Happy 1st Birthday, Cael!!!

I cannot believe that it has been a year since Cael was born. I know this day has been coming for the last few months, but I feel like it crept up rather quickly. But the most shocking fact, is that I didn't have a breakdown like I thought I would today. Even while singing Happy Birthday to him upstairs with the family. I thought, if anything, that would be the time I would have a cry-fest. But no. It was all happy. Don't get me wrong, I had a couple of moments during the day today where my eyes got a little teary, and I felt like crying, but I just couldn't. I'm sad I don't have my squishy, tiny newborn baby anymore, but at the same time, I'm happy and excited at this incredible milestone. I'm excited to see all the new things that Cael will learn and discover.

The past year has been a complete and utter whirlwind. We've had ups and downs; highs and lows. More highs and ups, though, which I'm grateful for. We've had breastfeeding problems, weight issues, fussy days and nights, screaming fits, health scares, doctor visits and complete chaos. But at the same time, we've had nothing but joy and love. There are parts of my heart that I feel filled with love, that I never knew existed until September 4, 2011. Being a mother has completely changed me, for the better. Over the last year, I've learned to become an extremely patient person. I can deal with Cael's crying and fussing much more easily, more than I was ever able to deal with before. Maybe it's because he's my son, or because I'm home with him all day, but nonetheless, I can deal with it. Matt can't handle even Cael's playful screeches. They're loud and hurt, but don't bother me. I guess men's ears are more sensitive.

Matt is such a wonderful father. I know that, over the past year, he's learned things about himself from being a father, that he never knew before. It was rough in the beginning for Matt, because a newborn isn't very interesting, and only eats, sleeps, cries and poops. So he wasn't really "interested" in everything; or, rather, didn't really know what to do, since Cael was so dependent on me. But once he started getting older, and sitting up, crawling, and interacting with us, Matt blossomed as a father. I love seeing the joy in his eyes when Cael greets him when he gets home from work. And it melts my heart hearing and watching him oogle Cael and play with him when he gets him undressed for his bath at night.

So, we don't have any new stats on Cael as of now. He goes on Monday for his 1 year well-visit, so I'll update then. But I'll break down where Cael currently stands as far as his development and everything.

Mobility

Everything! Basically, the only thing that Cael isn't doing, is running. But he tries. He walks everywhere, crawls, stands, squats, kneels, rolls, does a "downward facing dog", and CLIMBS!! He climbs everywhere he possibly can. He has mastered climbing onto the couch by using his walker as a stepping stone. He can get his leg up pretty high, so he has no problem getting up onto the walker. He'll also use his toy table. One day, he got up on top of his toy table, and just sat there. I am just in awe of what he can do. And I now absolutely CANNOT leave him unattended. He gets up onto the couch with ease now, that I can't trust him anymore. He doesn't know how to properly get off the couch yet, so I would hate for him to fall and get hurt.

Cognition

Cael is really starting to understand what we tell him. You can tell by the way he looks at you when you talk to him, or his reaction to what you say (i.e. - "No" triggers a tantrum). He is also starting to figure out how to put things together. For example, he knows that a bottle cap goes on top of the bottle, and he will put it on the correct way. Of course, he can't screw it on, but he knows where it goes. Same thing with the lotion tub. After his bath, I always put lotion on him, and he always tries to put the lid back on the lotion.

He's also started pointing at things with his index finger, and trying to say (or at least, trying to say) "What's this/that?" And of course, we'll tell him what it is he's pointing to.

Personality

Cael is a little flirt. He's also shy when new people talk to him, or say hi. He'll smile at them, but then put his head on my shoulder and burrow into my neck. He's also just like his father. He's a dare devil, who is stubborn and does what he wants, no matter what you say. He has a tendency to ignore you when you're trying to reprimand him, or he'll turn and look at you for a second, and then turn back around and continue what he was doing. Basically, he's "scary". Scary, because it seems as though he's turning into his father. Attitude and personality entirely.

Food

I know that a lot of babies are picky eaters or fussy when it comes to food. Luckily for me, Cael isn't one of those babies. He'll eat basically anything I put in front of him. His favorite food is probably chicken and ground beef. He loves Shepherd's Pie, sloppy Joe's and taco's. He definitely loves eating 3 meals a day, with snacks in between.

As far as breast feeding goes, Cael has definitely cut back. He's down to a nursing session every 4-6 hours or so. Usually, it's when he first wakes up, around 7, then again before his nap at around 11:30, then in the afternoon, maybe around 4 or so, and then finally after dinner, right before he goes to bed. He's been good with sleeping through the night, but every so often, he may wake at either 1am or 4am to nurse, but go right back to sleep. I'm surprisingly ok with the start of this weaning process. I know making it to 1 year of breast feeding is a major accomplishment, and I'm so happy about that. But I would really like to get to 18 months. That's my long term goal. If I go beyond that, it's just a plus. Even if he's nursing only once or twice by 18 months, I'd still be happy.

I think that's pretty much everything I wanted to post an update on. Now for some pictures of the birthday boy on his birthday!

Cake time!

A tradition in our family - put letters on our heads from the cake.

Diving in!