Happy 1st Birthday Little Man!

I can't believe that one year ago I was packing my bag and getting everything in order to give birth the next morning. I know there are a lot of women and doctors who believe in letting a baby come when the baby is ready, but when you have 5 other children and no family within 3 hours, planning is crucial! I have been blessed with a wonderful doctor who understands these logistics and has induced me the last 2 babies to fit with our schedules as long as it's within a week of my due date. Having everything organized, DH letting the courts know he will be off, older children who can take time off from work to watch the younger ones, going in on a Friday morning, having a baby by Friday dinnertime and then coming home on Sunday so everything can return to almost normal on Monday morning does wonders for my sense of control. There, I said it. I have control issues. LOL If you know me and are reading this, right now you're saying "Gee, ya think?" That's just part of what makes me loveable.


Mr. Cracker Face - I couldn't help laughing with those cheeks stuffed full of crackers!

As they say, what a difference a year can make.  So as I snuggle my little guy tonight when I rock him to sleep it will be with extra love & attention for the last night I rock my "baby". When we wake up tomorrow he won't look any different, but he will be one year old and a toddler. Forever leaving behind the babyness I cling so tightly to, reluctant to let it go. He is my last baby (or the last one we plan, we don't truly know God's plan for our family) and such a wonderful surprise baby he was. I think that although every mother has a hard time letting go of her baby, it seems to be more evident to me as I watch my 20 year old and 19 year old stepping out bit by bit into their new adult lives. We blink and it's gone. Time marches on whether we want it to or not. Whether we're done smelling sweet baby powder smells, wiping noses and playing patty cake - we blink, and it's gone. So tonight I am ever so thankful for each and every day the Lord blesses me by letting me have each and every one of my children in my life. Not the spectacular days of vacations or birthdays or special events, but the mundane, ordinary, nothing special days that we so often overlook. Each normal day is a blessing to my life. Thank you Father for another ordinary day - thank you for my wonderful life.