When Did My Baby Turn Into a Toddler????

I cannot believe that my baby has turned into this crazy, active, loving, sweet, hilarious little boy!  

18 month stats --

Height:  31 inches (10-25%)

Weight:  24 lbs 10 oz (25-50%)

Favorites --

Activities/Things:  climbing, being outside, playing with water, airplanes, sirens, music, dancing, balls,  jumping on the trampoline, hanging on the bar, gymnastics class, story time at the library, taking off his diaper -- running around with no clothes

People:  mommy, daddy, Radley (dog)

Food:  bananas, grapes, clementines, peaches (pretty much any fruit), anything he can dip (hummus, guacamole, ketchup, bbq sauce), hot dogs, chicken nuggets, yogurt, apple sauce, pasta, smoothies, graham crackers, fruit snacks, cookies

Drink:  Really just LOVES water

Words:  Mama, dada, yeah, mo me (more please), Ra-we (radley), uh-oh, bye-bye

Books:  Clifford, What Will Claude Wear? (kids pick the weirdest books), Little Critter, Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs, Touch and Feel Animals, Silly Safari Bus, Numbers, I Spy

Shows:  Only interested in Blue's Clues and only likes to watch one episode.  Although he is also obsessed with the Wiggles "Hot Potato" video on youtube.

Soren is a hilarious little boy, he always has us laughing and keeps us on our toes.  He loves to pull up his shirt and show everybody his belly (it's pretty much the only body part he cares to know and show off...who needs to know where your eyes and nose are when you have such a cute belly?).

I cannot believe that he was my little baby a year and a half ago, it goes so fast.  As I often tell Richard, I am not sad that he is not my baby anymore (he is at such a fun age and I love seeing him learn new things and being so proud of himself), I am sad because now I know how fast it goes.  I feel like the next time I turn around he is going to be leaving for college and that makes me sad.  

I know that there is a time for everything.  And as frustrating as toddler tantrums and mischief can be I would not trade being a mom for anything in the world.  I would rather live in a box with my cute little family than be a millionaire with nobody to share it with.  I could not be happier.  I feel so blessed to be taking care of this sweet Child of God.  I have always known that my Heavenly Father knows me and loves me, but I never REALLY understood on the level that I do now until I had Soren.  Everybody always tells you that being a mom is the best and that you will never believe how much you can love one person, etc etc, but now I really  understand that.  

When Soren was about 2.5 months we went to New Hampshire for Christmas and we attended the Christmas Eve service at the local Presbyterian church.  To bring the service to a close they turned off the lights and passed around candles and we all sang "Silent Night."  I sang the words to that simply sweet yet powerful song as I rocked my sleeping newborn baby boy and I was overcome with an overwhelming feeling of love and realization of what a sacrifice it was for our Heavenly Father to send his son, Jesus Christ, to earth knowing the things he would be faced with.  I knew in that moment how difficult it must have been for Heavenly Father to let his sweet, innocent baby boy enter this cruel and difficult world knowing that he would be persecuted and hated.  But he did it because he knew that it was necessary in order for all of his children to return to live with him.  I cannot imagine watching my sweet baby boy go through what our Savior did and sending him down knowing what would happen.  It was in that moment of:

Silent night, holy night

Son of God, love's pure light

Radiant beams from Thy holy face

With the dawn of redeeming grace

Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth

Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth 

that I truly understood the sacrifice that was made for each of us.  It was not only the sacrifice of the Savior's atonement, but also the sacrifice of a loving Heavenly Father who saw the bigger picture.

I love my baby (always my baby) boy more than words can explain and I am so grateful that I have been entrusted with the responsibility of teaching him and raising him to be a respectful, loving human being.  He teaches me so much each day, more than I could ever learn without him.  I am a better person because of him.

First day of nursery!