Monday, June 6, 2011

Jonah's First Birthday!!!!!

May 3rd was Jonah's first birthday.  I have been falling behind on my blog and so all the "stats" I write for this post were accurate as of his first birthday... I'll update them in a future post to be more relevant. ;)

It is still hard for grasp that one year has already flown by since he entered into our beautiful family. He is an amazing little boy and my heart is full of pride for him. He has always been a super content and flexible baby and that is still the case... he's pretty much up for anything or content to play by himself all day. I have always said that having Jonah as my second child makes having two children easy... he's just an easy-going boy. :)


When he was born he weighed 8.7 which was smaller than his sister and so we said he was scrawny. He had really skinny legs and lost some weight at first because of his jaundice. However, he didn't stay scrawny for long... he beefed up and at his one year appointment he was 23 pounds and 31 inches long. It is hard for us to believe that our "scrawny" baby who had a terribly bruised face after birth is now this incredibly strong and handsome toddler. He is very much into sports and loves all sorts of balls. In fact, "Ball" was his first word after "dada" (he did say mama before he said dada, but it only happens when he is crying and I don't think he means it for me, but he certainly says "dada" for Jason. He can also say "vana" .. he knows the signs for all done and more). Anyway, in my opinion (unbiased, I'm sure :) he is very good at throwing, catching, and rolling balls. He loves to play catch with us or just by himself... he'll throw a ball and then crawl after it... it keeps him entertained for hours.

He also loves doors or anything with hinges. He can simply sit and open and shut a drawer for at least 30 minutes. I joke that maybe he'll grow up to be a doorman to which Jason says, "wow, you have really high aspirations for him." :). It is fun to watch him play by himself... he likes to push little match cars  stack things high. He also loves to be involved in whatever Havana is doing. He will follow her around from toy to toy simply wanting to be a part of whatever she is doing. There are moments he gets frustrated that he can't quite do everything she is doing, but that doesn't keep him from trying. I love that he wants to be involved with her because I want to teach them that they are siblings and God hand picked them to be best friends... they will always have each other and that relationship is to be valued and important. I have friends who still get together weekly with their siblings and I want to foster that kind of relationship with my children.

Jonah has the funniest laugh! It sounds like a scream and it is sometimes hard to tell the difference between when he is crying and when he is laughing. He enjoys being tickled, playing peek-a-boo, and being thrown up into the air. When he was younger he didn't care for dancing or being spun around and I always thought he wouldn't like roller coasters, but now he enjoys the flips and spins and other rough plays and so I think he'll handle them just fine.

He is still a great sleeper... sleeping about 13 hours at night and 2 naps a day. The first one is only 45 minutes to an hour, but the 2nd one usually lasts 2-3 hours. He has never been much of a snuggler, but he's starting to get better about giving actual hugs and kisses (open mouth, of course) when asked so that is fun for me. :) He really lights up when all the attention is on him (which honestly doesn't happen too often, but we do make an effort for it a few times a day). He loves swinging on swings which is something he also didn't like so much when he was younger, but now he gets excited when he sees a swing.

He's a great eater! Eats pretty much anything you put in front of him. He wants to use a silverware, but hasn't quite mastered the art of it yet. He is a determined little fellow. :) He also has 5 teeth... which is certainly more than Havana had at this age. :) He still does not walk, but he can take a few steps if he is holding on to something.

It is funny, though, he seems "all boy" to me at times and yet he also gets pretty fearful and things. He hates the vacuum... just the sight of it throws him into terror. We also have a DVD that has a puppet show of David and Goliath... it is meant for babies and is rather harmless, but Jonah thinks it is very scary and will cry and cling to us during the 2 minute puppet show. Take him on rides at Disney World - no problem... leave him in the nursery on Sundays  - no problem... the only thing that scares him is a little puppet show and the vacuum. :). He also has a few "sensitive" moments. He doesn't get sad or fussy very often, but whenever anyone leaves our house- he always cries. It doesn't matter who it is or how long they have been there, but once it is time for our visitors to go, he gets really sad (for only about 2 minutes). I think he just doesn't like the idea of saying goodbye no matter who it is. That strikes me as pretty endearing.


For his birthday party we had a CARS themed party with the family on May 1st. It was a fun event. I was excited about him trying cake, but honestly, he "smashed" it more than he ate it. I don't think he really grasped the concept that he could eat it and so instead just kept hitting it. For his actual birthday we spent the morning at Chuck-E-Cheese and then gave him a chocolate cupcake which he enjoyed. :).  We bought him a little people car track thing and Jason and I were talking about how we hope he can sense that it is "his" verses something of Havana's that he gets to play with. We ended up putting it up in his room and he enjoys racing the cars at night before bed. 





He is such a special boy and I look forward to what God wants to do in his life. I can't wait to see what talents and abilities he is gifted with and what his purpose is. All I know right now is that I'm madly in love with my little boy. He makes me smile and I love each and every moment of being his mommy. I still can't believe how blessed I am to have little Jonah as my son! He is a special man indeed!

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