Happy 1st Birthday Johnny!

 HAPPY 1st BIRTHDAY 

JOHNNY BUCK!!!!

Can you believe it?! You made it through your first year of life! Time goes fast but at the same time... I feel like we've earned the status of making it to this milestone. As you know, this year wasn't always the easiest, at least not for me. I'd like to think you've had a pretty chill year over all (minus those early colicky months...) I was so scared to have you but man, you complete us! With you we feel so whole and... right. I am so grateful that I kept my faith and fought through my fears and insecurities to bring you here. 

You are so wildly delicious and squishy. You are a HUGE daddy's boy and completely obsessed with him. But hey, he's even more obsessed with you. :) And speaking of obsessions you're pretty enthralled with your big sisters and they are all in love with you. You are certainly not lacking in love. You're the baby of the family through and through and I'm guessing you always will be.

Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for being a good sleeper. Thank you for not biting me with all those teeth while you're nursing. Thank you for that honk-laugh that you do. Thank you for loving most food. Thank you for being willing to take a bottle sometimes. Thank you for going down in your crib awake and putting yourself to sleep. That you for your huge smile! Thank you for loving baths. Thank you for loving your dad so much.

You took your sweet time learning to crawl- probably because someone was always willing to pick you up or give you whatever you needed. You have only been crawling for a few weeks now! You've got 6 teeth with two more on the way. You wave bye-bye and say "Uh oh" when you drop something or your sisters spill something. And you've surprised me by saying "Te te" whenever the cats come near you. And of course you say "mama" and "dada." Especially since you hear your sisters yelling those names at us all of the time. 

We are so excited to see who you're going to become; to get to know you better and better each day. It's nearly impossible to imagine you as a kid, let alone a man someday. But I do hope and plan for that future. I was nervous to have a son, honestly. But then I realized that this was my chance to raise a real man- someone who is kind and sensitive to others but also a warrior for truth. A gentleman, a hard worker. It doesn't matter to me if you're into sports or ballet or cooking or hiking or movie directing as long as you're a good human then you are a real man.

And luckily for you, you've got some great men to look up to: your grandpa's, your uncles, and especially your dad. (and a handful of sisters who will teach you how to treat women, I'm sure.)

But let's not get to ahead of ourselves here. You're only a ONE years old, after all. You're still my baby, born from my beliefs. My little ham and goof ball and blanket biter. While the future is exciting, these slow days are complete treasures

We love you so so so sooo much! I hope you're okay with me kissing you a million times a day for at least a few more years. This next year should be an interesting one with lots of growth for us all! We're so happy you joined our family! Happy Birthday!

One Year Stats:

29 inches tall
19 pounds
6 (almost 8) teeth
Blonde hair
Blue Eyes

This Past Year Johnny:

WAS BORN
Grew teeth
Learned to sit up,
Crawl,
Eat food,
And start to talk
 Went to the mountains
Went raspberry picking
Went to the zoo
Got blessed in church
Laid in a hammock
Went to the aquarium
Saw the Grand Canyon
Visited his dad in the hosptial
Touched a butterfly
Rode on a carnival ride
Took lots of naps
Went boating
Went tubing on a lake
Went Kayaking
Ate sand and rocks
Went camping
Dressed like a leprechaun
Experienced his first holidays
 Pet a sheep
Went swimming at a hot springs
Sat on a tractor
Went to the tulip festival
Went bowling
 Went to Lagoon
Saw Fireworks
Played in a swing
And
Stole the hearts of many

States visited:
Utah, Idaho, Arizona

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BABY BOY!!!