Birthday Boy

I cannot believe that all of this happened exactly one year ago. I still remember that September day so well: the anticipation, the walking-back-and-forth during classes, the drive to the midwife, the pain and the tears, and the indescribable bliss of holding our new son.

Happy birthday, Elias!

Here’s a review in numbers of Elias’ first year of life…

1 — That’s how many favorite books he has right now: “Polar bear, polar bear, what do you hear” is the winner. Elias likes to grab it from the shelf, lug it over to me (it’s about as heavy as half his little body), and throw it (not give it) in my lap for me to read it. Over and over.

2 — The number of actual words he can say: Mama & Dada.

3 — That’s how many meals he gets to enjoy each day with the family. It’s safe to say that he often out-eats his big brother. Absolute favorites are fruit of any kind. Preferably lots and lots of it.

4 –– The number of teeth that Elias has so far. Two bottom ones, and his upper vampire teeth :).

5 — 5 minutes. That’s how long it takes to change his diaper (well, not really, but it definitely feels like it takes that long). He wiggles and turns and whines and arches his back and tries everything he can to not have to lie still. So that means that each diaper change is not only a workout for him but also for us.

6 –That’s the average number of babies Elias gets to hang out with in childcare each morning.

7 — At 7 months old, Elias started to crawl and was introduced to the wondrous world of mobility…

8 — Amount of seconds it takes him to walk from our door to our back room. He’s a fast little man, and taking my eyes off of him for any length of time can be quite dangerous (like yesterday, when he was just about to take a bite out of a bar of soap).

9 — 9 months: the size of clothes he still fits in.

10 –– Elias was 10 months old when he started walking…and he hasn’t stopped since.

11 –The average number of hours he sleeps at night.

12 —  The number of months we’ve had with Elias…months of joy, tears, and everything in between. It’s been such a privilege to witness Elias grow up, see Judah as a big brother and transition to life as a family of 4!

 

Here are some birthday pictures:

 

Happy birthday, Baby Li-Li!!!