My Best Birthday Present!

My Dearest Graham,

It is so amazing to me that a year could have already passed by. It seems as though just yesterday we were taking our "first" birthday together picture, and now here we are again. You are 1 and such a big boy. In one short year, you have taught me the true meaning of unconditional and unending love. My love for you grows each and every day and I am so lucky to be your mommy. You are my best birthday present ever!!

I love you!!

Mommy

Happy Halloween!

Let me first confess that, while I was excited to have a fall baby, one of my biggest concerns having a baby born around Halloween was that I wanted his birthday to be completely separate from Halloween. I think this comes from me growing up and wanting my November 2nd birthday to be completely separate from Halloween too. Just ask my mom...she spent many a November 1st taking down Halloween decorations and putting up birthday themed swag! I think we did a good job separating Graham's first birthday from Halloween, as the costume/Halloween fun didn't really begin in earnest until after October 26th.

Although this really wasn't Graham's "first" Halloween, let's be honest, it was the first Halloween for which he was really awake and/or the slightest bit interested in. So, we did up Halloween as best you can with a 1 year old! We had a Halloween themed Musikgarten class on Thursday. It was so fun to see all the little ones in their costumes, and Graham was way into his Mickey ears!!
We were also invited to a party for all the "2010 littles" on Sunday afternoon. Graham had a blast playing in the rice sensory box, finding plastic spiders, jelly bugs, and all kinds of fun things!
He also really enjoyed the craft my friend Courtney created. He loved his Jack-o-Lantern so much that he carried it around for the rest of Sunday and most of Monday!
Although his costume was cute and we had gotten several compliments, we decided to forgo the traditional trick-or-treating and instead went to the trick-or-treat party at the local Publix Grocery Store. Graham wore his pumpkin shirt and a great big smile, and had all kinds of fun!

Congratulations!!

Congratulations to "Uncle" Fred and the Montford Mustangs! They won the city football championship, and we are so glad we could be there to help cheer them on! Hooray!!

Happy Birthday!

I know everyone says it, but I literally can't believe that one year has gone by so fast!  It seems like just yesterday that we were waiting and wondering when our precious bundle would make its arrival.  And now, in the blink of an eye, we have a walking, talking, little boy who fills each day with more love than we ever thought possible.

So, how does one celebrate such a big occasion?  By playing hooky of course!!  I was not about to go to work on this all important day!  Graham and I had a blast!

We slept in, went to storytime at the library where everyone sang Happy Birthday to Graham (which he did like, contrary to his actions on the video!), had Chik-fil-a with Chris at lunchtime, took a snuggly nap, and went to the pumpkin patch and to the park!

 
                                                           

 

After Chris got home, we went to see Uncle Fred's Montford Mustangs in the city middle school championship football game!  They won, and we were so excited!!!

 

And if that wasn't enough excitement for the day, we decided to have a birthday party and cupcake after dinner.  We even invited both sets of grandparents and Uncle Brian to join in the fun via the webcams on both computers!

All in all, I would say we had a successful 1st birthday!  Here's to many, many, many more!

Fall Football Fun!

I love all seasons, but I am especially fond of those that I don’t really get to enjoy all that much living in Florida: Fall and Winter. Perhaps absence makes the heart grow fonder, but every year that I am not in Iowa for the changing of the summer to fall, I find myself longing cool days, fireplaces, apple cider, visits to the pumpkin patch, and jumping into huge piles of leaves (You will note that I did not say raking the leaves…absence may make the heart grow fonder, but somethings you just don’t miss!)!

The thing I miss the most though, is football games. No, I am not crazy! I know we have football games in Florida, but it just isn’t the same. I really miss those cool afternoons and evenings where you bundle up in sweatshirts and jeans to go to the local high school bleachers and freeze your toes off. I love the thought of listening to the pep band and having to jump and up and down cheering just to stay warm! Maybe the cheerleader in me has just never died, but I truly miss those days. Something about football games and shorts just doesn’t seem right to me.

We had the opportunity to take Graham to his first football game, a middle school match up between the Montford Mustangs and the Deer Lake Bucks, tonight, and I am so excited that he got a traditional football experience. Though it started warm, it ended up cool and rainy and we broke out the jackets and sweatshirts (and umbrellas). We jumped up and down on the bleachers to keep warm and had a great time! All our cheering paid off too, as Montford (the team coached by Graham’s godfather, Fred) won!!

Buddy Walk

In raising Graham, one of the things to which Chris and I are both extremely committed is encouraging his understanding that all individuals are equal and everyone deserves the right to be educated, nurtured, and loved. We hope that he will see everyone as a person first, and have a great respect for the differences in each of us.

Chris and I have each participated in the Down Syndrome Association of Tallahassee's Buddy Walk for several years now, and we were excited to bring Graham to his first "walk". He did a great job riding, although I think he would probably have preferred to walk himself! I think he was most excited by the beads that were being handed out at the end, but what do you expect from an 11 month old?! It was great to have so much fun as a family while supporting our friends and community!

First Friday

On the first Friday of each month, Railroad Square, a local arts district, hosts an event called...wait for it..."First Friday"! (railroadsquare.com/first_fri.html)
On these nights, the studios, galleries, and shops stay open late and draw a quite interesting crowd. There is always live music and performances by local singers and bands (and if you are lucky enough, some drag queens!). Though we have not gone as often as we wished, we decided to take advantage of the nice weather this weekend and take Graham to his first "First Friday". Initially, I think he probably thought we were crazy and wondered where on earth we had taken him, but in the end, he enjoyed the people watching and interacting with the art exhibits.
Check out that cutie! We like to call him "Yosemite Graham"!