1. This month has brought so many changes! It’s almost as if he
decided to put three months of growing into one. One day Jeff and I went in to
get him from his afternoon nap, and looking at his wakey little face I realized
that he looked so different all of a sudden. After just one nap, Madden looked
like a little boy instead of my itsy bitsy baby. It was a happy moment with
just a little bit of a knot in my throat.
2. Madden is not even completely walking yet, and he is a terrorist. Really he is, but a very cute one. The first thing Madden does in the morning is jet into the kitchen and start flinging wooden spoons and Tupperware out of the cupboards and drawers. He does not rest until all the drawers within his reach are completely empty. He even gets on his tippies and reaches up to the highest drawers and does a blind swipe with his fingers and unloads those too. For days and days, I would clean up the kitchen multiple times a day, but as soon as he sees me cleaning he comes crawling back over ready to destroy again. He just likes everything out where he can see it I guess! I've never wanted to baby proof, mainly because I want him to be curious and have other things to do in the house other than play with his toys, but this past week I was going insane with the mess! Mad woke up to his beloved drawers duck taped closed. I just needed one day of sanity, and I got it. Now let the chaos resume...
3. He is such a funny boy- he knows when he's doing something he shouldn't. For instance, he loves standing up next to our nightstand and shaking it so hard that the lamp and picture frame wobble to the edge. Sometimes he'll sneak into our room and start shaking it just a little bit, then he'll stop and wait, looking over his shoulder for me to come into the room to stop him. As soon as he sees me he giggles and turns back around to give the nightstand a few more hard shakes before I snatch him up. He is such a trickster and he knows exactly what he's doing!! He is definitely all boy...he loves to unload the diaper bag and hide it's contents in the pantry, he pulls all the plugs out of the walls, he throws the picture frame and topiary off the sofa table every day, and he tips over the kitchen chairs. He loves the bathroom, especially climbing into the cupboards underneath the counter and sucking on Jeff's toothbrush. Each of our toilet paper rolls have a bite chunk taken out of the corner, and I follow him around cleaning up toilet paper spit wads. He can open the toilet lid now, and only once has he succeeded in using the toilet water as a play pool. I used to put him inside the tub while I was getting ready but now he heaves himself over the side and dives head first out of the tub. Defeat is one of the words I would use to describe our mornings. I've just succumbed to the realization that I'll never have a clean house again. It's actually really ironic that Madden's room is always the only one that is clean and picked up. Jeff says this is proof that he's a terrorist- he destroys everyone's territory but his own.
4. Meal times are so fun for us. He's always been such a good eater and I love making him new things to try. He used to sit in his high chair for a long time, just taking his time and eating everything I gave him. Nowadays this boy is on the move and I have about five minutes before he get too restless and tries to escape. He wiggles his way out and stands up on his tray, and that's how he likes to eat. Sometimes he even prefers to have one leg dangling over the side of the highchair. The other day at lunch he kept trying to crawl out of his chair onto the counter, and after shoving him back into his seat multiple times I finally realized what he was trying to get. He wanted to see the picture of our family! It was so cute, I put the picture frame on his tray and he sat and ate the rest of his lunch, happily munching away and smiling at our family picture. Lately he loves blueberries, fresh ones. He loves them with every single meal and he picks them out and eats all of them first before eating anything else. He also loves grilled cheese, oatmeal, Greek yogurt, quesadillas, apples, crackers, peanut butter, eggs, and avocados. He is not digging sweet potatoes, quinoa, or bananas lately which is weird. I always put his food pieces on his tray for him, and after he's eaten all the blueberries he'll pick up each piece of his lunch and stare at it for a couple seconds inspecting it. Some piece get eaten, and if they failed inspection he tosses them over the side. Don't worry though, once he gets out of his high chair he finishes off the food he threw to the ground, he must have just figured it would taste better later.
5. Some of my favorite things Madden does lately are: he laughs after he sneezes every time, he waves bye-bye, he likes to make fishy faces, he crawls into my lap and lays his head down on my shoulder for a quick snuggle break, he rubs his face against mine when he's tired, and he gives the best open mouth kisses when we ask for them.
