after we sung Happy Birthday to you until I put a more manageable piece in front of you after taking away the personal cake. The bottom few pictures are of you enjoying the leftover cake at home the next day. 

1 Year Old!

Happy Birthday big boy!! I can't believe it has been a year since I was waiting in anticipation to meet you. You have changed your Dad and I's life in so many ways and I can't dream of life without you anymore. Each day you provide me so much joy and my love grows more and more. I sing to you "You Are My Sunshine" on a very regular basis and you my son are just that. Everything about you is perfect and I wouldn't change a thing. As much as I want you to stay my baby forever, I am looking forward to watching you continue to grow each year. I love you so much Marcus.

Things You Are Doing Developmentally Right Now:
* Saying 'All Done' when finished eating
* Signing eat
* Climbing down the stairs on your tummy
* Sleeping through the night on a regular basis (yeah!! A lot of this is because you aren't teething right now)

Thing You Are Doing That I Love Right Now:
* Laughing when other people laugh - you did this the other day while on vacation and the fact that you laughed at me laughing got me laughing even harder. This just made you laugh even more. It was the sweetest thing.
* Playing chase around the house. This includes hiding around the corner and then shrieking with laughter as I come to get you.
* Starting to cause mischief - this includes doing everything you KNOW you aren't supposed to do - such as pulling the toilet paper in the bathroom, getting into Bailey's water, turning off the tv receiver and anything else that we tell you not to do.
* Starting to clean things, you love to use the broom and dustpan. If we leave out a rag you will go around and wipe surfaces.
* Helping to clean your bottom during diaper changes. If you have a wipe you try to assist me with the process.
* The way you open your mouth and bob your head on my shoulder to make noise like the Native Americans did (you have done this for a while but I have forgotten to write about it).


We went on a family vacation to Maui right before your birthday (more pics to come on this soon) and I wanted to get a '1 year' pic of you down there. This was taken 3 days before your birthday. What a perfect way to remember you turning one for the rest of my life. I love you more than my words can express to you.

The Happenings of the Week

You have had one very eventful week! I stopped nursing you a week ago and it has been fairly difficult for you. You cried a bunch the first night in the middle of the night and then Sunday morning you just constantly lunged at me trying to bite at my shirt in order to get me to nurse you. This lasted a day or so, then I thought that we had weathered the storm and everything was great. Until this morning... while I was getting dressed you crawled over to me at the bed and tried latching on. Dad was with me and when I said 'no Marcus' you looked at me and grinned with your goofy smile where your nose is wrinkled up and then you laughed as if to say "ha mom I was just joking and trying to see what you would do!" Oh how I wish that I could have recorded that moment!

You also bonked your head pretty good this week too. You fell down trying to pull yourself into a standing position on the chair. You got your first really big bruise on you as a result. There was a goose egg and I had to ice it to get the swelling to go down.

Your favorite game right now and this week in particular is to have me chase you. We start in the bedroom and then you run into your room and shriek with laughter as I chase you saying "fee fi fo fum!" Once you are in your room you try to find a spot to hide and then I pick you up and tickle you as you laugh and laugh. We repeated the process a good 10 or 15 times. It was fabulous, such a great memory.

Remember....

This post is for me....memories that I don't want to forget with you.

Last week you went home from daycare with diarrhea. So your Dad and I got to have our first experience doing a joint diaper change since your blowout was so bad. As I carried you up the stairs I held you at arms length so that I didn't get the mess all over me. While walking up the stairs I was saying "Gross baby gross baby!" in a funny voice and you just giggled and giggled. Then while your Dad was undressing you and I was holding you up, he got some on his hands and freaked out saying "aah it's on my hands now!" You once again proceeded to laugh. It was so funny because everything we said was hilarious and you were completely oblivious about what was really going on. 

Today you were playing with your toys and watching you was adorable because you would push a button on a toy to have it make music, then once the music played you would clap and bob your head. You repeated this for a good five minutes with different toys. 

You are getting better at walking each day...you are practically running. You saw me in the hallway at daycare the other day and because you were so excited to see me you lean forward as you walk as if you are lunging towards me. This in turn makes you have to "run" or rather walk very fast in order to keep yourself upright and not fall forward. It is adorable and the best way to be greeted after a long day at work. 

We went to Great Grandma Casey's yesterday... there is a picture of you and her on her end table that I gave her for Christmas. You pointed at her in the picture and then pointed at her indicating your recognition of her (I have to add this was with her not wearing her wig, so she did actually look different). This melted her heart and she beamed at your level of recognition of her.

Happy New Year and 11 Months Old!!

You are such an amazing little boy. You have transitioned from being my baby to a toddler. I have been told this on more than one occasion, fortunately I have realized it myself.

Things You are Doing Developmentally Now:
* WALKING!!!
* Holding your bottle...although you could do this before, you didn't want to because you wanted other people to do it for you. Now you do it because you want the control of doing it on your own.
* Climbing down from the couch on your own
* Dancing to music
*You have started to try "climbing" out of the tub (uh oh)!
* Your top four teeth are ALMOST in...they are coming along each day. They have broken through, but aren't all the way in.
* You can stand up by yourself without using something to pull yourself up.

Things You are Doing Right Now that I Love:
* You have started wanting soft blankets to cuddle with when you don't feel good or are tired. You snuggle it next to your face, it is so adorable.
* Your Dad loves this - you can "high five" now.
* When you walk you walk with your hands up in the air and you laugh and giggle and cheer for yourself as you walk. You are SO proud of yourself and it is so adorable.
* You are exploring gravity now and you love to throw everything on the floor now.
* This one actually makes me a little sad... you are starting to lose your baby fat now that you are walking. I look at pictures and can see you getting skinnier by the day.


As for New Year's....you turned 11 months old but it was pretty uneventful. You slept through the whole thing which is to be expected while Mom and Dad lit off Chinese Lanterns outside with friends. I can't wait for you to be a part of the tradition on year though!