I'm sorry I missed your 11 month letter. Things have been quite hectic lately. You and I decided to go to the States on a whim for 3 weeks in March. Then we were home in Africa for a week when Daddy decided to bust a lung. So we packed up again and followed him to London for 5 weeks to help him get better.
As a result, you got to spend your first birthday in London! What a lucky fella you are! It was a pretty emotional day for me...I kept looking back at your newborn pics wondering where the year had gone. It's been a whirlwind of diapers, feedings, sleeplessness and the sound of your little lion cub cry...but totally worth it.
You are such a sweet boy. The other day you started giving me kisses! I've been asking for them for awhile and you finally gave me a big wet one. It completely melted my heart. Your smile lights up a room. I'm not sure if it's London or just your personality blooming, but you are the most outgoing baby I've ever seen. You smile and wave at EVERYone. I'm not kidding. No stranger anxiety here. You charm them and manage to reciprocate a smile almost every time...especially with the ladies. It's borderline ridiculous, but so endearing to watch. You definitely don't get that from me...when Daddy was a little older than you, he would walk up to strangers and introduce himself.
You're almost walking, but have yet to crawl. You still do the belly crawl and haven't gotten up on all fours yet. But you're very good at walking. You beg to be propped up on a piece of furniture every chance you get. Then you inch your way around it as far as you can go. In the past week you've become more brave and have made a couple "leaps" onto the closest piece of furniture. You've also figured out how to reach down to get something and today (4/22) you finally pulled up! It's very clear that you have your own agenda and that you're going to do things your way. Hmm...wonder where you get that strong will from??
You're testing your boundaries big-time. As soon as I say "no" to something, you go straight for it again. You're very curious and want to touch EVERYthing, but (hopefully) soon you'll learn that some things are off-limits...you definitely test my patience!
You're very talkative lately, especially in the morning. You babble away and entertain yourself for a good half-hr before I get you. You finally said "mama!" I don't remember what exact day it was...it was sort of a gradual thing. But it is a sweet sound indeed!
You still love music and will bang on anything. You also love cooking utensils. Grammie gave you a bunch of spatulas when we were home and taught you how to "stir the pot." You won't even let me feed you anymore because you want to hold the spoon so badly. Perhaps you're going to be a chef?
Your birthday wasn't exactly what I had planned, but we had a great time anyway. Grammie and Pop flew all the way to London to be with you! We went to our favorite brunch spot here and Daddy helped you blow out the candle on your cake while we sang happy birthday. You finally got your first taste of sugar in the form of a chocolate cupcake with blue buttercream icing from the fabulous Hummingbird Bakery! To be honest, I'm not sure if you liked it all that much..I think you would prefer to suck on a lemon! You were pretty worn out after all that commotion and fell asleep before we even got home! After a long nap, we rode the London Eye...a giant ferris wheel overlooking the city. It was a beautiful day.
I can't believe you are 1. You're no longer a baby and turning into a toddler. It's a bittersweet day...I'm so happy that you are growing so well, but sad that it's happening so fast.
Every day you take another little piece of my heart.
Happy 1st birthday, Calderloo. I love you.
Mommy
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