To Our 1 Year Old

Colten, you turn 1 year old today! I can't believe we have had you in our life for a year now. You have definitely added more love and fun to our family!

The day you were born was the morning after an ice storm started pounding our area. Mommy and Daddy stayed in a hotel near the hospital so that we could get there safely. Austin stayed at home with Bobo and Yaya and waited anxiously for word that you had been born!

You were a stubborn baby who decided to be 2 weeks late, forcing Mommy to make a tough decision, but a decision made out of love. It was a great moment to have your gorgeous face next to mine while the surgery was finished up. I was so glad to have the opportunity of getting to hold you right after being wheeled into my room. Everything I wanted for you was done. You got to nurse, be held and loved on before any procedure was done to you. It was the greatest experience I could have asked for in that situation.

Though a late start you had, you definitely made up for it quickly. You smiled at 3 weeks (and not just a gassy "smile," it was a REAL smile!). You were rolling over both ways right after turning 4 months, and started scooting and getting up on your knees right before turning 5 months. At 5 1/2 months you started pulling up on things and going from all fours to sitting up. A few days later, you started cruising. You were full on crawling at 6 months. You practiced all that the next few months until you started taking a few steps here and there at 8 1/2 months. You started standing up on your own somewhere in the 9th month and was full on walking EVERYWHERE by 10 months as well. Now, you are pretty much running, throwing balls, trying to climb up slides, going down slides by yourself, and playing independently really well.

You are a man of few words, but you make up for it in volume. :-) You grunt and screech and clap your hands to communicate. You also are picking up the sign language a bit and do "more" and "all done" in your own way. You were signing "eat" the other day as well.

You LOVE food. I don't think you know when you are full and can just eat and eat! You like most things, but don't like to eat chunks of meat unless they are hidden like in spaghetti or fried like chicken nuggets. You LOVE milk and have self-weaned, I think, due to this new love. :-) Your favorites so far have to be spaghetti, yogurt, and hamburgers.

Sleeping through the night is a new thing for you. You teased us with a phase of it over Christmas, but have now started doing it again. You loved your nursing sessions in the middle of the night, so when you gave those up, you just continued to sleep instead of waking. Mommy and Daddy are so grateful!

You have a fun, loving, cute personality. You love your brother and love to irritate him! His toys are your favorite toys to play with a lot of the time, although you really enjoy your ball popper, ride on toys, and Cozy Coupe car. You can't make up your mind whether you want to cuddle or play, but you can be really sweet and give lots of hugs and kisses, especially when one of us hasn't seen you in a couple of hours. You are sunshine and joy all wrapped up in a boy!

Soon, you will be a big brother and I know that you will follow in your own big brothers footsteps and do a great job with your new role. You are one of the most loved little boys in the world and we are so glad that God gave you to us.

Happy Birthday, Colten!