I feel like Jay is growing up so fast these days- walking, “talking” and acting like such a big boy. So this AM while I was feeling particularly sentimental I decided to freeze time and capture just how tiny my little guy still is. He laughed and giggled the whole time we were doing our project- so, so sweet! Thank goodness for sweet spring weather, porches to paint on, adorable little boy giggles and those tiny hands that constantly pull at my heart strings…
or monster of a mess?
On Monday, Jamie spent the majority of the day working in the yard, trimming trees, planting grass plugs, getting the gardens ready to be re-planted etc. After Jay’s second nap we headed outside to join him. Jay is into everything these days so I quickly tired of trying to keep him clean and in my arms so… I gave in, striped him down to his diaper and just let him go hog wild. And wild he was- he was a filthy mess by the time we went in for supper but he was pleased as punch with us and himself and that’s all that really matters isn’t it?
LOVE is what I have for these photo booth pictures! I am so happy we ended up doing the photo booth and after taking a look at these I am sure you can probably see why, they are so much fun :-)
By the way, this would be a great post to use the new “slideshow-ish” feature if you wanted- there is a crazy amount of pictures since I couldn’t narrow them down at all. Just click on the first image below and take a look!
your Valentines Day is extra SWEET!
Thanks Staci for decorating the cookies with me- Jay thinks the little “love bugs” are super yummy! Plus, it’s so much more fun when you get to do it with a friend!
On the 27th of January Jay turned one year old! It is crazy to think of how much our lives have changed over the past year and to see how much Jay has grown. We didn’t want to let this momentous occasion pass us by so we celebrated in style with a “One Year Old in a Flash” birthday party. I was super excited a few months back when I ran across the theme idea here– with all of the pictures that we had taken of Jay this year, it was a perfect theme! Jamie and I decided quite early on that we were going to have one combined (family and friends) party for Jay; so once I had a theme I just kind of ran with it. I loved every minute of the planning, baking and prep- it’s just so much fun! I know, I am a dork!
Nan (who is wonderful) made the invitations along with a bunch of other digital files that I used to make printables and help decorate the house- thanks Nan! We had a photobooth set up outside (I’ll try to get some of those pictures up within the week) to entertain people at the party, balloons in every corner of the house (one of Jay’s favorite “toys” right now), an area for people to leave contributions to his time capsule, drinks in the kitchen and a dessert buffet for our guests to enjoy. It was so much fun and we are so glad that we had so many people here to celebrate with us. Enjoy a handful of the pictures!
a few party goers- I didn’t have enough time to get anywhere near everyone documented!
I will post some of the details tomorrow- there was no way I could get all of the pictures into one post!
Just over the last few days Jay has taken multiple steps on his own. More often than not I think that he forgets what he is doing and takes them without even thinking. He is usually “walking” towards one of the animals or to get a phone or other electronic device he shouldn’t have. Occasionally, he will take a few steps to either me or Jamie; which I love- it’s great to have him walk to you!
Last weekend when he was playing with Piper I accidentally got a few of those steps on tape. Yippee for cool accidents :-) He was super excited to be playing with Piper, although I am not sure that Piper thinks it was too great since he just hands her the toy but he LOVED it. The first clip (towards the end) shows him taking a few steps, the second shows just a few more before Piper gets too excited to let him take anymore and in the last clip he is too excited to walk at all- it’s still adorable though. Enjoy!
p.s. sorry for the background laughing in the video, just can’t help myself!
Jay really loved seeing himself and Piper playing on the camera after it had been video taped. He heard the voices from across the room after I started playing it back, crawled up into my lap and watched fascinated until he had seen all of them.
One year old!!
I know I have already posted today, however; I couldn’t miss posting this one too!
How exactly did this happen? Where does all the time go? I am allowed to say this, I promise you, it’s my right as a Mother of a one year old. Seriously, I am pretty sure I blinked and the whole year passed us by. That being said, we have had the most amazing year and I wouldn’t change one bit of it (that goes for those low points and sleepless nights too).
Stats: (not official ones, we don’t go to the Dr for another week but here’s what Jamie and I got this morning…)
Weight: 20.5 lbs – Daddy will be turning his car seat around now!
Height: 28.5 inches
Teeth: 7- that 8th one is really holding out on us!
Things of note:
* Jay has taken a few steps on his own but isn’t walking yet. His balance is great and he is full on cruising but he just isn’t ready to walk yet. Right now he knows he can get anywhere he wants- and fast- by crawling so he isn’t in a real hurry.
*Most mornings and after most naps he is super excited to see us (Jamie or me) when we come to get him from his crib. He all but does circles in his crib out of excitement and usually looks around his crib for something to point to or show us- a paci, stuffed animal, a real animal that has followed me in the room.
*He is pretty shy. He hardly goes more than two feet away from me or Jamie when we are around a group of new people and he will rest his head on my shoulder when someone he doesn’t really know talks to him while we are out. If we are home however or around people that we know we can’t get the kiddo to stop jabbering. Sometimes it is so loud that we have to yell to be heard over him.
*He isn’t really talking yet although, we are pretty sure that he says Mama, Dada, kitty and possibly Bella. It’s just so hard to tell how deliberate each of those are.
*He is super curious about everything still. He points at the birds and the airplanes and is constantly saying “ooh” when we are outside. He loves to look at things and will all but crawl out of my arms and over my shoulder to take a look at something. He also will flatten himself out to peer under things. It really is adorable to see him smooshed up on the ground with his face pressed to the carpet and his booty in the air looking at or for something.
