What a fun age!

We're loving life with our big one year old boy these days. Just when I get a little misty eyed thinking about how much he's grown out of the little baby phase and how much I miss my peanut he does something new and it makes me smile, and usually giggle.

Landon is walking like crazy! His favorite "game" right now is chase. He takes off, giggling all the way, if you tell him your going to get him. Likewise, if you run away from him and tell him he's going to get you he follows - and giggles. His favorite escape route? Right up the stairs...and he flies!

He's an eating machine. Gone are the days of purees, here are the days of quesadillas, meatballs, green beans, bananas, noodles with spaghetti sauce, peaches, and crackers (and more). Oh, does he love crackers. I used to keep a sleeve of whole wheat Ritz on the counter for easy grabbing for snack time. Thing is, now he knows they're there and will not eat whatever you put in front of him because he'd rather have a cracker. Stubborn? Yes. Wonder where he gets that from...

Landon LOVES to read. Seriously. Loves it. He'll fish out his books from his toy bins, bring them to you and hand them over then climb himself right into your lap so you can read him the book. It melts my heart each and every time. His favorite books right now include all things Dr. Seuss, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Brown Bear, and Thumper Counts to Ten. Thumper seems to be his all time favorite as he'll pass it back and forth between Mama and Daddy sometimes four or five times. Crazy guy.

On the flipside, Landon has absolutely zero interest in watching TV. I've flipped it on at the end of an exhausting day in hope of a five or ten minute blissful break, and he's not interested. He likes the sound the TV makes when we turn it on, and his all time favorite toy (or non-toy as the case may be) is the remote control, but that's as far as his interest in TV goes.

His current favorite "real toy" is his Busy Ball Popper. He loves that thing and it will keep him entertained for a good half an hour.

Landon is babbling up a storm. We're quite certain he knows EXACTLY what he's talking about, but the problem is, he's speaking his very own language. Still, it's fun to watch and listen to him "talk" while his facial expressions change and he points to stuff. He points to EVERYTHING!

Another favorite past-time is turning the lights on and off. Landon loves to pull himself up to anyone that will pick him up and lunge toward the nearest light switch. As an added bonus, when he turns the light "off" he turns his head and blows it out.

Hugs on demand. I love them! If you ask Landon for some love he'll bury his head into your shoulder and will sometime wrap his arms around your neck. This is one of my all time favorite things EVER.

Landon has discovered the four legged creatures in our house. We have the makings of first "official" words in "dog" and "kitty" since we've got a couple wandering around here. Jake is the more tolerant of the dogs and will sit still while Landon pulls at his ears, gives him love and plays with his nose. Miss Kitty is curious enough to get close, but not sure about this mini human in her midst. Then ensues a game of chase...

Our days are full of love, sleeping is easier for all of us, and our little man is turning into just that - a little man. I'm in awe of just how much has changed this past year and am thoroughly looking forward to the time that's ahead of us.

Camera Dump

I know, I know...bad mommy. I've been hoarding pictures in my camera since Hawaii. Yes, you read that right, Hawaii, in May. Here's a peek at some of the fun we've been having lately.

We spent lots of time at the beach, Landon LOVED the sand but wasn't so sure about the waves.

Playing in the sand

Trying to dig himself a hole back home to avoid the airport. It didn't work, and he did great on the plane.

My boys on our last night in paradise.

A birthday boy CHEESE!

Tackling the presents!

Landon LOVES cake!

More presents with Grandma.

Our little family.

One of Landon's favorite things to do - walking to the screen door and pounding on it.

Granddad taught him how to put olives on his fingers. See the pickle on his tray? He LOVES pickles.

Helping Daddy with his presents on Father's Day.

He got in there all by himself.

Happy Guy!



This was right before he decided he didn't like the merry-go-round.

Fourth of July on the train at Pixie Playland.

Steps! We have steps!

It was very exciting around our house last night, Landon took his official first independent steps! No cruising, no holding hands, he walked from Mark to me all by himself - and then he walked back to Mark - back and forth eight or nine times! He was so tickled with himself that once he reached either one of us Landon would squeal with delight, dance on his little feet, and flap his arms like crazy before calming himself down and going right back out there.

He's got tons of practicing to do still and would rather crawl than walk anywhere since he gets there so much faster, but I can see walking on the horizon...and I'm sure running isn't too far behind.

Holy crap, what are we in for?!?!

Happy Birthday Landon!

One year ago at this moment I was holding my tiny newborn son. It's crazy to think that he's now officially a year old. Where did the time go? It's been a whirlwind of a year full of the highest highs ever and some difficult low points as well. All in all, we survived, and we're up for another year - really many more to come.

It's bittersweet. I miss my cuddly baby that relied on me for everything. I miss the toothless grin and the toes that would curl around my finger. I miss his little bald head and that newborn baby smell. I miss being home with him all day and not having to worry about anything else going on in the world but our little family of three. Yet at the same time I love that he's able to feed himself right now, I love his blond hair that's grown in perfectly, I love the toothy smile he flashes when he sees me coming. I love the big open mouth slobbery kisses and the way he rests his head on my shoulder giving me a little hug. I love seeing him so excited to see me when I pick him up from daycare and the way he sprint crawls across the room to get to me. I love his chitter chatter and the way he says Mama! I also look forward to the years to come. Seeing him grow up and becoming his own person, seeing his personality develop and that sparkle in his eye. I look forward to teaching him how to walk and ride a bike and pump on the swings. I look forward to finding out more about this little creature, this being that we created out of love.

