Grayson at 1...

Holy smokes, my baby is a year old. I'm only a month late at writing about this. First his stats:
Weight: 21 lbs (17%)...He's thinned out A LOT. Last appt he was 32%
Height: 30 inches (53%)

We really didn't do much for his birthday because I'm not much of a party thrower, and well, he's one and really doesn't know the difference. In the afternoon Andy's parents and sister came and gave him gifts. He loved the little cars Stacee gave him and he just pushed them around and he also really liked the truck that he sits on and rides from grandma and grandpa. (Owen REALLY liked this and kept stealing it...still does...It's a hard concept to understand that it was Gray's gift, not his).

Not happy that Owen took his toy

Loves his baby

Oh my memory is getting bad. Somehow that night we ended up out to the Flygare's for dinner and cake and opened our gift. I got him a glow worm because he would always point at Owen's and then sit and hug and kiss it. He likes it. He didn't really care for the cake deal. There is a reason you do kids birthday's in the day time. He was too tired. He wouldn't even let me set him down to do the "eat your own cake thing" So Andy held it up to him. He stuck one finger in the frosting, held it out for me to lick off, then wiped some on my nose and he was done with it.

He is such a smart baby. He picks up things very quickly. He copies everything. Sometimes I hate that because he thinks he can do all the crazy stunts his big brother does. He started walking on July 25 and has been going ever since. He is picking up talking slowly but can now say: mom, dad, dog, yes, outside, nana (banana), hot, Owen, thank you (in his 'only mom understands' language) whenever I hand him something; learning well from his brother. He communicates what he wants very well. The other day he came over to me and handed me his cup while making his high pitched squeal so I'd fill it with water...he was thirsty. He is a good eater. Not too picky. Often eats more than Owen does. And generally likes to feed himself. He gets mad when I won't give him the spoon. My floor is always a filthy, sticky mess and his clothes are all getting stained (It doesn't help that he hates wearing a bib)!

He is such a lover. He ALWAYS give hugs and kisses. This is so opposite of how Owen was as a baby. I kind of love it a lot. One day I was babysitting my neighbor's 6 month old girl and both boys loved her, but Gray just kept kissing her head over and over and over. It was too cute. He plays well by himself, or with Owen, but also loves to be held.

He loves to be outside and swing and quickly learned how to climb up and slide down the new slide at the Flygare's.

He loves to eat cherry tomatoes and grapes from the garden. Actually, he loves fruit and eats several servings per day. Sometimes that is all he wants to eat. He also LOVES green beans. He hasn't quite taken to cow's milk yet. I think it took Owen a while to like it after weening as well.

He's in the 'pull everything out of drawers' stage. He also likes to put things into the cabinets. I often find my shoes in the cupboard of the laundry room. If something is missing from a drawer I have to search all nearby drawers and cupboards.

I love this kid and couldn't imagine life without him. I'll have to say, some days are so hard. Raising kids is a lot of work, but I wouldn't trade it for anything.