Monthly Preston: Month 12

Weight: 19 lbs., 1 1/2 oz.
Height: 28 inches
Likes: Honking peoples' noses, being outside, throwing things from his highchair, walking around the house while holding onto my hands, splashing in the big tub, dancing, and "Carry On" by fun. thanks to that HGTV commercial.
Dislikes: Being told no and going to Sunday school.
Accomplishments: He has two teeth now, stomps his feet when I sing "If You're Happy and You Know It," pulls up on his own, loves to open and close drawers (and pull out whatever is in there), loves to play in the laundry basket (and pull out whatever is in there, too), and says "na-na" when he wants his paci. Where that came from, I don't know.

Our boy has been a year old for a couple of weeks now, and I'm just getting to this. I think it's because I'm in denial that it's already been a year. We have been so blessed by this little boy, and, although there are times where food is thrown in the floor or tears are flowing or tantrums are thrown, I cannot imagine life without him. He has shown me love in a whole new way, and his childish innocence is so beautiful to see. I hate that we grow out of that. I love him more than I can say, and I am so thankful to have had this wonderful year with him. I'm looking forward to what's to come, but I hate that this year feels like it's passed so quickly.

Getting ready for the day; No girls allowed, Mom; Work hard, nap hard; Exploring; Sick days mean you can do things you typically can't, like play with mom's phone; Standing tall

So, we've reached the end of this little series. Here's a look back at the past 12 months ...

Preston's first birthday

Last Saturday, we celebrated Preston's first birthday! While Scott initially told me not to let it get too out of hand, once he joined in the planning, it got a little crazy. But, hey, you only turn one once, right? 

I love the nautical theme we went with. The flags were so cute and will go great in Preston's room, and it seems like anchors are the new mustache because they were on everything. It made it easy to shop for party decorations. 

(Just as a note: We found the invitation on Etsy, and it came with the "Dress nautical" prompt. We didn't purposefully mandate a dress code for our baby's birthday. Everyone participated, though, and it was pretty cute!) 

The set up on our buffet; Preston's gift pile, along with a few photo books of his first year; You can't have a birthday party without birthday cake; Party-themed bibs

The cake, though, was really the icing (haha) on top of the day. Many searches on Pinterest resulted in an anchor-printed cake with rope detail and an anchor logo Scott had found (originally on a canvas for a kid's room). When I took the idea to the bakery, I wasn't expecting the detail from the photo to be literally translated onto the cake. I mean, it was pretty complicated anchor. So when she opened the box to show the finished product, I was extremely surprised. It looked awesome. It was almost painful to eat it. Almost.

Time to open presents! Preston quickly picked up on what to do.

The day started a bit more hectic than we had previously planned. Our house is currently on the market, and we had gotten a call Friday that someone wanted to schedule a showing for 11:30 on Saturday. The party was at 12. 

We tried to reschedule, but they were coming from out of town and that was the only time they had. Additionally, we were their favorite house after looking online. We couldn't say no to that. So Scott and I scurried around Saturday morning to get the house clean and in a show-ready state. We put a few decorations out but saved the rest until after the prospective buyers left. I went to pick up the cake and get a few last minute party needs. Then our families hopped in their cars, and we sent them and Preston on a little drive while the buyers came to look. Once the front door clicked close behind them, we once again started scurrying around to get the party ready. Since they looked for such a short time, we were skeptical anything would come of it.

Later that afternoon after the party, we got a phone call that they had made an offer! Within a couple of days, we were under contract with them and had sold our house! Preston doesn't know what a great present that was.

He got very shy when it came time to sing "Happy Birthday;" Talking with his people; A happy birthday boy; Peek-a-boo!

Preston had a great day, though. In addition to our families, we invited his babysitter who watches him while I'm at work — his beloved Mrs. Jan — and our friends Morris and Brenda, who often find themselves with babysitting duty, too. It was a wonderful celebration of our boy's first year, surrounded by the people who love him just as much as we do. We've been truly blessed to be encouraged and supported by such a great group of people.

