A day in the life of a one-year-old

Today marks the one-year anniversary of the single most exciting, terrifying, traumatic, and stressful 30 minutes of my life. That's right, it's William's birthday!

William woke up in jail this morning, right about 6:30. I'm never ready for it, but I'm always grateful it's not 5:45. Some people enjoy watching the sun rise. I begrudge every time I have to watch the sky turn from dark to light. I know it happens every day, so I'd rather not be up to make sure it happens.

He's sweet, though, isn't he?

William comes to join me in bed, usually followed shortly by his sister, Naomi. It's like being woken up by a barrel of puppies poured over you. Sure, it's the sweetest, softest, most lovable thing in the whole world, but they certainly don't mind where they jab their knees and elbows!
This is William sitting on the night stand playing with the cell phone charger.

This little boy has a penchant for pillows! Whenever he sees one, he crawls as fast as he can to go snuggle into it.

And now we're taking Penny to school.

Kevin bought William some birthday cake while we were out running errands this morning. Unfortunately, it was nap time by the time we got home to take the standard first-birthday-cupcake picture. 

I turn my back for one second....
Okay, maybe I turned my back for a few seconds.

This kid is definitely not getting a sunburn on that yogurt-covered nose! It was a mess, but nothing a little scrub in the sink (William), wipe with a washcloth (floor), and scrub-down with a hose (chair) couldn't remedy!

Today was playgroup, and William is helping Naomi with her puzzle. He didn't want her to finish it too quickly, so he took apart the pieces as she finished them. Naomi is very patient, and is also good at giving Baby some other toys as distractions.

While we'll officially celebrate William's birthday next week, we took up the offer of blowing out a candle in some cake. And since William has no idea what this stuff is all about, he let Naomi help him with the candle.

And here's the playgroup group. Hooray for William, and hooray for his birthday!

This morning I sang "Happy Birthday" to William. He enjoyed it and bopped a little to the tune. Then I sang it in Portuguese ("Parabens pra voce"), and he started clapping his hands, just like a native Brazilian. So cute!
If I were to summarize this year, I'd have to say it has been lovely, sweet, beautiful, and uplifting, just like William. I had a much harder time with the first two babies, spending most of the first year in sleep-deprived Zombie mode. William is significantly more satisfied and laid-back, and I also learned to make my sleep a higher priority than having a couple hours of "me time" in the evenings. I had plenty of "me time." It was called "sleeping," and it made all the difference in the world. I have really enjoyed this baby!
In the next few months, William should learn how to walk. He's very happy to crawl everywhere, and only recently has he let us walk him around, holding his hands while he steps. He'll figure it out eventually, but for now he'd rather crawl.
He should learn how to talk. He has said "bye bye," and "Dad." He also occasionally says, "Hi." We're still working on the "Mama." I would love it if he learned a bit of Portuguese, and I'm pretty sure it will be "Tchau."
This little boy loves playing with his sisters, especially since he has the whole day with Naomi. She loves him as a sweet baby brother, but also as the best toy ever made. She loves to pick him up, hug him until he falls over, and grab him away from whatever he is playing with. But she does it with so much love and affection that I'm sure it will turn into a good thing. They do play together really well, also, and Naomi always has a knack for making William laugh.