1 year old Parker
Last year on December 30th Zach and I got up before the sun (4am). I enjoyed my last shower for a few days, and then we grabbed our bag and drove about 3 blocks down the street to the hospital. When we arrived at the labor & delivery desk at 5am, they whisked me into a room and directly in to a johnny and then to bed where they stuck me with a few IV’s. We hung out and watched Parker’s movement on the fetal monitor for a while, and went through a few stacks of paperwork. Zach changed into some lovely maroon scrubs and at some point, I got my epidural. By 7:30am I was wheeled down to the operating room. I remember shivering a lot – first from the epidural, and then the cool temperature in the OR compounded the shaking. The very kind anesthesiologist tucked a warmed blanket around my head and shoulders while the rest of the operating team worked below my waist. I can remember a few tugs and pulls, and then wondering if they were going to make the incision soon, which is right when I first heard your little squeaky cry.
A few hours later, Zach and I were settled back in our room with the newest addition to our family, Parker Austin. Luckily, this time around, one of us knew how to breastfeed, so that process went a little more smoothly. Right from the start, you were Squeaky – you were the noisiest eater we had seen, and we chuckled over your little noises. You had lots of visitors that first day, and slept through nearly all of it. Your brother was so excited to meet you, and immediately insisted that we unswaddle you so that he could see your toes (I know, he’s got some strange ideas at times).
Eventually the visitors dwindled, and the three of us slept and relaxed for the rest of the day. The next few days in the hospital were pretty quiet and relaxed. You slept a lot, and I tried to sleep whenever possible. We tried to learn as much about your new personality as possible. We let you stay up to watch the ball drop on New Year’s Eve, but I told you that would be the last time in a long time that we’d allow it 
I finally let your Dad eat Thai food (during our pregnancy, I wouldn’t let anyone even have it in the same room with me – even the sight of the restaurant was enough to make me feel nauseous).
You have been a joy and delight every day since you were conceived. At the same time, you have challenged us in ways we could not have anticipated every day. You can be the best, happiest baby, and you have the most adorable smile that has only gotten cuter with the six teeth you have sprouted. On the other hand, you have very strong opinions, and are not shy about letting us know when you are irritated. Mostly, you get mad when we try to change your diaper (which sometimes takes two people – one to pin you down, and one to clean you up) or try to get you dressed – the cold winter has provided plenty of challenges for all of us – you can take mittens off almost as fast as we can put them on, and many days we skip them (assuming the weather isn’t too cold).
You are a wonderful sleeper. If you had been our first child, we might have considered having a whole litter. The first 6-8 months were rough, but now you’re amazing and we very much appreciate that (especially because your brother is still a rotten sleeper). You are also an excellent eater (not at all picky) which is refreshing. I’m sure you’ll develop your own picky tastes as you toddle into childhood, but for now we are enjoying the fact that you’ll eat pretty much all of whatever we put on your tray.
You learned to roll over at about 5 months. By 7 months you were scooting and then crawling. At 10 months you could stand for the briefest of seconds on your own, and started to cruise on furniture. You took your first steps in the middle of your 11th month, but you still prefer to crawl (oh man, you are the fastest crawler – it’s tough to keep up with you sometimes!)
You are a rough and tumble little boy. You love to tackle your brother, or anyone else who might be sitting or lying on the floor. You learned to crawl up the stairs at 9 months, but we are still too terrified to let you do it on your own, and your climbing back down skills are still a bit weak. In some ways, you can be just like your brother. In others, you are his antithesis, you are chaos where he is order. He has loved you from the beginning though, and the two of you are clearly friends. Xander does not like to go places without you, and even when offered a treat, he refuses if you can’t come. He always remembers to ask if you can have some of whatever he has, and he loves it when the two of you “match” – especially clothing (which personally, isn’t my thing, but I do indulge your brother from time to time). It is easy to see that you two will be the best of friends for years to come.
If I could only use one word to describe your first year, it would be bouncy. We’ve had lots of ups and downs with you (your weight, your sleeping pattern, your moods, etc.) and the one movement you have loved ever since you could hold your head steady is bouncing – if we could just hold you under your arms, you would jump and bounce happily for hours at a time (unfortunately, we have yet to meet anyone with the arm strength to keep up with that desire).
You are my youngest and last son. I love you more than words can describe. You are smart, strong willed and have brief but wonderful moments of tenderness. One of my favorite memories from 2009 will always be rocking quietly with you in front of the fire as you fall asleep and watching the snow slowly fall out the window. It was as close to perfection as I have gotten in a long time. I hope your first year was as wonderful for you as it was for us, and I know that this coming year will be just as amazing. Happy Birthday Peanut!
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Parker took his first steps quite a while ago. However, he continued to use crawling as his primary method of transportation for a looooong time. He was a crazy fast crawler, and so we could understand why he’d drop to all fours when he really wanted to get somewhere. Finally this week he’s decided that maybe the rest of the world isn’t completely crazy and he’s started to walk more and crawl much much less. The poor kid – in our rental house there are three thresholds to stumble over and while Xander occasionally forgets to pick up his feet all the way, Parker doesn’t have enough balance yet to make the steps without falling – every time. But, he gets up and keeps going instead of continuing on all fours now. It’s the end of an era in our house – no more crawlers, unless they’re using our table as a tent or some other game of course…
In the past three weeks Parker has gone from sort of crawling to a high speed motor around the house. He knows what he likes (cat food/water, wires of any kind, the PS3) and he goes straight for it without hesitation. He loves to pull himself up onto things now (the couch/stools/chairs, his parents, his brother, pretty much anything that will stay still long enough for him to grab on). Last week he even crawled up the stairs by himself (with careful spotting from Dad of course). It’s amazing how quickly babies figure this stuff out. I know it won’t be long before he’s walking, though he doesn’t really have that balance thing down yet.
Here are just a few helpful tips from one working mom: