ONE YEAR OLD

It happened. On January 2, 2009, at 7:42 p.m., Asher turned one year old. There were no fireworks, he did not self-combust, time did not stand still - I didn't even have the tiniest of panic attacks. It was so weird how it was just like any other minute of any other day. I'm not sure why I'd built his turning one into such a huge deal in my mind, bigger than the whole Y2K panic almost ten years ago; maybe it's because it means he's crossing over from babyhood to toddlerhood. I'm really excited about that, but on the other hand, I'm not sure I'm ready to say goodbye to the baby version of Asher, yet. Thank God he's still pooping his pants.

Like last month, this month has been a time of honing his skills. He still isn't walking full-time, yet, though he is practicing. He'll take anywhere from two to six steps before either falling down or giving up and crawling. I would think that within the next couple of weeks he'll be off and walking, but he could easily prove me wrong. He seems pretty content getting around by holding onto things or crawling. I've yet to hear any "real" words come out of his mouth, but he still has plenty to say. I've noticed his jibber-jabbering is starting to include more intonation and structure, and is usually accompanied with intense facial expressions. All I can say is, I think sometimes it's probably a good thing that I can't understand what he's trying to say. Why? Because not only is communication increasing, but so are the TANTRUMS. It is not pretty, and I know it's just going to get worse. I'm praying he doesn't have my temper, but if Mom is right in her philosophy of karma and "what goes around, comes around," I'm in a world of hurt.

Now that he's a year old, we're trying to bump up his lifestyle to be a little less babyish. Yesterday, we turned around the car seat. He seems very happy about this, and I can't say I blame him. It had to be awfully boring staring at the seat of the car all this time, and he had grown to the point where his feet were touching the seat, so I think he was beginning to get cramped in that position. Now that he's facing the front, we can also move the car seat to the middle of the backseat, so I think he'll be safer should we ever be T-boned by another car. I know it's going to sound lame, but I've actually sat in the backseat with him ever since he was born. I got in the habit of doing this when he was a newborn so that if he got fussy I could console him, and I guess I just never grew out of it. With him facing front, I am now moving myself back up to the passenger seat of the car - hallelujah! I figure if he can face the front, he can see us and outside the car, and that should keep him entertained. If not, well, buddy, join the club. Riding in the car can just be boring, you'll have to get used to it.

One year also marks the point in which we can switch him off formula and on to whole milk. I'm really not concerned with this too much; getting him to sit still and drink a bottle has been an on-again, off-again battle for months now. I don't think he'll miss it much, but I don't feel comfortable just yanking him off of it cold turkey. This is probably more for my comfort level than his; after all, eliminating bottle time is pretty disruptive to the schedule we've been following for months and months. Mommy and Daddy need time to establish and grow comfortable with a new routine. So, he was getting four bottles a day; now he's down to three. Over the next month or two, we'll just keep cutting down bottles until there are none left. Asher will probably be thrilled.

His one-year appointment with Dr. Timmons is tomorrow afternoon. I'm looking forward to seeing what his weight and height are up to, and finding out how he's developing in comparison to her standards. Unfortunately, he is due for some blasted vaccinations. He hasn't received any since his six-month appointment, so I'm pretty scared to witness his reaction to the shots now that he's older. I'm sure he'll be the best little trooper; it's just Mommy who's the big baby about such things.

Happy birthday, my little Asher Bug. This year has been crazy and turned upside-down in so many different ways, but I can honestly say that, because of you, it's been the best year of my life. You have made me a better person and have shown me what's truly important in life. You have my heart wrapped around that little finger of yours, and I wouldn't have it any other way. I am so looking forward to your second year and watching you blossom even more into a handsome little boy.

(December photos)