1st Birthday!!!

Allen is one year old! In some ways I can't believe it has already been a year since he was born, but in other ways, it's hard to remember life without my little angel. It has been the best year of our lives and keeps getting better. I am beyond thankful for the blessings and joys we've had this year. My prayer is that all of Allen's years are like this one: full of love, fun, family, friends, good health, joy, and God's blessings! The week of his birthday he really evolved from a baby to a toddler (as hard as that is for me to admit). It's like he knew his birthday was coming and wanted to prove that he's a big boy now. He is walking quite a bit, eating more than I can keep up with, loves to play outside, tries to climb everything (even up the slide), starting to pout when he doesn't get what he wants, has two more teeth (molars) come in, got in trouble for biting his friends, and had his first haircut. During his party on Saturday, he had the time of his life! I think he knew that it was his party. We were overwhelmed with the love and support shown at the party; we never expected so many people to join us in his celebration. It was one of the best days of my life. Thanks to Gigi, Grandad, Aunt Diana, and Daddy everything was ready just in time. Allen loved the balloon decorations, balls in the playpen, personal cake, and all the friends and family. The next day he continued his celebration by opening all of his gifts; he loved pulling the tissue paper out of the bags and ripping the wrapping paper. Generous friends and family showered him with toys, cute winter clothes, and books. We are thankful for everything. A trip to the peditrician was the unfun birthday date with 4 shots and blood drawn - he was a trooper and got a clean bill of health. Yay! I got a lecture about teaching him to sleep better, so that's on the to do list. :) Allen is weighing in at 22.9 lbs (only the 53%) and is 31.3 in tall (the 90%). I promise we're feeding him as much as possible! Our precious boy is one year old, and we couldn't be happier with our life with him. Here are some pictures from his birthday: