One Year Already

This Time Last Year... This time last year, at 3:00 am, I woke up with a real contraction. At 4:00 am, I had another one; then another at 4:30ish, and 5:00. I got up and took a shower, ate some cereal, and sat in the recliner in the living room to make sure this was the real thing. A little while later, and several contractions later, I woke Jason up and told him to start getting ready. We sat in the living room watching TV all morning timing contractions. Kelli called me to see what our plans were for the day - we had plans to go somewhere. I remember telling her that I didn't think we'd be going out that day because I was having contractions. A few minutes later, the phone rang - it was mom. Kelli had called her. Within 10 minutes, mom was at my house. We watched Crocodile Dundee on TV until the contractions were 5 minutes apart and then left for the hospital at 11:00 am. (Mom was going crazy because we didn't leave for the hospital sooner. We were timing them like the doctor told us to.) By 12:00, I was in the delivery room and getting an epidural. I was supposed to have Gavin around 2:00, but his heart rate dropped really low when I pushed, so the doctor held me off. When he came back at 5:15, after delievering ALL the other babies there, I pushed , and then Gavin was born at 5:27 pm. It was a piece of cake.

(This picture was taken one week before Gavin was born. It was my last day of teaching.)

One Year Later...

I can't believe Gavin is one year old. It seems like yesterday he was kicking me inside my belly. All summer, I have kept going back in my head saying, "This time last year, we were....". Man, how time flies. My little buddy has grown and changed so much. And just like any mom who looks at her growing baby, it brings tears to my eyes.

Having a baby has been a total life changing experience. When I got pregnant, I thought, "Ah, this will be easy. I've been around kids all my life, changed diapers, fed them, played with them." Boy was I wrong. Even though Gavin was a pretty easy baby, it was hard for me to adjust from having freedom and no responsibilities, to having the biggest responsibility of all. Being a parent is time consuming and tiring - something I didn't think about before. But having Gavin has been the biggest blessing in my life. He makes me laugh and fills my heart with joy.

In a year, Gavin has:

• had only 1 ear infection
• had a cold 4 times (the average is 7-10 per year)
• slept through the night at 3 months old (I thought that day would never come!)
• started eating cereal and fruit at 5 months old
• picked strawberries
• rolled off the bed
• eaten lent off the couch
• peed on me so many times I lost count
• been swimming in the pool and the ocean, and loved both
• eaten refried beans and wanted more
• smashed his fingers several times in the cabinets
• been given too many toys
• been to the park to swing
• eaten a leaf
• pooped in his baby pool
• tried to drink his bath water
• wiggled out of his bouncy seat
• thrown many temper tantrums (and he's not even 2 yet!)
• been man-handled by Karis (but he loves her to death)
• swam in Boyd's Mill Pond - one of the most polluted lakes around!
• had bumps and bruises all over his body, including his hiney
• bitten me several times - and those little teeth hurt
• put his hand so far into his mouth that he gagged and threw up
• sucked on his toes
• been walking for a couple of weeks
• prefers table food over baby food

...and that's just a few. But the most important thing that's happened this year is that he has been spoiled with love by family.

God has blessed our socks off and this was just the first year. I pray He'll continue to give Gavin good health and keep him safe.