12 months of Conrad

Yesterday we celebrated Conrad's 1st birthday! I can't believe it's been a year since this little guy has been in our lives. A year since I walked into the hospital and had a mini-panic attack that 9 months of pregnancy were over and I was about to me a mom to two boys. A year since my epidural wore off, I was begging for a new one and my OB walked in to tell me I was going to have to push and deliver this baby pain-med free. OUCH!

It's been a busy year, full of changes. We've watched Conrad grow from teeny, tiny newborn to crawling, (almost) walking, babbling a few words, toddler. I looked back at his newborn pictures and could hardly believe a year has gone by.

So without further ado....Conrad's first year in pictures:

1 day old

1 month

2 months

3 months

4 months

5 months

6 months

7 months

8 months

9 months

10 months

11 months

1 year - Eating his birthday cake!!!

It's beginning to look a lot like Spring!

Ok, I lied. It doesn't look anything like spring. As this picture shows, there's still 2-3 foot high snow banks remaining from the record breaking January snow storms....ugly, dirty snowbanks. Everything still has that wintery, gloomy, gray luster that I remember from growing up in the northeast. Our backyard still has a 1 inch snow covering (significant improvement over the approximately 3 feet about 3 weeks ago). The kids were still wearing hats and covered in blankets for our walk today. I still had a puffy Northface jacket on. But we were outside!!! And not the kinda outside where we are sprinting through a parking lot before we froze...we were outside taking a walk!!!

A sunny day with a temperature that began with a 5 (forecast says it'll be 55 today), had me racing to pick up Joseph from school, make and feed lunches, get us bundled up and out to the stroller before afternoon naps. The air had the promise of spring and many future walks to the beach. I even had my Northface unzipped and gloves off by the time we got home.

I know, know...March comes in like a lamb and goes out like a lion...but I'm hanging on to these mild days in the 7-day forecast. I fully expect a blizzard for my birthday in early April...which hmm....32 days until I'm 30! Yikes!!!!!

Valentine's Day Gifts

Here are a few V-day gifts from my Valentines to you.

Conrad wants to share kisses. This is his latest trick. You say "kisses" and he puckers his lips and makes a little fishy face.

On the eve of his 11th month birthday, he's becoming less baby and more toddler. He's standing all on his own (look, no hands!), he's tearing into every cabinet, drawer and closet we have, he's saying words - bah for ball, uh-oh and ki-ki when he sees the cat, and he throws tantrums - full out kicking, screaming, crying tantrums. 1 month left and I'll be baby-less again.

And the actual toddler, Joseph...he wants to share his sweet dance moves with you for Valentine's Day.

Napoleon Dynamite's got nothing on this kid.

Who needs fancy dinners, roses and champagne when I have these sweet Valentines?

Another Mini-Me

Remember this post?

Strike EVERYTHING I said.

In the last few months, Conrad has become another mini-me. I don't know what happened but this child resembles me more and more everyday. Sometimes I catch of glimpse of him and can place the exact baby picture of mine that he resembles. My mom took this picture over the weekend:

And I immediately knew there was an identical picture of me:

The kid has my crazy, un-tameable hair as well. You can wet it and comb it twenty times a day, but as soon as it dries, it's sticking up all over the place. I've stopped even trying...

and apparently, so did my parents:

Sorry, Rich. It looks like I've got the dominant genetics...at least in the looks department...you've got me beat in the personality department.