{12 Months}

Dear baby Gavin,

Today you are 12 months old. One year ago today was one of the best days of my life. I still look back and remember feeling so complete the day you were born. You were healthy and happy. That made me and your daddy the happiest parents in the world. Each and every day since then, you have made us so happy. So complete. Our little family of three.

Each and every day you change and you are such a sweet boy. Watching you grow up and enjoy life has got to be life's greatest blessing. You are very aware of your surroundings, and nothing slips your attention. You will notice anything and everything new in your environment, and will want to explore it. I have said a lot lately, you are in to EVERYTHING, and want to be everywhere. We love it. It is so much fun to explore with you.

You have really discovered that you have a "voice" and will give us your opinions about everything. Sometimes laughs, sometimes fake laughs. Sometimes whines and sometimes cries. Sometimes even very loud yells. Yes, you yell, and it gets quite loud. I usually cave and give you what you want. Your Dad? Not so much. And this is probably why you listen to him when he tells you "no" for doing something you are not supposed to. That's right, I am a push-over. I know it. I just want to make you a happy little man;)

Your sleeping: You go to bed every night at about 7 or 7:30. You nurse to sleep, and then sleep until about 6am. Sometimes you wake up at 5am and talk/whine/moan until 6. I refuse (most of the time) to go in to get you until 6, as that is nice and early enough. Sometimes I cave and go get you at 5:30am, usually because I worked the previous day and I miss you. During the day you still nap 2 times. You take your first nap at about 9am. This one is anywhere from 1 to 2 hours. Then when you wake up the day is ours, and you run non-stop until about 2ish. Then you nap again for about an hour. Then you run non-stop again until bedtime. We all could not be any more happy about your great sleeping skills. Still some bad nights here and there, but overall, its perfect.

Your eating: You are still nursing 4 times a day. Once when you wake up, again before each nap, and once before bed. You enjoy this time as much as I do. It this point, things are good, so I have decided to keep nursing you for a little while longer. I am not sure how much longer, I will let you decide (unless you want to do this forever...thats not possible!). I think you are getting close to weaning yourself, so we will see. You have also proven that you have some tummy problems and skin rashes with cow milk and soy milk. So mama's milk it remains. You eat any and all table food with each meal. You will eat almost anything, and love your fruit, pasta, bread, raisins, avocado, carrots, mum-mum's, puffs, chex, banana's, chicken, fish, tortillas, black olives, and the list goes on. You make a huge mess with each meal, and then when you are finished, you throw the food on the ground. Again, your Dad tells you "no" and you stop. I tell you "no" and you grin and give me the stink face. Hmm. You love to drink water with meals, and prefer a straw too. You love straws, and you even drink your carrot baby food through it. We tricked you, but you seem to love it, so maybe the trick is on us:)

Your playtime: You play, play, play all day long. With all your toys. With sticks. With rocks. With dirt. With dad's tools. With mom's make-up and brushes. With pretty much anything you can get your hands on. You like to pick things up, and carry them around. You like to give things to us, and then take them away. You love peek-a-boo, stories, and lots of singing. You even dance now. It looks more like squatting, but it is so cute. So we dance a lot in our house. Even Daddy:)

Today we will celebrate the last year with you. We will celebrate how much joy you have brought into our lives. How happy you make us, and how much we look forward to the future. We love you sweet baby G!