10 Things I Never Want to Forget

Today is May 18.  If you remember, May 18 was my due date last year.  Wow.  Can you even believe it's gone by so fast?  I can't.  Today we're having a little birthday party at our house for our ONE YEAR OLD.  You guys!!  I have a ONE YEAR OLD!  What the what?!  Anyway.  It's ok.  I'm ok.  I'm really really OK.  Because honestly, this kid is AMAZING.  One is a great age.  I have a feeling it's only going to get better too.  I haven't met an age that I don't like yet, but one is awesome.  He's doing all kinds of fun things right now.  And because it's flying by so quickly, I want to take a few minutes to write down some of the things Mac's doing that I don't want to ever forget.  

1.  Hugs.  Mac has just started giving the most amazing bear hugs.  Both arms, wrapped around your neck tight as can be, face snuggled in.  It's the best.  His kisses have room for improvement (better aim, less tongue), but the hugs...oh, they are perfection.  I just can't get enough MacLoving.   

2.  Hair.  It's blonde and wonderful.  It's still fine (like mine), but finally starting to fill in.  The best part though, it gets a little curly in the back and over his ears!  Curls!  They kill me.  

3.  Toddling.  Mac's walk is hilarious.  It started out as a Thriller-zombie-like amble and has progressed to a drunken-sailor-like march.  He teeters and totters all over the place as he tries desperately to maintain his balance and move his feet at the same time.  He wants to run badly and those little feet just can't keep up.  And anytime he gets distracted and looks away from where he's going (which happens a lot), he falls.  He's getting better at falling and doesn't always land on his face anymore, but we still have some nasty spills occasionally.  As long as he can stay focused, he's fine.  Every day he gets a little better.

4. Squealing.  I love the excited squeal.  It's the loudest, most obnoxious, painful noise in the world, but I love it because that means he's happy!  We hear the squeal when he sees the cat, when we chase him and when he's really really excited about something (like throwing the bumper for Sage).  I try to imitate it and we echo each other back and forth until Ryan makes us stop because we're giving him a headache.  But I love it.

5.  O Face.  This is my favorite expression.  Well, other than the BIG GIANT SMILE, the O Face is awesome.  We get O Face when he's impressed or surprised, or when something's out of the ordinary.  Like right now, our entire home office is full of birthday party decorations.  TONS of them.  Banners, garland, fish, etc. Every time Mac walks in the office we get his O Face.  It's usually accompanied by a big breath in and a "ohhhhhhhh" sound.  LOVE.

(terrible photo, but you get the idea)

6.  Mac's love noises.  He's taking fewer and fewer bottles these days, but when he does (and especially in the middle of the night), he makes the most wonderful little love noises as he drinks.  He's done this (same noise) since he was born.  It's lovely.  They're such little sweet and happy sounds.  Like little happy grunts of joy.  I know that sounds stupid, but I don't know how else to describe them.  Anyway, they're the best.

7.  That baby smell.  He's lost the "newborn" smell, but he still has that little boy/baby smell that is so incredibly wonderful.  I think it's a mixture of baby and lotion and shampoo and dirt and dog.  I don't know, but I love it.  I breathe it in every night when I put him to bed and it absolutely calms me. 

8.  His pride.  I love how Mac is always so incredibly proud of himself for everything he does.  Maybe it helps that we praise him for everything (I hope we don't stop doing that any time soon), but it's absolutely adorable.  After his first few steps he plopped down on his bottom, smiled and then clapped for himself.  Finish a meal, applause!  Bathtime, standing ovation!  He's so incredibly wonderfully proud and I love that.

 9. Those big browns.  This kid has killer eyes.  He gets them from his daddy.  I cannot say no to these eyes.
 

10.  The way I feel around him.  I never want to forget the way I feel when he looks at me and smiles.  The way I feel when I'm the only person he wants in the middle of the night.  When he's waiting by the door and runs to me after work.  When I see him after a long day away.  When I tuck him in at night after playing with him all day long.  When he does something new and amazing.  When he does something he's done a thousand times before, but I'm still impressed.  The way I feel when he pats my back, touches my face or nuzzles into my neck.  The best feeling in the world.