The Very Hungry Caterpillar! (Henry's 1st Birthday Party)

We survived the first year with two children! Hooray! Just kidding...it was such a whirlwind this time around with Henry. Everything seemed like it went by so fast and it just didn't seem fair! But we celebrated this little guy's birthday with a big party and it was great! I would say the only down side to the day, was the fact that he only got a 45 minute nap. So you will see in the pictures where and when he started to really feel tired and cranky! I guess the old saying, "It's my party and I'll cry if I want to!" was true in our case. Because the boy did cry and it was his party! I wish many of our friends and family could have been there, but you were there in spirit and we are so thankful for the many well-wishes on our big boy's day! Enjoy the many pictures and especially the ones where you will see Henry threw some cake my way! ( Also notice Russ' face on that one, he was cracking up so much!)

Grace Ann and her Prince Charming!

Tonight, Grace Ann couldn't get enough of being with her Daddy. She has really been missing him since Russ has been working longer hours. So, I told her she could have special movie night with Daddy and stay up a little later.

To my surprise, when I walked into the playroom, she quickly said to me, "Mommy, I need my alone time with Daddy!" And pushed me away. Usually, I would be a little hurt by this, but I knew how much she missed him and I gave her a quick peck and walked away, but I couldn't help but snap a picture first! They were so sweet! I love how Grace Ann can be my mini-me, but man does she L.O.V.E. her Daddy!

Henry at 11 months!

Clean cut Boy
(Shhh...his mama actually combed his hair for this picture!)

Messy Boy

Oh, what a boy I have on my hands! And I love it! I say to Russ almost everyday that we are in for it and he is going to be just like him! This little guy continues to melt my heart on a daily basis and I can't kiss and hug him enough! I think that's because there will be a day where he will look at me like I am CRAZY when I swoop in for a kiss....so right now he gets the hug and kiss buffet!

As of today, we are days away from his first birthday! Shocking, I know. Time literally passes you by when you don't even realize it and one day you wake up and BOOM it's a year later! Lately, I have been trying to picture my life a year ago and it is really hard sometimes, because my baby boy is growing up and Grace Ann has turned into a big girl overnight. Unless, I watch some video clips we have, I just can't picture them younger than what they are now.

Before I forget, here are the boy's happenings lately:

• He now has hit the "separation anxiety" stage and will at any moment freak out when a new face gets too close. I feel so bad, because he warms up to them but it takes him a while.
• He gets terrorized, on a daily basis, by big sister! Yikes, what the future holds for us!
• Moving and moving all over the place, but no walking yet.
• Standing while holding on to something.
• He has begun to get ready for Season 14 of Dancing with the Stars by practicing his groovy moves. What is about babies dancing that is so darn cute?! I just giggle and giggle at him and he loves it!
  
• Don't get me wrong he is definitely his daddy's little buddy, but this guy is a Mama's boy! (At least for right now, right?)
  
• He loves banging bowls on the floor while crawling around. It can get pretty loud around this house.
• He is also in the stage of any small particle on the floor is automatically viewed as food, so he just sticks it in his mouth! Well, 2 spiders and tons of carpet fuzz....he is ready for Fear Factor folks! (I am constantly vacuuming!)
• Thank the Lord he is still sleeping 12 hours at night and taking a long nap during the day. I am in the process of just getting him down for one nap, so he has been a little cranky getting used to it.
• New teeth coming in on top! Not a happy camper!
• He loves to be rocked before going to bed with at least three songs and books. He is particular this one and of course I love it!
  
• I started weening him from breast milk this week, so by his first birthday he will be on whole milk! Yay....goodbye breast pump...hello freedom!
• He is eating all kinds of "real food" and so far he loves: pizza, pancakes, bananas, green beans, pasta, potatoes, yogurt, tofu, cheese and avocado! So far he hasn't been disgusted by what I have given him, but I know that won't last long!
  

Next stop, Henry's 1st birthday! Stay tuned for a "Very Hungry Caterpillar" birthday party!

The Amazing Race

Racing is all I do everyday, all day. Don't worry I haven't run a hole through my running shoes, I am talking about my brain. Doesn't it seem that all we do as moms is race from point A to point B and then back to point A again? Yesterday, I had 3 very important things to do before 10:30. I had to drop GA off at school, run home to zip through last night's dishes/feed brother, and then dash to the speech therapy office to pick up my SRS form. I know that on paper that doesn't sound like too much, but after I finished those three little tasks at 10:28, I had sweat dripping from my brow, underarms and my make-up was not looking so fresh! UGHHH..... So much for looking put together!

The point is I have had myself wondering what in the world did I do when I was teaching full-time, pregnant and taking care of a 2 year old last year! And then I remembered... my dishes were always dirty, that paper was never going to get picked up on time and my amazing race was in my classroom. Days like yesterday, left me exhausted and waking up today with bricks sitting on back with yet more errands to race around and run. However, there is a silver lining!

I had to make myself stop and take a breath and say to myself, "It's okay if I don't race today." So instead of going straight to the post office after the library (to fax that SRS form) I decided we needed a trip to the park. It was a beautiful day with a slight wind and great warm weather. So I guess you can say that today I stopped and smelled the roses (metaphorically, of course) and we had a great time!

I wish everyone a wonderful Friday and a breath of fresh air!