One Year....

 On January 28, 2012 at 1:56 pm, we were blessed with the birth of a healthy baby boy- our precious Oliver. Already one year has passed since we welcomed him into our family and brought him home from the hospital. The year has been full of so many new experiences, adventures and frustrations. Most of all though, our year has been full of the joy of being parents! 

I have heard it said before, and have come to understand myself, that not only are children given to us for us to raise them up in the Lord, but they are given to us to grow our own walks. They are a mirror of our selves- both of our strengths and weaknesses. Seeing these weaknesses in Oliver has caused me to work harder to be more disciplined in my walk. In every moment, I want to be a godly example. I know that I will and already have fallen short in this area, but thankfully the Lord gives us grace to keep trying.

"And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise." Deuteronomy 6:6-7

One year ago....

Proud Daddy...

 One week...

 One month... first smile!

 The whole experience of having a new baby was entirely new for me. I had never held a newborn before (that I could remember at least). I am not even sure I had changed a diaper. It all came to be very familiar though, and now I look back at those days and realize how precious they were and how fast they fly. I am so thankful that I took everyone's advice and held my tiny baby as much as I could.  I know these days will fly by as well, so full they are with new experiences, new skills, and new lessons. 

Our big boy at one year! 

 Oliver is now crawling very fast and efficiently. He can stand up from the ground and wave things around in the air. He can walk up to 15 steps at a time by himself. He is starting to have little words (like gitty, mama, da, etc). He LOVES to point and loves reading books with Daddy. We have also begun training for giving Daddy back rubs. We expect his training will be completed soon and he will be able to do that every evening after Daddy comes home from work. He likes to wiggle his head and scrunch his little nose. He has also become an excellent little eater. He really is growing up so fast!

I will end with a last funny picture. This is Oliver's new face- a sniffy face. Jordan says I must  make this face alot if Oliver is doing it. :) Don't know about that....

Happy Birthday Oliver!