We have a 1-Year-Old! AHHH!

I can't believe it has been a year since Lilly was born!  Our little girl has grown up so much.  She is so bright, determined, particular, smiley, rhythmic, funny, and cute!  We can't love her enough.  She has grown from this

to this

Photo by PhotosByWendyG.com

We started celebrating on Saturday with a little party for Lilly.  

We had friends from church (Wendy and Emberly; Beth, Roy and Finn; Mallory and Melanie; Maylin and JoAnn; and Mike and Brenda Tuttle), friends of ours (Bennions, Moores, Thompsons, Mathesons), and even some family (Aunt Shannon and cousin Katie) come over for a cupcake party!  

Thanks to LaNell for the beautiful cake and cupcakes.  They were divine.  It ended up being a beautiful day outside!  Pret and I were grateful to have cupcakes smashed on the grass and not on the carpet in the house.  

Lilly showed off perfectly as she ate her birthday cupcake.  It was quite cute!  She kept asking for more, but I figured one cupcake would give her enough of a sugar high to make it through the rest of her party without a nap.  

Even though we requested no gifts, a few people broke the rules and brought us gifts anyway--silly people!  LaNell really went over and above by making Lilly a darling dress that matches one that she made for her daughter's birthday.  Here they are in their matching dresses!

I needed someone to help stabilize Lilly on the other side, so Nate gladly stepped in!

Lils was quite the trooper and had smiles all day.  She went down to bed about an hour earlier than normal and slept for 13 hours last night, so I think she was a bit tuckered out!

As my parents were doing some cleaning at their house, my mom found the outfit I wore on my 1st birthday (bought in Greece and worn in Egypt), so she sent it to me.  It had a few spit-up stains on it, but they weren't too noticeable unless you were right up close, so we decided to have her wear it to church today.  She looked adorable in it!  Not too shabby for a 29-year old dress!  

I had to take her monthly picture, so I decided to use the end of the natural light outside.  It added a little variety to the background of the pictures, as well, so it was nice.

Then I just had fun with some other shots.  She enjoyed picking the grass and even tried a few blades...

Then we went on a walk as a family and Lilly enjoyed her first ride on Daddy's shoulders.  

We walked by the canal and saw lots of ducks, dogs, cows, and chickens.  Lilly still loves to walk holding hands, but sits herself down as soon as we let go of her.  Since she started moving before Thanksgiving we thought for sure that she would be walking by her 1st birthday, but she is doing things her own way.  Don't worry, this Momma is none too anxious for her to start walking, so I am A-Ok with it all.  

On the other hand, she is "talking" up a storm.  She can verbally say, "bye-bye," "Da-da," "Jesus," and "Kate" (the name of our dog) and noises for "uh-oh" and "amen."  She can now sign "more," "please," "all done," "again," and "food."  She gives big, wet, tongue-filled kisses and has started blowing kisses, too.  She loves to turn lights on and off and is starting to want to help close doors, too.  It is so cute to see her walking in her shoes, but she has recently figured out that our shoes go on feet, too, so she can often be seen attempting to get my shoes on her feet.  So cute!  She is obsessed with my phone (to the point of screaming when it is taken away) and has figured out that the TV remote does something when it is pointed at the TV, so she has been trying to "make it work" for the last week.  But her favorite thing of all is to be outside--especially if that means that she gets to see Kate.  

Lilly is definitely the joy of our life.  She is such a good baby (and yes, we know we are spoiled!).  She is a great eater, sleeper, and player.  We can't even remember what life was like without her and can't wait to see what the rest of life will be like with her!  Love you, Lils!

photo by PhotosbyWendyG