One Year Old!

Happy first birthday to my baby boy!!! Here's an accurate representation of him today in all his snot-nosed glory. Poor little guy. He's under the weather and fairly miserable. Thankfully, on the day of his party, he wasn't as miserable as he is now but he was still pretty sick. He was up from about midnight until 3:00 AM on the day of his party and then was not his usual smiley self. He melted down before the party was over. It's his party and he can cry if he wants to.

The day of his party was beautiful sunny and warm weather so we got to use the backyard. It was a good thing because there were nearly 50 people here to celebrate his first birthday. How wonderful to look out onto the backyard and see it full of kids and families who care about him and are important in our lives. His party was a planting season theme and so the floral arrangements had carrots and watering cans, the favors were garden starts, there was a pennant banner made from seek packets, the food labels were tiny planters with plan labels, and the cake was dirt cake cups with a gummy worm. Surprisingly, Oliver didn't like his smash cake, perhaps because he was feeling under the weather. I didn't get many pictures of his party. In fact, I got zero! But I wandered around afterward and snapped a few pictures of the decorations.

I just got some photos from Oliver's grandma, Mary, from the party. Yippee! Here's a few from hanging out in the backyard, the cake smash, and opening gifts.

Well, that brings us to the end of Oliver's first year blog. It has all flown by so fast. With Eloise everything was a first and with Oliver everything was a last, and so there are some feelings of grief as we put this chapter of his life behind us. More than anything I feel so fortunate that the two kids I got are so amazing. Oliver loves life and is pure joy. He is big and strong and at times reminds me of the muppet Animal with his sudden bursts of wild energy. This was true even in utero with his sudden bursts of rapid-fire kicking and punching. He's mostly a go-with-the-flow guy, except when he's not. Like when he was breech at the end of pregnancy and refused to turn. Or when he refused the bottle after taking it for a while. Or months later when he weaned himself from nursing. He is my snuggler and my sweet mama's boy. I love when he throws his arms around my neck, buries his head in my shoulder, and gives a squeeze. I reflect on his first year with so much joy, look forward to witnessing his growth and development in the future, and most of all relish every moment of the present I get to spend with him.