One.

This week, Thumper turned one year old.  I've been trying to put my thoughts into words since then.  It's not getting any easier.

The past few weeks have been full of nostalgia and deja-vu.  I guess it's common to reflect on the past when the holidays roll around; the decorations, the music, the weather, are all very specific, so you can't help but think of the last time you heard that song or smelled that food.  Last year I was very pregnant through Thanksgiving and Christmas.  The maternity ward, where I had countless NSTs, was decorated in lights and garland, first for Christmas, then for New Years, then for football.

After Christmas, the reminders of Thumper's birth actually grew stronger.  Last year, the Seahawks had their first playoff game right as we arrived home with our brand-new baby; the town was decked from head to toe in green and blue.  This year, they're going to the playoffs again, and it's surreal watching the buildings unfurl their flags.  They're celebrating the team's victory and Super Bowl chances, but in my mind, they're celebrating Thumper's homecoming.

Though I can't help but remember Thumper's birth (the whole story of which is here) it's not with any particular longing.  I don't miss being pregnant, other than the fact that it got us Thumper.  And I've said this to the Yeti all year long, but so far, his current age is my favorite - he just gets better and better, more fun, more funny.  He's had the same personality seemingly since he was in the womb, but he's grown into himself, revealed (grown, really) new layers.

So the holidays brought a wave of nostalgia, but on his actual birthday, there was surprisingly little.  We weren't celebrating the memory of his birth; we were celebrating him, the hilarious, magnetic, mercurial guy he is right now.  And while it's surprising how quickly this year has flown by, in other ways it's amazing that he's only been here a year; it feels like he's been part of our family for ages.

There weren't many presents; those few weeks between Christmas and his birthday really did fly by, and he's still playing with his other new toys.  Still not sure what we'll do about that in the future (I did my best to bake you as long as I could, kiddo) but who knows, maybe we'll celebrate half-birthdays.  For this year, we knew he'd only focus on a few toys at a time anyway, so instead of opening everything on Christmas we've spread it out.  Thus, by the time Thumper's birthday rolled around he'd opened something new recently.  In fact, there are still a few things we're going to give him this weekend (when the Yeti can be there and we're not shoehorning it in before bedtime).

He's still mostly exclusively breastfed (mostly exclusively? Some foods have made it into his mouth but he's spit most of it back out) but we gave him a mini-cupcake with a candle.  He liked the singing and the candle and smushing the frosting, but still wasn't into eating it.  Probably a good thing - as the Yeti said, we don't need him thinking that all foods will taste like cupcake.

All in all, it was a relatively normal day; we made sure we did some of Thumper's favorite things, which lately means dramatically ripping up a box from a 12-pack of soda (remember that video of the baby laughing at ripping paper? Same reaction).  We read a few new books.  We snuggled even more than usual.  All in all, a great day.