One-Year Old!

Happy birthday to you, Mr. Josiah!

1 year old!

11 months old

10 months old

9 months old

 8 months old

7 months old

6 months old

5 months old

4 months old

3 months old

2 months old

1 month old

2 weeks old

(And here's a flashback to Victor's one-year birthday. :) )

Dear Josiah,

You joined our family late Friday night (11:53pm), at the end of Daddy's spring break last year. Now, as we end Daddy's spring break again, it is a delight to celebrate a full year of life together with you!

You are bubbling over with sweet spirit and fun surprises!

Just recently...

- You can crawl crazy fast whenever you see something that looks dangerous/forbidden/super fun. One of your very favorite games is tag (kinda), where you crawl somewhere super fast, and I crawl after you and grab your tummy and say, "Boogie, boogie, boogie!" And you laugh and laugh, and then crawl away and pause for a minute til I grab you again.

- You have begun helping yourself to things off the table. After taking a few snapshots on your birthday chair this morning, I was looking through photos when I realized it had become oddly quiet. I found you in the kitchen, spoon and bowl in hand, helping yourself to some cereal that was left from your breakfast.

- You love repeating words and sounds. Very often, if for some reason I say, "Wow," and you'll pause for a second, and then say, "Waw."
Then I say, "Wow."
"Waw."
"Wow."
"Waw."
On and on, for a very long time. Cracks me up.

- You make friends all over. We were at Half-Price Books (shopping for your birthday present), and you kept saying, "Yeah," to the guy stocking shelves in the kids' section and giving him big smiles.

- You are a little snuggle bug. Several times a day, you'll crawl over and just lay your head on my lap. Or put your head down on my shoulder and snuggle in. I love it. Don't ever stop doing that, okay?

- You still have the most hilarious old man chuckle. You and Victor go back and forth, chortling away, and it is one of the most delightful sounds Daddy and I have ever heard.

- You love baths and finding Victor's small toys that you don't normally get to play with and looking out the window in your room and eating food off the floor and riding in shopping carts.

- Words in your vocabulary: Mama, Dada, wow, yum, yeah, hi

- Your favorite actions: so big (arms stretched high), hurray (clapping), all done (sign language), please (sign language), hi and bye (wave)

- You still spot tiny little pieces of things on the floor and eat them. You still gag yourself when you get a spoon to play with. You still don't really like the Ergo or wearing a hat or mittens.

- You're sleeping great!  Normally you go to bed a bit before 7pm and wake up sometime around 5:30am.  Naps run about 9:30-11am and 2-3:30pm.  So thankful for this!

You are our sweet pickle, our Mr. Misty Meister Moo, Joey, or as Victor refers to you, when speaking to Mommy, "your son" (as in, "Mommy, your son is going to crawl down the stairs!").

We love you, and we pray for you each day that God will give you a heart to follow and trust in Jesus. A heart like King Josiah in the Bible, who loved the LORD with all his heart and all his soul and all his strength. May you be one of those that God finds when "the eyes of the LORD move to and fro throughout the whole earth, that He may strongly support those whose heart is completely His."

You can never earn God's favor through your own merit, my son, but you do not have to, because God gave His own cherished Son to cover your sins and give you a new heart, if you will trust in Him.

That is our chief and deepest desire and prayer for you, sweet Josiah! May you belong to Him forever! We love you!

With love and thankfulness,
Momma and Daddy