Happy first birthday, sweet Preston! We love you so and have thoroughly enjoyed this past year with you!

Monthly Preston: Month 11

Weight: ~20 lbs.
Length: ~30 inches
Likes: Cars, turning the light switch off, looking at the pictures on the fridge, being outside, standing while assisted by the couch, and the musical stylings of Pitbull.
Dislikes: Being taken out of the bathtub, not being allowed to play under the end table (which he can drag with him and potentially knock off the lamp), and wearing shoes and socks.
Accomplishments: At 10 months, Preston's first tooth finally peeked out to say hey, although it's yet to make its full debut. This month he finally figured out the self-feeding bit, thanks to his eating coach Aunt Coco (which is appropriate because Courtney was herself a picky eater and required her own eating coach, our grandfather Hoppie), and, since he's still pretty gummy, he's sticking with the yogurt bites. In addition to "mama" and "dada," he's saying "ni-ni-ni!" (no), "ay!" (yay), and "umm" (yum). He's also rolling his pudgy little fists when he wants us to sing "Roll the Gospel Chariot," clapping for Patty Cake, and covering his eyes with his hands when we say "Where's Preston?" then pulling them away and smiling when we say "There he is!" He's also giving the biggest, slobberiest kisses (wide open mouth and maybe a lick on your cheek) and will pucker his lips and go "mmmm-wah!" for air kisses. He had a busy month!

We're currently in the midst of planning his first birthday party. I can't believe it's only three weeks away! Scott gave me strict orders not to go overboard, but as we've started getting everything together, I think he's become the worst offender. However, it's definitely not Pinterest-level. I'm 27 years old and never had a party as elaborate as some of the first birthdays I've seen on there. He'll have to wait for the Preston branded water bottles, photo booths and pony rides until he's at least 4.

Top to bottom, left to right: A diabolical plot; chewing on his tablet; sweet sleep; happy traveler; happy Easter!; how not to use a sippy cup; after church in Nashville; catching up on spring trends; tuckered out; with Pops and Grammy; cheesing with Coco.

Monthly Preston: Month 10

Weight: 18 lbs., 10 oz.
Length: 28 inches
Likes: The Prabal for Target commercial song, cell phones and pretend phone conversations, his monkey rattle, his book of colors, closing doors, and turning off light switches
Dislikes: Lentils, the doctor's office, finger food, and being told he can't play with the lamp cord
Accomplishments: While he's still not crawling, he's a little floor swimmer, spinning in circles, scooting and stretching to get where he needs to go. When he's trying to move forward, he ends up crawling backward, which seems to frustrate him. We've been trying to introduce finger foods and self-feeding to him this month, but he his a man who knows what he wants, and he wants mashed up food fed to him. He gags on anything else and spits it all up. The doctor said persistence was the best fix for his stubbornness. That and lots of loads of laundry.

With each passing month, it's fun to see more and more of Preston's personality. This month, he became attached to the cloth diapers I use for burp cloths. What's funny is that both Scott and I were attached to cloth diapers as kids. He comes by it naturally. 

We took him to his first Bison basketball game this month. The Rhodes Field House, where they play, gets incredibly noisy (hence the fans being called the Rhodes Rowdies), so I plugged his ears with swimmer's earplugs. Once he got acclimated to his new hearing and the crowd, he really seemed to enjoy the evening. I marvel at how easy-going this little guy is.

Left to right, top to bottom: After his first Bison basketball game; not a fan of hats; chillaxin'; reading with daddy; watching TV with Pops; Grammy and Pops came for a visit!

Scott taught him how to bounce in his bed. It's his favorite new trick.

Nothing to complain about

Sometimes, you just need to lay back and soak up all of your blessings.

I've been complaining a lot lately.

Every morning for the past month or so, it's been harder and harder to go to work. I hate leaving Preston, and I miss him so much every day. It's like when I leave, I'm actually going to space and have a long training period plus two years aboard the space station to prepare for and won't be able to see him between the zero-gravity simulations and learning how to properly mix Tang. In reality, I'll see him when I pick him up at 4.

Not really the same thing.

