And tomorrow you’ll be 1.

Has it really been a year?  I still can’t believe it.  It’s fun to watch you learn and explore but it is bittersweet because it also reminds me that your babyhood is a fleeting moment in time; it makes me want to stop and cherish it all the more.  You’re not quite walking my dear and can move pretty fast on all fours.  Your personality is emerging and you couldn’t be sweeter – ever the cuddler.  You like to hug and rock stuffed animals, blankets and my heart melts every time you snuggle your head into the crook of my neck.  If I’m sitting on the floor hugging my knees, you’ll crawl over, pull yourself up and pull my arms away from knees and then push my legs down so I am sitting indian-style and then you’ll climb into my lap.  If I lay my head down on the floor you’ll pull yourself up and then tower over me yanking my shirt or hair or whatever you can grab onto in order to get me to sit up so you can crawl into my lap.  You like looking at books and walking around the house carrying scraps of laundry or blankets so that they trail behind you – like Linus from Peanuts.  You’ve also become a wee bit bossy and we hear your little temper flare up when the boys steal toys from your hand.  We’ve tried to teach you to sign “all done” when eating but you prefer wildly swiping your hand from side to side across the tray and grabbing the front of it and pulling it up all while making noises to get our attention.  You’re still fascinated by your brothers – always watching them and wanting to play with their toys.  Some of your favorite foods are chicken, bananas, waffles and cheese.  You have become a little pickier – developing your own preferences and palette.  And you love love love eating Bauer’s dog food.  Says a lot about my cooking huh?  You can be a bit mischievous – I see a little ball buster in you already.  You give me a look with a wry little smile right before you do something you know you probably should not – like pulling my hair or putting something super small in your mouth or grabbing the wires from the back of the computer.  Then you laugh when I playfully bat your hand away or over-emphatically say “ouch!” and then you do it again.  You wander around the house saying “mama” and you scream “dada” with unmatched excitement when Daddy comes home from work.  The time is going so fast with you and your brothers.  I am happy to watch you grow into a little person, but I do miss the time when you were my baby.