Likes:
*Blueberries!!! They are by far his favorite food right now. Jay knows the bowl that we keep them in gets excited and starts clapping as soon as he sees it come out of the fridge. Kiwi makes for a close second, he has an extra stomach for fruit and can’t get enough of it. As for eating, he is still a good eater and has added mullet dip, homemade yogurt, apples, french fries and cauliflower to his long list of likes.
*Balloons!!! He has a huge thing for balloons right now; honestly, we can’t even get into the check-out lane at publix before he is eyeing the balloons, pointing at them and then looking expectantly at the cashier. He is happy as a clam as soon as he gets one (he doesn’t care what color either) and can play with it for days. They only go away when I get sick of it and toss it while he’s napping- seriously- he had on in the bath one night since it was just easier not to fight it.
*He still loves the bath, he splashes around and would probably stay in there until he was super pruny and cold if we would let him.
*Playing with your toys. Jay has a corner in the family room that houses a good portion of his toys. He will go to town most afternoons there; taking everything out and tossing things over his shoulders. So far he really likes the drum sticks and egg shakers from his music set and his alligator pull toy best. He also loves the bbq tongs, mini loaf pans and measuring spoons from the kitchen and a basket full of old DVD’s and pens from in the office- none of these are exactly toys but we don’t care, we’re just fostering creativity here.
*Crawling in and around things. Jay loves to play in Piper’s crate and the laundry basket. He also loves to crawl around and through the legs on the dinning room and kitchen tables. If you add a balloon or alligator pull toy to drag behind him into the mix we have one happy, happy child!
*Peek-a-boo is still a favorite game and hide and seek has started to become fun as well. Although, I must say that Jay isn’t a stellar hider just yet.
Dislikes:
*Sitting still for anything! Getting his diaper changed, getting dressed, waiting for his juice before nap time. I have gotten really talented at quick diaper changes and putting diapers on a standing child after baths. We also have left a pile of things by the changing table to help distract him for just a few seconds while we change him.
More pictures because I can…
Dear Jay Bird,
This year has been quite the adventure and I can’t even begin to describe what it has been like for me and your Daddy. A year ago I was wondering when you would come, what you would look like and who you would be like. Little did I know that I could have never dreamt up how wonderful you would be…
You turned my life upside down the moment they placed you in my arms at the hospital. You had my nose and your Daddy’s eyes and made the sweetest little pterodactyl sounds around; it was music to my ears. I wanted to hold you and cuddle you and never put you down but we had a revolving door of visitors so I had to share. You are one very loved little boy with a whole mess of admirers and you never fail to put on a good show for them.
You make me smile with everything that you do and as I sit here surrounded by your toys with you napping in the next room I find myself at a loss for words. I am sure that anything I say cannot possibly do you justice. You are amazing. You are kind and gentle, you are loud and boisterous but so shy at the same time, you are a thinker and analyze everything, you are cautious and playful all at once. You love to play on your own, dance to music, have stories read to you. You love playing in the tub at bath time, to go outside and watch for birds and airplanes, you love your animals and light up every time time they enter the room. You love peek-a-boo and hide behind everything you can find; even a string or the lace of a shoe. It is such a delight to see your huge smile and your face light up as you hear Daddy and me wondering aloud where you could be. Your endless curiosity is amazing! You are constantly pointing at things and showing us stuff. I am going to miss your “ooh” face terribly when you are able to talk… I love when your eyes light up when you get excited; your whole face shows your joy. I love the way you rest your head on my shoulder when someone you don’t know talks to you, when you snuggle into me when I feed you or when you are drinking your juice before nap time and the way you softly rub your feet together without even knowing that you are doing it- you get that from me by the way… I love the way you rush to the door every evening when Daddy gets home; somedays your little arms can’t keep up with just how fast you would like to go and you tumble over yourself. It is amazing to watch the two of you play; sometimes I find myself just staring you both wondering how I got to be so lucky. I wish I could bottle up your excitement, curiosity and the sound of your laugh. How wonderful it would be to freeze time and for you to be my little baby forever. And while I will admit that I am sad to see this year go, it is so easy to want you to stay this way forever, I can’t wait to see all the great things that are yet to come.
I can’t wait to see the silly things you’ll do, hear the silly things you’ll say or watch you grow into the sweet little boy that you are going to be. I can’t wait to hear you say Momma intentionally or for you to walk to me and that is just the beginning. There are endless possibilities for the things that you can and will accomplish, the sky’s the limit little boy; I hope you constantly remember to reach high. Know that Daddy and I are so very, very proud of you and feel so blessed that you are taking us on this journey with you.
I love you, sweet boy. Happy Birthday!
Love,
Momma
steps have been taken!!
We certainly do not have a full on walker by any means but our little Jay Bird has spread his wings and taken his first few steps! I still continue to think that he won’t really and truly walk until he is really sure he can- he is a very deliberate little boy, just like his Daddy, but we are excited none the less AND Daddy was home to see them too! I don’t have any pictures to show for it. We instead were simply enjoying the moment with him; but, I do have this super cute video to share instead. It has a little bit of everything from the last few weeks. A little laughing, a little playing with Daddy, a little dancing and a little bit of “old man” walker action. He was so tickled that he could push Aunt Martha’s old stool around the office- check out that proud grin!
Love, love, love this little boy!
the perreault family 