Happy Birthday, Tycho!

Dear Tycho,

Yesterday you turned one year old. One year! That is amazing. YOU are amazing.

We had a fun day yesterday for your birthday. I am a mean mama, though, and started things off with your one year doctor appointment. It was a necessary evil, I guess. You were very unhappy about your shots, but only for a minute, and then we were on our way. You are still growing like crazy. You weigh 31 and a half pounds (99.99 percentile!) and are 32 inches tall (99.02 percentile), which means you are kind of thinning out. A teeny tiny little bit. Maybe. :)

After you had a nap we took a trip to the aquarium. The last time we visited, you were in my belly. You liked looking at the fish, and at the otters, but you were a little bummed when you reached out to touch them and the glass was in your way. Sorry, buddy. We'll take you snorkeling someday.

We ate some fish and chips for lunch, and then Daddy took off work early and met us at the new Great Wheel. It was a first ride for all of us. We were very high up, but you were no scared at all.

And after all that we watched Daddy's baseball game together. It was a long day, and by the end of it all you were pooped! So was I! But I think we had a lot of fun, and I'm glad I got to take off work and spend the whole day doing new things with you.

You are without a doubt the most significant thing that has ever happened to me. You made me a mother. You have changed my life. I am such a different person now than I was just over a year ago. I love you.

FOUR

I have a lot of posts to catch up on, I know, but I have been married for four years today and I think that is important, and I don't want it to get lost in the shuffle of all the baby birthday shenanigans. :)

Labor Day!

Happy Labor Day to me!

Party on!

Two more days 'til my baby is no longer a baby.

We had his birthday party today. A lot of stress and prep for a couple hours of overstimulated cranky boy, but oh well. First birthday! You have to throw a party. He probably won't have another real birthday party, though, until he is old enough to actually understand the concept of birthday parties. I'm not even sure when that is, yet. I will have pictures, eventually, I am sure, but I wasn't the one who took them, so not yet.

However, this:

I cannot believe how big he is getting, how old he seems.

For real, what happened to my baby?

Full circle, almost.

Tycho's birthday is in a week and a half and I am being completely consumed by nostalgia. I have no idea where the time went. I stayed up late last night looking through my weekly belly photos from when I was pregnant, and it was like looking at a stranger. I barely even recognize the person that I was just a year ago. Motherhood is awesome, in the true sense of the word. I don't think I am one of those women whose entire personality gets taken over by the mom identity. I have a job and interests outside of my offspring, and I can still have adult conversations with people about things other than my kid. But at the same time, I have become a completely different person. Motherhood can't help but change your priorities. Life has more gravity. I shake my head looking at the girl in those pictures. She has no idea what she is getting  herself into.

You can expect a lot more navel-gazing and introspection in the coming weeks, I think. How in the world did we get here?

Needy

I don't think it would really be fair to call Tycho a high needs baby. He has such a happy disposition. And anyway, with other people he's not. Kyle claims that he will happily entertain himself throwing balls around the living room and chasing the cats for an hour or two when I'm out at work. But, if I am home, I am a magnet. He has to be on me. Physically touching my person at all times. But not in a sweet cuddly type of way, either. Grabbing, hitting, biting, generally flailing. It's exhausting. If I am home and he is awake, I'm not doing ANYTHING else. Cleaning? Laundry? Relaxing? Ha!

I guess what I have is a mama's boy.