Happy 1st Birthday Mills Oliver!

Today, is our sweet Mills' first birthday. I can't believe that he is 1! Time....it flew by! This has been the best year. We have had more learning exeperiences in the past year than we've had in our entire lives, and we have Mills to thank for all of them.

Dear Mills,
A year ago today, I was anxiously awaiting your arrival. I had been told that I would never know a love like I would have for my baby, and if I had known that this love would be the most amazing feeling ever, you would have been created much earlier. God had other plans, as your daddy and I did too. You are our little blessing. I will never forget the first time I laid eyes on you. Mommy was laying on the operating table being "repaired" after your birth. I could hear you crying, and I was trying to be patient. The sweet nurse brought you over for me to see. I was speechless and you were screaming bloody murder. The sweetest bloody-murder I had ever heard. When I spoke to you, you immediately stopped crying and thats when.....it hit me. You knew me. You heard my voice, and you stopped crying. That, my son, was the most breath-taking moment of the day! I remember saying, "It's okay, Mommy's here," and you stopped crying!! They gave you to your daddy, and he sat beside me on a stool holding you, and that's when your daddy "lost it." It was too sweet for words. My precious angel, we love you more than anything and are so proud of your many milestones. Here's what you're up to:

1. You give the best hugs and kisses ever!


2. You are eating everything that we eat now...well, unless its spicy.


3. Bye-bye bottle! You are drinking from your sippy cup.


4. Mommy and Daddy feel like they've got a raise, because you are now on whole milk! Woo hoo!


5. You now have 4 teeth, and I think you have more, but are too stubborn to let me check them out.


6. You like getting your teeth brushed- as long as I use the apple banana tooth paste


7. You are walking pretty okay, but still crawl more than you walk.


8. You are talking more and more, but we have no idea what you are saying. The best thing is that you talk with your hands. I can't imagine where you get that from.


9. You are now paying more attention to Joey and are starting to figure out that eventually he may become your best pal.


10. You love Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, and I am sure I heard you try to say, "Mickey" in the car. When I asked you to say, "Mickey" you shook your head no.


11. You are now reaching for things, especially your books. I hope that's a good sign, even though when I try reading to you now, you shut the book...go figure. Can we say, "short attention span?" When we go to walmart, you reach for everything that we stroll past and say....something, I'm sure we'll find out one day when your articulation improves :)


12. Most mornings I have to wake you up to go to Mimi June's, but when you wake on your own, we hear, "Hey! Hey! haaaaay! hey! Hey daddy!" over and over again.


13. We are steadily weaning you off of your "pappy." As of now, you only take it at night, but only until you go to sleep.

14. You are really good at taking things out and putting them back in where they belong. Just yesterday, I caught you taking the wall scent out of the plug and putting back in. Oops!...not a good thing.

15. You are sleeping anywhere from 7:30pm and 8:00pm to 6:30am or 7:00am, and I keep telling myself that you don't sleep later, because I have to wake you up early Monday through Thursday. Right?

16. You no longer want to be rocked to sleep, and prefer your daddy and I to simply lay you in your crib to play for a few minutes. Then, you slowly drift off into dreamland.

17. You love anything with buttons, you always help mommy close the garage door, and know exactly which button to push. You love the remote, and you know that mommy's cell phone and our cordless phone are supposed to be held to your ear. You like to hear those voices on the other end. Now, if we can only get you to say, "hello?"

On your very first birthday we want you to know that we love you and can't wait for the many new stages that we are going to experience. This time will roll around again soon and we will be celebrating again. Oh, and you can just skip the "terrible twos" if you really want to.

Love,

Mommy & Daddy