6. Mad LOVES to be around other kids. He's just starting to be mobile enough to keep up with them and its so cute how he charges after them wanting to play. He crawls up really fast then stops short and just sits like a puppy watching them. He is a total mamas boy but is totally happy going to anyone to check them out. I call him my little homing pigeon because he wanders off a little ways then comes right back to me. It's the best feeling ever when your baby recognizes you and reaches his little arms out towards you. Heart melting!
7. A couple weeks ago he weighed about 22 lbs and he's probably still around 33 in long. He's growing so quickly and he's such a big boy! I don't even remember when his little legs stopped being chunky and squishy. Now they are long and skinny and lay flat on the floor when he's on his back. His eyes are still blue, even though lots of people told us not to get our hopes up. They could still go dark, but I don't think it will make us love him any less. The older he gets, the more people say that he looks like Jeff.
8. He's taking one long nap every day now, usually around 11 o'clock. He's also going to bed earlier at night now at around 7 or 7:30, and wakes up every morning at 7:30. I love our night time routine, and it's obvious that he thrives off of knowing what to expect. But every night we have dinner, then its bath time, then he nurses, then we get his toothbrush and he brushes his teeth while we read a story, then we snuggle for a few minutes, then I walk him to his room getting kisses from daddy on the way, then I hold him and sing a few songs and say prayers, then he goes into his crib and I kiss my little prince good night. To be perfectly accurate, there are some nights that he's not thrilled about going to bed, but most of the time he curls right up and falls asleep. 4. Meal times are so fun for us. He's always been such a good eater and I love making him new things to try. He used to sit in his high chair for a long time, just taking his time and eating everything I gave him. Nowadays this boy is on the move and I have about five minutes before he get too restless and tries to escape. He wiggles his way out and stands up on his tray, and that's how he likes to eat. Sometimes he even prefers to have one leg dangling over the side of the highchair. The other day at lunch he kept trying to crawl out of his chair onto the counter, and after shoving him back into his seat multiple times I finally realized what he was trying to get. He wanted to see the picture of our family! It was so cute, I put the picture frame on his tray and he sat and ate the rest of his lunch, happily munching away and smiling at our family picture. Lately he loves blueberries, fresh ones. He loves them with every single meal and he picks them out and eats all of them first before eating anything else. He also loves grilled cheese, oatmeal, Greek yogurt, quesadillas, apples, crackers, peanut butter, eggs, and avocados. He is not digging sweet potatoes, quinoa, or bananas lately which is weird. I always put his food pieces on his tray for him, and after he's eaten all the blueberries he'll pick up each piece of his lunch and stare at it for a couple seconds inspecting it. Some piece get eaten, and if they failed inspection he tosses them over the side. Don't worry though, once he gets out of his high chair he finishes off the food he threw to the ground, he must have just figured it would taste better later.
5. Some of my favorite things Madden does lately are: he laughs after he sneezes every time, he waves bye-bye, he likes to make fishy faces, he crawls into my lap and lays his head down on my shoulder for a quick snuggle break, he rubs his face against mine when he's tired, and he gives the best open mouth kisses when we ask for them.
6. Mad LOVES to be around other kids. He's just starting to be mobile enough to keep up with them and its so cute how he charges after them wanting to play. He crawls up really fast then stops short and just sits like a puppy watching them. He is a total mamas boy but is totally happy going to anyone to check them out. I call him my little homing pigeon because he wanders off a little ways then comes right back to me. It's the best feeling ever when your baby recognizes you and reaches his little arms out towards you. Heart melting!
7. A couple weeks ago he weighed about 22 lbs and he's probably still around 33 in long. He's growing so quickly and he's such a big boy! I don't even remember when his little legs stopped being chunky and squishy. Now they are long and skinny and lay flat on the floor when he's on his back. His eyes are still blue, even though lots of people told us not to get our hopes up. They could still go dark, but I don't think it will make us love him any less. The older he gets, the more people say that he looks like Jeff.
