Nicholas' 4th Birthday

For the last 6 months or so Nicholas has gone back and forth with 5-10 ideas about what he wanted for his 4th birthday. For those of you that know me, I am a super organized gal so the faster I could nail the plan down, the better. Being a Mom, I realize know matter how much you try and plan, that doesn't always work out. Well I kinda SWAYED him in to the construction vehicle theme, and I am thankful to say that it all worked out. I tried to tone it down this year with guests, but we are so beyond lucky to have so many wonderful friends that it was a huge party.

I also want to note that Nick has maintained friendships for the last 20+ years and it is just so awesome to see all the kiddos growing up together. It is truly what life is all about.

Happy 2nd Birthday Handsome

Happy Birthday (yesterday!) to my beautiful little boy Nicholas. Watching him grow has been the most amazing experience of my life to date. I thank Nick every single day for being able to be at home and take it all in. I try very hard to be present as much as possible, and to enjoy every day with my boy. I do know I will suddenly blink and he'll be a grown up. I am truly a very lucky woman.

On Saturday we'll be having a small party with friends and my parents, but here's how we celebrated last night.

We like to pose without pants on our birthday in this house...you'll only see pics of Nicholas though. (I'm kidding...)

Cake is coming!

Cake is here!

Now I'm hysterical because Mom and Dad won't let me have the cake until they finish singing...

Ahhh...cake

Nicholas 18 Month Appointment

He's one and a half you guys, and it's awesome. I don't want to every be one of those parents that says "where did the time go?" Before Nicholas was born, my Dad said something to me that will probably resonate for the rest of my life: "Life goes by so fast. Don't waste it drinking like I did. Then, when you have children, it goes by so much faster."

When Nicholas was a newborn, I was completely exhausted. Anyone that has had a child knows exactly what I mean. They say Mom's forget, but I think they just "don't remember" how bad it really was, and that's what makes them have more children. I have always been able to survive on little to no sleep, but those first few months were still very tough. With that being said, it was worth every single second. Nicholas is a happy, smiley, laughing boy, 99.8% of the time. In those beginning sleepless nights, I savored holding his warm little body close to me, taking in his smell ( so what if it was spit up and poop? people lie guys, babies DON'T smell delicious). His sweet, soft, warm little head pressed to my cheek as I tried to get him to sleep for just one more minute.

Anyway...about the now :)

Nicholas had a great 18 month appointment and he's right on track for growth and development.

Stats:

Height: 33 1/4 inches
Weight: 28 lbs
Head circumference: 50 cm (aka gigantico)

The doctor commented on his "Fred Flinstone" feet and we both agreed that we love them (block feet for those that are not familiar).

He's babbling away, repeating and I think understanding us. Recent new words: Poop (of course I put that first), Nana, wawa (water), mbox (kinda..mailbox-from our walks), bayball (basketball). There are plenty more.

His current favorite word is MIMMIE (Mickey) and he likes to yell it approximately 23 hours of the day. I told Nick I didn't want him to watch television and this is exactly why!

He loves kids, runs up to them and says Hi...and doesn't stop saying Hi. Ever. We are very lucky to live in a kid friendly neighborhood and although most are much older, it's nice that he gets to be around them now that he's only in day care one day a week.

We typically give him showers now instead of baths and he loves it, he thinks it's play time.

He LOVES Dexter and I know this will never change. I taught him how to kiss Dexter nicely and it's currently one of his favorite things to do, repeatedly.

He likes to be chased. I bought a big ball at Target for $3 and he loves to run after it around the house and throw it on the table, stove, whatever he can.

He loves to climb and throw himself off of furniture.

He loves shoes and socks and blankets and the refrigerator and his milk.

He's not so great with eating healthy stuff, but I let it go. You only get to be a kid once, I'm letting him enjoy it and I'm not stressing.


My boy got 5 shots today and although he instantly started crying, he stopped within 2 minutes. He will probably be sore the next few days, but other than his non napping today, he is his happy little self. We took a walk after dinner and he laughed and ran like always. It took us about 20 minutes to go 1/4 of a mile, but it was worth it. Dexter was not pleased with our slow pace.

xoxo

Nicholas is 1 year old!

and currently screaming in his crib because he doesn't want to nap :)










As you can see, taking pictures is easy once the baby is on the move :)

Likes: Mama Mama Mama
Food
Walking
Beating up on Dexter (but in a loving way?)
Being walked in the stroller, going outside


Dislikes:
Diaper changes
Being taken out of the bath

Noteable:

He has been walking on his own on and off for the past few weeks. He will still crawl, but gets up and goes on his own whenever he feels like it and is doing pretty well - looking slightly drunken at times but getting progressively more and more steady.

Forgot to mention this earlier, but for about a month now he's been on strictly table food - no more purees (except I do puree fresh apples and pears and mix them with oatmeal for breakfast). He's not a big fan of fruit and that's been the easiest way for me to get him to eat some. I think it's a texture thing. I am happy that he likes veggies though and have pretty much tried as many as I can find and figure out how to prepare: Broccoli, cauliflower, green beans, wax beans, edamame, squashes, zucchini...I recently bought brussels sprouts and we'll see how that goes! He is not a fan of carrots which is fine by me.

We are incredibly lucky to have a happy, smiley, laughing boy. He has been sick rarely which I find impressive since he is in day care full time. He got the stomach bug which he promptly passed on to me, but his was only mild as he was on augmentin for his first (and only) severe ear infection. I would much rather take the brunt of the stomach bug as opposed to his little tummy going through it.

This past Thursday we were out to dinner and not one but two couples stopped us as we were leaving to let us know how much fun they had watching Nicholas play with a napkin and laugh while we ate dinner. I'm so glad that at this point we can bring him out to dinner and for the most part he is happy - I've heard that changes by age 2 so I'm savoring it while we can.

Parents always talk about the first year going by so fast. While I can't believe he's one "already", I don't think it went fast. My life has changed for the better, and I make sure to savor every single moment because before I know it I'll blink and he'll be 20. We spent the other night doing circles around the house while Nick "choo choo'd" like a train and Nicholas laughed maniacally. It was the best. I told Nick to take a mental snapshot and remember this moment. It's amazing what makes you happy once you have a child. You realize how many things just don't matter anymore, like a job that you're unhappy with or friendships that have withered away because people don't care enough to put the effort in. My effort goes into my marriage, my child, and everything else comes after that. We are lucky to have a supportive family and a few close friends that genuinely care, and that's all we need.

Since I am a dope and can't figure out how to turn photos into a slide show, here are my favorite pictures of the last year, starting in the hospital and through his 11th month :)



















































We love you baby boy!

xoxo