I see what you did there!

Now that the Big D is One Year Old he has some new tricks to share:

and as you can imagine, this makes him very tired:

It is hard work being the baby.

The stats from our last doctor appointment:

Date		Visit		Weight		Length
6/17/2011		Birth		9 pounds 4.8 oz		21 1/4"
21-Jun		First Dr. Visit		9 pounds 2 oz
7/6/2011		Second Dr. Visit		9 pounds 12 oz		22"
29-Jul		Visit to midwives		10 pounds 11 oz
8/24/2011		Two Month Visit		14 pounds 7 oz		23 1/4"
10/24/2011		Four Month Visit		18 pounds 5 oz		26 1/2"
19-Dec		Six Month Visit		21 pounds 3 oz		27 1/2"
3/19/2012		Nine Month Visit		24 pounds 8 oz		29 1/2"
6/25/2012		One Year Visit		25 pounds 14 oz		30 1/4"

ONE!

Happy Birthday, Baby Desmond!

Cake face.

I cannot fathom that a year has already gone by. This tiny man showed up, stole our hearts and made me fall in love with the whole world again. I get to see everything though my son's eyes and it is wondrous. What did I do with my time before? Every day is so long, but the year has gone by in a flash.

We celebrated today with a group of close friends, Including Adam R. who christened Baby D 'ClayWanda' and all the honorary uncles: Uncle Toothpick, Uncle Handfart, Uncle Beardo and Uncle Hot Pockets. We also have a friend named Lunchbox. I would list the ladies that were here too, their names are not as interesting as the fellas, but they are no less loved.

Desmond ate cake today. Those who know me will report that I am very strict about what my family eats. The big D ate an iced cupcake, licked his fingers clean and then attempted to crawl around and eat the crumbs off the floor. Its going to be tough going back to yogurt, quinoa and lentils tomorrow. The little man had a huge day and fell asleep an hour before his usual bedtime.

Happy Birthday my heart. You are so loved by so many people. I am so happy you turned up.

Spoonfulls.

Recently I was paid a complement by a reader of this blog who very much likes the straightforwardness of what he reads. There is no, "my baby is the best baby and compared to your stinky baby my baby is Einstein and Gandhi and your babies are dumb."  I appreciate him noticing. My life, and Desmond's are not a contest. Before I was a Mom I have been a storyteller, a professional artist, an employee of a multinational public company, friend to many, family to some, a good cook, a reader, I used to like cats. I'm still those things. I hope to never measure my life by the successes of my child. I am here to help him succeed, to learn, to love him unconditionally. I hope I can give him the tools and help him identify the goals by which he measures his success. I'm here to love him. My job is to love him and teach him to learn from and be kind to everyone he meets. He is a tiny man in a big world. Right now the challenges are small. Spoons are a good place to start:

Eleven Months. Really? Can't be.

Phhhbt. Eleven months.

I suppose its true. 11 months have passed like the blink of a eye. Yikes.

• Baby D can say the following: Achoo! He mimics us when we sneeze and this is the funniest thing, ever. Also, when he feels like it: Mama, Dada, Kitty, Doggie, Uh-oh and Ball. And the occasional nom nom nom.
• There are perfect blonde curls appearing at the back of D's head. They are perfect after a bath, and smooshy after a nap.
• Popeye arms. Hammy legs. 
• D can pull up on the furniture and toys and then let go and stand on his own until he realizes that he is standing on his own and promptly sits.
• The kitties are learning to run away.
• Blueberry yogurt is the most delicious food in the world. 

Black Berries Are Awesome

TEN MONTHS!

Ten Months. For Real, Though.
Desmond-y Facts:

• Every evening. after his bath D enjoys what we call 'nekkid monkey hinie jumping time' before we wrestle him into a diaper and pajamas, and hope like hell he doesn't pee on our bed.
• We are days, if not hours from watching baby D take his first steps.
• Eight teeth, four above, four below.
• Strawberries are a new favorite.
• Dinnertime almost always includes music, and Harry Belafonte makes noodles taste better.
• Since the weather has been so mild we try to take a daily trip to the park for a ride on the swings- a smile and giggle filled ride that is as much fun for me as it is for D.
• Lots of kids have nicknames, and the one that seems to have stuck is 'Baby Desmond'.  I call him this, Rob call him this, the sitter, the little boys at daycare, and I have a vision that one day, when D is six-foot-five and 225 pounds we will still be calling him 'Baby Desmond'; the perfect name for a dude that large. BD for short.

CLEAN!