Happy Birthday, Bud. Sorry I'm a little late in writing this, but I promise I wished you a real-live "Happy Birthday" on the actual day. Two weeks ago. One of the reasons for my delay is that whenever Gramma Becker comes into town, I don't take any pitcures. She takes 453 of them. So I had to wait until the pictures arrived by mail. Blame it on Grammy.You had a great birthday. Relatives from the tri-state area (Nebraska, Wisconsin, Tennessee) all came to celebrate. And shower you with presents. Lots of them. You had your first taste of cake, and Mama had her second taste of a margarita. Good times were had by all.
I can't believe you're already in the single digits. It seems like you were just zero. I know every grown-up says this, but it is amazing how fast time goes. I feel like I was pregnant a couple months ago. And here you are, technically not even a baby anymore. According to the books, you're now a toddler. I find myself saying, "I can't wait till he walks" or "I can't wait till he can talk." But then I have to pause and think that I shouldn't rush any of it. It is so fun watching you grow up and become your own person.
Lately you've been cruising (quickly) around the house, pulling up on everything, and pushing toys and kitchen chairs across the room. You babble quite a bit, and your favorite thing is to pose everything as a question ("Eh...La?") and then look at us for a response. Whenever we say "No" you look at us and ask "Eh...Ya?" To which we respond "No" again. And the game continues.
You're eating big-kid foods like sandwiches, but you have yet to put anything "wet" in your mouth. No fruit, no vegetables (like your dad). Not even mac and cheese. Weird. You like refried beans and meatless chicken nuggets (someday you'll understand what I mean by "meatless chicken"). You get very excited about graham crackers. You're starting to understand certain things I say, too. If I ask you if you want a cracker after dinner, you give me a big smile and kick your feet. When I ask you where your ball is, you look around the room until you see it and then you go after it. In my mind, that's incredible.
Everyone has to have a flaw, and yours is definitely your whining...But your laugh easily overshadows that. I guess I whine every now and then too.
I can't wait to see what this year brings. But I'll do my best to appreciate every little moment. You are a miracle and I love every inch of you.
xxoo Mama