Sunday in my church Bible class, we talked about having a positive attitude, and I thought about my own negative attitude. It struck me that I must sound very ungrateful.

You see, the job I complain about going to I prayed so hard for five years ago. A freshly minted collage grad with no job prospects on the horizon, I spent a lot of time tweaking my resume, watching "Jon and Kate Plus 8," and praying that something — anything! — would come along. And then I got a job. For the college I attended and loved. As a writer ... one of those jobs you say you're going to be as a little kid (like astronaut, princess and dinosaur) that aren't really realistic but cute when you're four.

And having a baby who I hate leaving means that I have a baby. A giggly, cuddly, sweet-hearted little boy with blue eyes and pudgy cheeks. I know that seems pretty obvious, but I remember wanting and praying for a baby so hard and the disappointment I felt when the month passed and the pregnancy test was negative. And the caretaker who watches that baby is another one of the many things I prayed for my little one. I wanted to have someone who loved him and cared for him as if he was her own, and I have that! Beyond what I could've imagined.

It struck me that the very thing I griped about was actually three beautiful examples of how God listened to my prayers and answered them — and gave me exactly what I asked for! Who am I, then, to say that's not good enough? To say that I want more?

I'm not saying that God is mad at me for missing my son. I know he understands that. What I am saying is that, instead of groaning at the fact that I have to get up (out of a warm bed! with a roof over my head!), get ready (with hot water! and food in the fridge!), and go to work (by driving! in a car! that works!), maybe I should take a step back and take a change of perspective.

It reminds me of Deuteronomy 6:10-11 where the Israelites are reminded that what they receive isn't their own.

"When the Lord your God brings you to the land that he promised to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, he will give you large and beautiful cities that you didn’t build, houses filled with every good thing that you didn’t supply, wells that you didn’t dig, and vineyards and olive groves that you didn’t plant."

I didn't create any of this but was given it by a loving God. That's nothing to complain about.

Monthly Preston: Month 9

Weight: 17 lbs., 12.5 oz.
Length: 27.5 inches
Likes: Sweet potatoes, bananas, animal sounds, "Skid a marinky dink," coughing when someone else coughs, his shape sorter and dropping things while in his high chair.
Dislikes: Carrots, getting his fingernails trimmed, strangers and sleeping through the night.
Accomplishments: He's eating a smorgasbord of foods now; Sweet potatoes, apples and bananas have made it on the list. He's very close to crawling; he just has to decide that he wants to. His motto is "Why crawl when you can roll?" Still no teeth, even though it feels like he's been teething forever. He says "ma-ma" now but not nearly as much as he says "da-da."

This nine months has gone so much faster than the nine months I was pregnant. I wish I could hit the slow motion button on these next few because I think they're moving too fast!

Left to right: Wishing his Coco a happy birthday; playing; rolling around; watching TV with daddy; he notices every little spot of food on his tray (just like his daddy!); crazy hair; peek-a-boo

Tamale Factory

During our falls in Fayetteville, one of our favorite game day stops was Doe's Eat Place. It was always crowded and buzzing with energy, and we could happily stuff our faces with tamales and steaks before watching the Razorbacks. Since we didn't have season tickets this year, Scott and I found ourselves with a seemingly incurable Doe's craving. 

Lucky for us, the man who owns the Doe's in Little Rock opened a sort of "Doe's Jr." in his barn 45 minutes away. So, Saturday night we drove to Gregory, Ark., for dinner at the Tamale Factory.

We pulled up as the sun was going down, hopeful that we had beat the crowd. Since Tamale Factory is only open Fridays and Saturdays, 5-10 p.m., you have to get there almost as the doors open if you want to eat before 9. Preston made friends with the waitresses, developing quite a fan club by the time we left. And Scott and I ate way too much, happy that we could get our Doe's fix a little closer to home.

The rest of the weekend was spent around the house — celebrating our now 9 month old, sorting laundry, playing and making the week's baby food — and cheering on the Ravens (me) and 49ers (Scott) during our Sunday morning class's Super Bowl party.

Like every weekend before it, this one went by way to fast!