I've learned so much this past year, it's crazy. I've learned...

That time does not stand still no matter how much you want it to.
That you must treasure each moment.
To never say never.
That miracles do happen.
That no matter how difficult things may be I can keep going.
That love at first sight really does exist.
That I can function on very little sleep.
That I have the perfect husband for me.
That my family and friends have an immeasurable value.
That a baby is far more entertaining than TV.
That it's okay to ask for help.
That it's even more okay to accept help.
To say what I mean.
To mean what I say.
That laundry will still be there later.
That a lived in house is better than a clean one.
That for being so little babies sure do come with a whole bunch of stuff.
That sometimes blessings are disguised.
That each and every day of life is a blessing.

Happy Birthday my sweet, amazing, wonderful, independent, handsome, smiley, giggly, silly, cuddly, fabulous, miraculous baby boy. You will always be mommy's baby boy, no matter how big or how old you get. I love you.

One year ago tomorrow

One year ago tomorrow we entered the hospital as two, and a week later left as three. It's crazy to think that a year has flown by and my itty bitty baby that was once inside a protruding belly was just about to be born. Exactly one year ago at this moment I do believe all the wonderful women in my life were bustling about trying like crazy to get everything ready for a baby to come home. We thought we'd have a couple more weeks, but when the doctor said we'd be going in on June 8th to get induced things picked up into high gear. It didn't help matters with me being on bedrest, talk about a frustrated momma!

I could not have prepared myself for this last year; it's been one of the most rewarding, challenging, joyous, hard, wonderful, crazy, one-of-a-kind years I'll ever have. The fact of the matter is, nothing prepares you to be a mommy. Sometimes I find myslef drifting back to the days when Landon wasn't around. Sure, I was rested and could get a ton of errands done in a couple of hours; life didn't revolve around nap and feeding times, but I'll take this mommy stuff over all that any day of the week. This precious being knows who I am, loves to snuggle me, laughs at my goofy faces, comes straight to me for comfort, and is most definitely wrapped around my finger.

What a difference a year makes.

More Favorites - 11 Months

Favorite food - Oatmeal, I can usually trick Landon into eating the veggies he's suddenly decided he doesn't like as long as I hide them under a spoonful of oatmeal. I think he's onto me though.
Least favorite food - Squash, his aunties taught him how to stick his tongue out while we were in Hawaii and now he's figured out how to get anything off his tongue he doesn't like instead of just swallowing it. He won't even open his mouth for squash anymore, stinker!

Favorite toy - The remote control and cordless phone are neck and neck here.
Least favorite toy - Rings, he used to love them and now he just throws them across the room.

Favorite word - Mamamamamamama, I LOVE IT!
Least favorite word - No, he shakes his head no and then smiles at you. It's so hard not to smile and laugh.

Favorite book - Mr. Brown Can Moo, he loves the sounds.
Least favorite book - Baby Ant Has Stinky Pants, I keep telling him that he's not baby ant and is not stinky, but what do I know.

Favorite thing to do - Point. At EVERYTHING. He makes a SHSH noise while he's pointing too. His particular favorite? Lights and ceiling fans.
Least favorite thing to do - Get his nose cleaned off, you'd think I was committing a crime.

Favorite finger food - Bananas, we've been struggling with finger foods and finally found something that he'll eat by himself. I also gave him cantelope today and he did pretty well with that too. I think we've got a carb-hound on our hands.
Least favorite finger food - Green beans, we've been working on keeping them on the high chair tray since he doesn't even want them around.

Favorite song - Itsy Bitsy Spider, he still loves it although I think it's all for the crawling up the spout part since he loves to be tickled.
Least favorite song - The ABCs. Nope, still not ready to read apparently.

We're here!

In Hawaii, that is. This week is full of firsts, are you ready? We took Landon on his first plane ride on his first trip to the Hawaiian Islands to spend a week in Kona on the Big Island. Landon did such a great job on the plane and was the perfect baby; we got tons of compliments from our neighbors and from the crew. Aunties Kate and Em and Uncle John are joining us in Hawaii and did a great job of helping to keep our little guy entertained while we were en route. Really, I can't get over just how impressed I am with his fabulous behavior and go with the flow attitude, especially since our flight was delayed over two hours, and we even had to switch planes.

Now that we're here on the island Landon has continued to shine. I think he's the only one that has gotten himself onto island time (three hours behind California), sleeping in his pack and play without his white noise machine (we did borrow a smaller version from a friend). The one thing that's been slipping a bit has been eating - Landon does NOT like jarred babyfood and I can't say I blame him too much, some of that stuff smells terrible!

Onto more firsts! So far this week Landon has gotten his first taste of sand, literally, dipped his toes in the ocean and gone out on a snorkel and sea swimming adventure, walked along the beach (with help from Mommy and Daddy), learned how to stick his tongue out, point to everything, blow, and has been super duper chatty. We've discovered that Landon loves pineapple sorbet, fried rice, french bread, and mashed potato. More details and pictures when we get home.

Another first, though of the not so fun kind, first hives. I gave Landon a little bite of my vanilla ice cream since he really has liked it in the past and after all - we're on vacation! A few minutes later he had hives all over his mouth. A small panic attack, a trip to the car to call the advice nurse, lots of water and almost some Benadryl later he's just fine. No more ice cream though, at least not for a really long time.

That's about it here in Hawaii for now. Much more to come though, I'm sure.