9. I'm loving this stage because he is so playful. Recently he's started showing off some pretty adorable dance moves. The first time we noticed him dancing was during the Superbowl half time show. It's pretty hard not to get jiggy with Bruno Mars. Madden also LOVES to play peek a boo. It's almost part of our nightly routine- playing peek a boo next to the bed. He also loves to be surprised, he thinks its pretty hilarious when we jump out and scare him and now he trying to do it to us. He loves playing with his blocks and takes them out of his box one by one and lines them up on the table. Then one by one, he takes them down and puts each one back into the box. Back and forth, back and forth. He is also loving balls right now, and he'll sit on the ground and roll it back and forth with us. He likes to play chase, and he crawls right fast towards us then sits up on his knees and throws his hands in the air. He looks like a cat sitting on its haunches with its paws up. He always shuts the door on himself by accident and hates it when he's locked inside our bedroom when we're on the other side. He bangs on the door and yells at us until we go set him free. He's so much fun to be around and he so smart too. He does things to try and get a reaction from me and he still thinks its hilarious when I try to tell him "no."
10. I thought that learning to walk would be more of a quick process, but Madden is just taking it step by step and going nice and slow. In my journal I count February 5 as the day Madden took his first real steps- four steps to be exact. But after that day, he didn't show much interest. On February 10, he walked about 4 four feet, which was so fun and exciting! So although he knows he can do it, he's still pretty content just crawling everywhere. Any day now I'm sure he'll be off like a rocket, and that when the real fun and craziness begins!
11. We just couldn't be more in love with this boy. There really is not one thing we would change about him or our life together as a family. We have so many blessings and we are grateful for the knowledge that we will be together for eternity. Madden isn't the only one that has grown this year, Jeff and I have learned so much, we've become better people, and our marriage is even stronger after becoming parents and having a little piece of heaven in our family. We're pretty sure he loves us too, just the other day Madden figured out how to point and he crawled over to a picture of Jeff and I, and he looked over at me smiling and pointed to the picture. We love how he recognizes the people who love him most and we can't wait to celebrate this amazing and special year we've had together and many happy years to come!
Today you are my one-year-old. This past year has been a whirlwind of lazy days with you cozied and curled up on my chest. Your little lips have been smothered incessantly with kisses. And every day we excitedly watch you try to do big boy tricks while secretly wishing you'd stay little forever. You're growing up too fast!
There were many days when the laundry was left undone and dinner turned into cereal night, but I promised myself I would never feel guilty because holding you and loving you was always the better and most importance choice. I love knowing that I soaked up every possible moment with you during this precious stage of your life. I didn't miss a single yawn or smile, and I'm glad I can say that I know every inch of your sweet face.
I'll always remember looking down at my big belly before you were born and wondering what my baby was going to look like. As hard as I tried, I could not imagine your face. But the first time I saw you, I realized that you were familiar to me and that I had always known it was going to be you. Dad and I fell in love with you instantly and we are even more crazy about you one year later!
Did you know that every night when you're sleeping, I come in and kiss your face? Dad and I race to get you out of your crib in the morning and after naps, and we lay in bed at night looking at the dozens of pictures taken of your daily achievements. We just can't get enough!
We're savoring this time in your life when your wild little personality is exploding out of you. Every day you let your curiosity take you a little further. You love being outside, especially when it's windy or when you know you're about to get in the water. You love people, but you know your mama and you're always excited to get back into my arms. You love to be held when we're at home, but when we're anywhere else you want to be on the ground exploring. You love to wrestle and rough house, and you especially love to play peek-a-boo. You love books and I often see you sitting quietly on your knees, thumbing through the pages of your favorite stories. You are always smiling and laughing, people always comment on what a happy and calm baby you are. We love you and we just melt over your fishy faces and slobbery, open-mouth kisses. We like to think that you are such a happy baby because you know how much you are loved and adored by your mom and dad.
We are so blessed to have your sweet spirit in our family! You have brought us a new kind of joy we've never experienced and we love every day we get to be your mom and dad.
Happy birthday Little Prince! We love you oh so much!
Love, Mom and Dad
