Seems like yesterday...

Gage,

It sounds cliche but it seems like yesterday I held you in my arms for the first time. Has it really been a year already??? WOW....Today you turn ONE YEAR OLD! I honestly can't believe it. You have done so many wonderful things already in just your first year of life. You are such a smart boy.

The moment you were born you knew how to eat. That is all you wanted to do. In fact you knew how to eat so well that you only lost 1 oz when we took you to the Doctor 4 days after you were born. Then at 2 weeks you already weighed almost 9lbs.

When you were 1 month old you could hold your head up. You would look around when you heard your Dad's voice, my voice or Kaysen's voice.

When you were 2 months old you LOVED bath time. Your umbilical cord finally fell of at 8 weeks. You were so sick of the "sponge" bath. You loved splashing your feet in the water and watching Kaysen talk to you while you kicked. This month was one of my favorites because this is when you also learned to smile. I love your chubby cheeked smile.

At 3 months old you were already trying to bring your legs under you so your bum was in the air then you would push off with your feet. We called you a "stink bug" because of this.

At 4 months old you were introduced to rice cereal and Santa Claus. Let's just say that you preferred Santa.

At 5 months old you learned to roll over like crazy. You've been trying to accomplish this task for the past month but you had one MAJOR obstacle in your way....your BELLY! Eventually though, you figured out how to roll WITH it and roll you did. If you saw something you wanted you just kept rolling until you got to it.
When you were 6 months old you learned to crawl. This started out as an army crawl with a funny head dive into the ground to help you get better leverage. It looked pretty silly but it got the job done. You also learned to say, "mama" and "dada" this month.

At 7 months old you were crawling with your belly off of the floor. Thus, causing you to get into everything. Nothing could stop you. If I put a block up you would figure out how to move it or crawl under it. You also cut your first tooth this month.

At 8 months old you found your temper. From the moment you were born we said that your temperament was nothing like Kaysen's. He was ALWAYS a little spit fire but you were so calm. What happened?? You learned to scream. If you were told no, you would sit on your bum, put your legs and arm straight out in front of you. Get tense, make fists and SCREEEAAAM!!!!!! During this month you also cut your 3rd & 4th teeth. This will always make me laugh because you didn't cut your top center teeth....it was one one each side. We called you our little vampire.

By the time you were 9 months old you could figure out how to climb the stairs or climb on top of a stool and then stand up and reach into the drawers. I had to start keeping all doors closed and only getting ready when you were asleep or your dad was around to help me.
When you were 10 months old you really started to change from a baby to a little boy. This month you started taking "baby steps" on your own. However, if you wanted to get somewhere fast. You instantly dropped to the floor. During this month you also started to play with Kaysen. If you saw him laying on the floor you would attack him and the wrestling would begin. We told Kaysen that one day you would pay him back for all the times he did it to you when you were "just a baby." We just didn't realize how soon this would be. This month you also figured out how to clap your hands and throw them in the air when we sang "Pattie Cake" and you would put your hands above your head and shake them when we sang "Popcorn Popping." These are your two favorite songs.

The day that you turn 11 months old you really started walking. You finally decided to just let go. You were a bit shaky but you caught on so fast. You are so excited that you can walk because you can keep up with Kaysen alot easier now. Many times, you will just grab him as he is walking by and keep hanging on as you keep walking together.

Now you are ONE YEAR OLD. This year has flown by...like everyone seems to say. I can't wait to continue to watch you grow. You are such a fun and adventerous little boy. Each day we thank Heavenly Father for sending you to our home. We love you so much and hope you have a WONDERFUL birthday and many more to come!!!