12 Months

 How did we go from this...

to this in such a flash?

Our sweet, happy, energetic, playful, stubborn Camden turned one year! We are still amazed that this big milestone has already come. His first year really flew by. But man, has it been fun!  He is so adorable. Really, he is as cute as they come. He truly makes us so happy. I cannot imagine our lives without him.  He was meant to be with us. I think about this day a year ago, and I can't help but get sentimental. It has been thrilling to have him here from the first moment. We really are still so excited to have this baby boy. The minute he wakes up in the morning or from a nap, it's a race to see who can get to him first. We marvel everyday at him and the things he learns. We have loved the last 12 months and can't wait to see all that he learns in the next year.

Here are  some things about his twelfth month:

• He is WALKING... everywhere and always. He is really good at it. And he's pretty proud of it. It is about the cutest thing. But that means getting into things quicker. He is always climbing on things now. And he is always trying to find treasures to carry around.

                      He likes to carry around his sisters' purses 

because of the handles. Hee hee.

• He has become very VOCAL about what he wants or dislikes. It's amazing what he can tell us without any words. He shakes his head "no" and points to tell us too. And he says, "ma" for more.
• At 12 months, he weighs 20 lbs. 3oz. (10th percentile) and is 28 inches tall (0 percentile, yes as in zero. He went from 50th to zero in three months. Sigh.) 
• He is a FOOD HOARDER. He must have food in both hands or he gets upset:

• He has become a pill at CHURCH. He just wants to run around and play instead of sitting on our laps. And when we are home, he just wants me to hold him instead of play. We need to get on the same schedule.
• He is irresistible in his footed PAJAMAS:

• He has to be ROCKED TO SLEEP. He always has. If I just lay him in his crib, he becomes hysterical. Like I just crushed his heart. So finally when he can't take a breath because he is crying so hard, I go in and pick him up and he wraps those little arms around me with a death grip and lays his head on my shoulder. It is so sad. So then, I calm him down and rock him to sleep. And then he sleeps all night through. The girls were never like that, they would cry for maybe a few minutes. Maybe because this may be my last baby, I have decided that I don't get to cuddle him and rock him for very long, so I will take this opportunity to hold my baby.
• SLEEPS with his bum in the air:

• He is sooooo PICKY with foods. He is a texture eater. He literally won't eat any fruits, vegetables, or meats because of the textures, so we have to keep giving him baby food. When I feed him yogurt, if there is the teeniest piece of fruit in the bite, he will spit it out. His favorite foods are french fries, pb&j sandwiches, cereal, yogurt, chips, french toast, oatmeal, toast with jam, and popcorn. He is a carb junkie!

• He BABBLES all the time, like he's really telling us something legit.
•  Still NO TEETH
• Had his first HAIR CUT:

Before

After

• Had likes to take LIDS off of things and put them back on. He was a big help putting on the canning rings when we were doing peaches. :)
• Is WEANED off breastfeeding. It was super easy because he loves cow's milk.
• LOVES to be OUTSIDE:

• DANCES with his hands and arms.
• Thinks it is fun to throw toys down the STAIRS.
• He is proud to BRING THINGS and give them to us. He also enjoys feeding us.
• Loves to play PEEK-A-BOO:

• He finally will pick up and hold his SIPPY CUP/ BOTTLE by himself:

• Still loves his PACIFIER. When to break him of that?
• He had his first stomach FLU this week. It was heartbreaking- he didn't understand what was happening and would let out these sad squeaky cries.
• He is now in a front-facing CARSEAT. And he is loving it. He just laughed the first time he rode in it.