Wes Wild: 1 Year Old

You are one year old, baby Wes!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

The last month of your first year was an exciting one because you were trying so hard to walk! You learned to cruise with your walker. The only problem is you don't know how to turn corners so you walk straight until you run into something, then whine until we come and help you around the obstacle. :)

You walked for the first time on Oct 18 - so just a few weeks after your first birthday! It was so fun and we got it on video, even though they said you'd been walking a few steps here and there at school before we saw it for the first time.

Speaking of school, your favorite toy at daycare is a blue doctor dress up shirt that you can pull on yourself over your helmet. Your teachers say you wear it all day long, and they even took a photo of you in it and made it your cubby photo. You are smiling so big and I can tell you really love that shirt. HAHA! So cute!

For your first birthday, we decided to go with the "Wild One" theme since you are our Wes Wild. We decorated with play animals and greenery and got you a carrot cake to smash. You loved it, especially the icing! We invited the Brenneman's over and we all watched you smash your cake. Then we ate chili (and you loved that, too). For your big gift, we got you a car that you can ride in that we can push and you LOVE that. Months later, you still absolutely love taking walks around the neighborhood in your car. You stay in even though you aren't buckled and just sit and hold onto the steering wheel like you're really driving. It's the absolutely cutest. Your car has a front compartment like a trunk that you can put stuff in, and you like to put toys in it and then routinely open it to check on them throughout our walks. :)

We are so thankful that we get to be the ones to watch you learn and grow, baby boy! You are the best baby we could have ever asked for to complete our family. I love you x 100 million!!

Elle Evergreen: 1 year old

Elle, you are ONE! Below are a few photos and highlights from your twelfth month AND your first birthday party:



Your twelfth month was a big one! You learned to stand on your own without assistance! We also took the changing table out of your room and got you a big girl shelf for all of your big girl toys.

You continued to play with Wren and thought she was pretty great. You sisters were so sweet sometimes! You loved playing outside as the weather got a little warmer, and you didn't officially start walking until March 24, 2016 - but you loved walking around the house using the ride-on toys.

You hit a really great stage at twelve months, and you were such a happy baby most of the time. Since then, you've had bad times here and there, but no more constantly fussy baby - yay!

Your first birthday was a pretty simple celebration, but you loved it! You started the day off by standing up BY YOURSELF for the first time - a great way to kick off being one year old!



After a morning of playing, you took a good, long nap and woke up ready to open presents and eat cake! We got you a little red piano, a walking toy and some other little things, and you had a blast pulling the paper off. For your cake, we made a strawberry cake with pink cream cheese icing and pink sprinkles.

Your cake topper was ordered from Etsy and custom made for you. I loved it SO much - it was beautiful! Wren was playing with it before we put your cake together and she broke part of it off. I was so upset, but Daddy was able to super glue it back together - thank goodness! I saved it in your memory box because I loved it so much.





We didn't really have to prompt you to try your cake. You had your fingers and hands in it right away. I love this last photo so much. It really sums up how much you loved that cake - ha!

Daddy, me and Wren had strawberry cake cupcakes while you enjoyed your big cake. We sang you happy birthday and took a million photos of you getting all messy. Then we stuck you in the bathtub to wash it all off.

We love you so much and had so much fun watching you grow during your first year! Looking forward to the years ahead and hoping all your days are happy ones!

Wren Winter: 1 year old

Well, little Wren - you are 1 year old now! This update is way late, but I wanted to post it to complete your year of updates. :) Your last month before your first birthday was a big one - you snacked on Whiskey's ears a lot (hilarious!), you celebrated your first Halloween (as a scary witch!), played outside in the cold, did some sightseeing in DC, got your third tooth, and - most importantly - you learned to walk!

You took your first steps one weekend morning a week before your birthday. It was just me and you and I squeeeaaaled with excitement. After that you started taking one or two steps here or there, but on your first birthday, you really took off and walked from me on one side of the living room to your dad on the other side. We both cheered so loud! Since then, you have not stopped walking. Your little legs are getting quite the workout!

Your first birthday celebration was so much fun. I was like a kid the night before Christmas. I couldn't wait for you to wake up and open your birthday presents. It was just the three of us - you, me and your dad. We opened presents and played with them in the morning. Then you took your nap, and I baked your cake. When you woke up, we put you in your highchair and brought the cake over. You were not impressed at first and held your arms up, telling us you wanted out. We decided to break it open so you could see what it was like on the inside, and that got you a little more excited. Your cake was carrot cake with cream cheese icing (me and your dad's favorite). Once it was open and you could see all the crumbly cake, you dug in and seemed to really like it, although your bites were always dainty - pinched between your two fingers like a little lady.

When we felt like you had eaten enough icing for one day, we picked you up and took you upstairs to the bathtub. You sucked the icing off your hands the whole way up the stairs! I think it's safe to say you had a great first birthday, and we had a great time celebrating with you.

All in all, your first year was amazing. We learned so much about babies, so much about you and so much about ourselves. I will always look back on your first year with so much love. Your dad and I love you more than words can say, and we can't wait for all of your years to come.

Happy 1st birthday, Wren! May all your days be happy ones!