Birthday Boy!...
It is absolutely amazing; the miracle of life, change and a capacity for love that I would have never known otherwise. Reagan is one! A year ago I sat in the NICU, in tears, praying that Reagan would know how much I loved him (we all do) and that he could breathe and eat on his own. Look at him now. I have to admit I am still wondering if I should pad him with the bubble wrap and bring on a helmet, but I am amazed daily at the things he knows and all he can do. His smile is enough to melt any heart and his giggles will bring you to belly laughing. He is so observant. I think he is spending a bit too much time watching doctors--either that or we have a doctor in the making. He knows that a tongue depressor goes in your mouth and that a stethsascope goes around your neck. He holds the remote control in the air to "change the channel" and chatters away on the phone held to his ear. Reagan is still climbing everything he can and pulling up on things too. He points to things that he wants and says, "that, that!" He cheers for himself and others, shakes his head no and calls things by name too. Nana (banana), tat (cat), sh (fish), da (dog), dada and mama of course. This little man loves to be outside and will go to the front and back doors to try to get out. He will still choose a book over a toy and finds the simplist of things to play with. Any scrap or piece of trash on the floor is his favorite. He cleans it all up. Reagan knows the way things should be yet he is so laid back. If you rearrange something he will try to put it back the way he knows. If you put clothes in the chair, he will pull them down or a bandaid on your leg--he will pull it off. Just yesterday, I filled his basket with mega blocks. Reagan put them all back out on the floor. He is very protective of me too. We go to MD Anderson often for my appointments and Reagan has started to object to them drawing my blood or even trying to examine me. He trys to pull the needle out of my arm. I reassure him of course, but he knows that it should not be there. Even daddy gets a no, no sometimes. Reagan wants all the hugs for himself :) He trys to pull Preston away from me and has even been known to bite him if he does not let go of me. Little boys and their moms. I would not change a day!
Reagan now weighs 26.2 1/4 pounds and is 31.5 inches long. He is still in the 97th percentile and his head (big like mom and dad) is off the chart. So many brains I am sure! We are still working on the walking and standing independently, but I am sure it is just around the corner. Reagan sometimes forgets that he has not mastered those two yet. He just lets go, stands for a breif second then hits the floor. I think he should get an E for effort :)
As you can see from all the pictures, we had a busy birthday boy. He was so excited and happy all day. I can honestly say it was one of our best days yet. So many new things for a new year in life. Reagan started his day with whole wheat pancakes and banana slices. He loved it! Then we had a play session at home and story time before meeting all our friends at Gymboree for music. Reagan cheered for his birthday song. We shared the song with Landon and Julia. It is their birthday week too. When class was over we headed to the zoo with dad. We had lunch on a bench and visited all the animals and fishes too. It was nice to have dad there. He is so tall that Reagan got to see all the animals up close. Then, Grandma Hamm and the fam met us at the coffee shop to celebrate with cupcakes and presents too. What do you know...Reagan liked the sweets. Yum was the first sound out of his icing filled mouth. He actually bounced up and down with the first bite. He was so excited! He loved his gifts too. The ribbons were of course his favorite. Then, we drove back to meet Grandma Malone and the fam for a dinner at Luby's. Reagan made a HUGE mess, but enjoyed every bite of his meal. Blue jell-o was his special treat. A perfect day for Reagan and me.