Oakley’s First Birthday

How can a year go so fast and so slow at the same time?  This little sprout is the most popular girl around this house.  We all adore her.  We all spoil her.  We all defend her.  I just can’t imagine our family without her.

She started taking steps right around her birthday.  The last week or so walking has become her preferred method of transportation, and she’s getting better and better at it.

 

Her actual birthday fell on a Wednesday – a day that Daddy had mutual and I had a presidency meeting, so it was a pretty quiet affair.  We had her favorite foods for dinner – plain noodles, strawberries, broccoli and bread.

 

We invited Oakleys Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles and Cousins over for a little celebration the Saturday after her birthday.  We had all been sick the few days before, but luckily everybody was feeling well enough to have a great time.  Oakley had been teething and had an ear infection so we were glad she had a days worth of antibiotics in her system before party day. 

(I have to include the invitation because, frankly, making it is my favorite part of throwing parties for my kids.)

Will and Jacey were in charge of the sign for the front door.  Actually, Will did pretty much all of the decorating.  I told him what to do and he did it while I made the cake and got lunch ready.  And it turned out really cute!  Yes, I know that Oakley didn’t care one bit, but it’s fun to have an excuse to put up cutsie decorations once in a while.

I put Jacey in charge of the chalkboard signs in the cupcakes.  I gave her a marker and said “Just write words that you think describe Oakley.”  She did a great job!

She got so many adorable clothes for her birthday.  I maybe told everybody that’s what she wanted.  I’ve been dressing her in all of her adorable summer clothes even though it hasn’t been all that warm here yet.

My mom’s birthday is 4 days after Oakley’s, so they both got cakes.  Mom broke the rules and shared hers.  Oakley didn’t.  Or maybe nobody wanted to share after she was finished with it . . .

  

(Doesn’t it look like she’s saying “Try to take my cake and I’ll slug you.”?)

 

All in all, a very successful afternoon.  Now, a few notes about Oakley right now:

• She recently started clapping both hands over her mouth when she giggles.  It is ADORABLE.  I really hope we can capture it on video sometime. 
• She loves her stuffed bear.  She snuggles in close to him when I put her down to sleep, and often when I go in to check on her she’s got her arm around him while she sleeps.  Also adorable.
• She jabbers.  When she first wakes up she talks to me like she’s been saving up things to say.  I really wish I could understand what she’s telling me.  It seems important.
• She cut two more teeth shortly after her birthday, bringing the total to six.  She’s got another on the way and I think there might be another shortly behind that. 
• She’s still my cuddliest child.   I love it. 
• She goes up and down the stairs like a champ.  I worried so much about that, and in the end it was only a matter of about 3 weeks that she could go up the stairs before she learned how to go back down on her tummy. 
• Her favorite places to play are the bathrooms, dishwasher, and garbage cans.  Oh and she loves pulling tissues out of the box or wipes out of the container.  And books off the bookshelf.  She’s very speedy at all of these.
• She won’t leave a ponytail in her hair.  So we’re back to headbands, which seem to have a little bit better staying power.  Doesn’t matter – she’s adorable both ways. 
• She says Hi and waves, and she’s started leaning forward to receive kisses when I ask for one.  She says Mama and Dada and Uh-oh. 
• She abruptly decided we were done nursing about 3 weeks before her birthday.  I was glad she decided for me when to wean – I have loved nursing her, and I decided a while back that we would keep going as long as she wanted to.  Well, once she decided she was done it really lost its magic and I wasn’t sad to quit at all.  But I will always be grateful that I was able to nurse her for so long.  I really feel like it helped me to slow down and savor this past year in a way that I know I wouldn’t have otherwise. 
• She was 18 lbs at her checkup.  (Oops – guess my estimate was off on her invite.)  We moved her to the bigger car seat, but we had to put it in rear-facing.  She’s my first baby that hasn’t been big enough to face forward at her birthday.   She’s also on the smaller side height-wise.  Her 6-month-old cousin is bigger than she is.    
• She adores her siblings.  And man, they are helpful.  Other than changing dirty diapers (which they could do – I just don’t ask them to) there isn’t much Jacey and Londyn can’t do for Oakley, and they usually do it happily.  Calvin still adores her, and they are so cute together first thing in the morning.  He goes into her room and, in a high squeal-y voice, says “Hi there cute girl!  Good morning Oakster Baby!  Did you have a good sleep?”

I’ll repeat:  we all adore her.  She is such a bright spot in our family.  She changes so much, so quickly.  I can’t wait to see what this next year brings for her.