One year...

...can do soooo much. I look back on the first pictures of Maxwell, born a chilly December 13th of last year, and am at a loss for words.

Tiny, I know, but I can't find the disc, and these were copied from my Flickr site. These three pics courtesy of my dear friend Megan who photographed Maxwell's birth.

Is that really my baby only one year ago? It is amazing to me what growth happens in the first year of life. Yet, was it really only one year ago that he was born? I know that seems contradictory, but I try to remember what life was like without him, and I can't. From an early age, he has secured his place in our family as the class clown. He feeds off of making his brother and sister laugh, continuing whatever goofiness it is for as long as they will laugh at it. One year ago he was still a mass of flailing, bladder-assaulting arms and head making my stomach have a life of its own. I worried (not much, just a little) that he never seemed to move his legs when he was busy kneading my organs with his crazy hands. Then he was born to us in our bathroom, after 7 hours of labor in my bathtub, a flailing, wailing, slippery bundle of perfect boy. He had his Papa's cowlick, his Pap's dimple chin, and a head full of soft, silky down.

He pulled his knees up under him, curled himself up and didn't move his legs unless he had to. Then I no longer worried about those legs - they could move, he just didn't WANT to move them. He nursed like a hungry pup, all whines, grunts and gulps, slept like a champ and mellowed me out, making me a more tolerant and patient mother.

I know that over the months he slowly changed. I remember noticing it as it happened. But it happened so subtly that it ran away from me, tricked me into thinking the change was slight. Now I look at my son, who will turn one in 4 days, and I can't believe my eyes. He wakes from his naps yelling "MAMA!" at the top of his lungs. He happily sits on the potty in the morning and after meals and naps, rarely making me change a dirty diaper. He says Bella, plain as day, Papa, Pap, Blanky, DogDog, Woof, CatCat, Gigi, Kane, Fishy and tries his hardest at Water. He walks everywhere, stumbles, falls, picks himself up and walks some more. No crawling any more for this big boy. He spends 15 minutes straight trying to get a lid on the container it fits on.
He clears every reachable surface with one swift sweep of the hand. He loves the outdoors, and gets very angry when I walk outside with him and do NOT put him down on the ground. He loves animals, especially dogs, more than I can express.He is a joy, a treasure, and I can't believe that we ever lived without him. From the moment he was two cells, his DNA ensured that he would be human, and that no other individual would ever be the same as him. I thank God for sending his preciousness into our lives, and I can't wait to see what the following years bring for him. He truely is our blessing. Happy first year, my precious Maxwell, may your following years bring you faith, love, humility, and compasion. Mama loves you.