To my baby boy on his first birthday
Dear Declan,
The past year has brought me so much happiness and so much love. One year ago today I was blessed to bring a sweet son into this world. I have loved watching you grow each and every day. You are a happy, fun, and sweet little boy who has made our family complete. I was worried before you were born that I would have to share the love I had between you and your big sister, but I was wrong. When you came into our lives my love doubled, maybe even tripled and there was more than enough to go around. I have cherished every moment I have had with you and will continue to do so for the rest of my life.
You are doing so many fun and wonderful things right now. You can clap your hands and wave and give a great high five. You walk all over with your walker toy and cruise along the furniture (and the cabinets and the fridge and anything else you can find). You have great balance and can stand without holding on for more than 10 seconds and then you slowly lower yourself to the ground. It won’t be long before you are walking unassisted! Although I have to admit, as cool as it was to see your big sister learn to walk, I am secretly enjoying the slightly slower pace you are taking because I am in no rush for you to grow up!
Your hair is getting so long, at some point soon we’ll have to think about getting it cut. I call you shaggy boy because there is no real style to it and it’s, well, shaggy. I like to comb it over to one side and admire how handsome you look. We try to keep you in comfortable clothes so you can motor around the room and be comfy, but I do love to see you in “big boy” clothes like cargo pants and button down shirts. Makes me swoon every time. You just got your first big boy jeans and a button down shirt and I am dying to see you wear them at your birthday party. I call you handsome little man or handsome (pronounced hand-some-ay) all the time.
You are such a big boy eater and have been enjoying your finger foods since before 9m. You love black beans and your fruits and veggies and ravioli. You love to get a kids burrito at moes and eat all of the insides. Teagan has shared licks of her lollypop and you were in heaven waiting for each turn you got to take a lick. You just started drinking whole milk and so far you seem to like it. You are still taking two bottles at daycare of a combination breast milk whole milk but you will likely be stopping that this week.
You have two bottom teeth and last week your 4 top teeth started coming in which has been quite painful. As a result you haven’t been as interested in nursing the last few days, so this may be the end. We’re taking it day by day. Mommy will miss the sweet snuggles and bonding but I am sure we will make up for it in other ways. It has been truly a joy to nurse you for the last year, even if it meant night time wakings and being chained to my pump when I was away from you. And speaking of night time wakings, you have been night time weaned and sleeping through the night (with the exception of these recent teething nights) for about a month now. That certainly was a great milestone!
You aren’t a man of too many words just yet but you say Mama and Dada (and mean it) and you have lots of babbles that you add in. You can’t say Teagan just yet but I can tell from the look in your eyes that you just adore your big sister. You love to play with her and watch her and laugh when she’s silly. Siblings have such a special bond and even though you are three years younger I can tell how much you love each other and I can’t wait to watch your relationship grow.
You like to chew on most toys, but some of your favorite toys include the cymbals from Teagan’s band-in-a-box, which you bang together and smile. You like to push the buttons on your walker toy, play with your music table, and get into Teagan’s doll house. Recently you have taken a liking to playing with Teagan’s kitchen – you open and close the doors and bang on things. You are picking up little skills every day – I love that you pick up a comb or brush and immediately try to brush your hair. This weekend I saw you take a closed marker and activity book of Teagan’s and try to write on it to mimic what she does. You also love to play outside and crawl around, touch the grass and dirt, and take a ride in the wagon. Once the weather is warm again we will have lots more outside time to enjoy!
Most of all, I love your snuggles and the way you are such a cuddly Mama’s boy. I know you won’t always be that way and before I know it you’ll be running off to play and want nothing to do with me so I am savoring every moment of closeness. I love being your Mama and I love the happiness you bring to our family. You are so special to me and I am honored to have a son like you. I can’t wait to see what the next year brings for you.
Happy Birthday, sweet boy.
Love,
Mama
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