My Baby No More...

Today my baby turned one. My handsome, precious baby boy. Believe it or not, I have mixed emotions about such an event. (I know this will shock most of you). With each passing day, I move closer to closing the baby phase of my life. I've had a baby for so long, that it almost feels odd. I know it's the right thing for our family- I feel complete and that makes me happy; but, it is still just a strange idea that we will no longer have to keep baby things around once Quinten outgrows them. I've already purged my house of all my newborn things- my poor sister, Siri, now gets to store them for future use. :) And every time Leah or Quinten outgrow things, I send them away from our home to someone else who can use them. Odd. Eventually, I will stop having to wake up at night for crying little ones. They will get older and will be able to bathe themselves, get themselves dressed, go to the bathroom without help, etc. Someday, I may be able to retire the countless diaper bags that have circulated through our home in the last 7+ years. Odd. We will move into a stage of independent kids who can take on more responsibilities. Kids who can buckle their own seat belts. Kids who may not want me to be around 24/7- kids who will let me go to the bathroom alone. ( I know- it's almost too good to be true).
As my baby years slowly fade into the past, I hope there will be things that are not lost. I love that my kids still want to sit with me and be loved. I love the way Quinten smiles at me when I come in his room to get him out of his crib. I love that Leah tells me I'm her favorite and in the same breath tells her Dad that he is not her favorite (I know- I'm horrible). On the flip side, however, she is the first and loudest to greet him with a huge hug when he gets home from work each day. I love the way Callie tries to make me happy when she knows I'm mad at one of her sisters. I love the way Alexa still draws me pictures and cards that tell me I'm the best mom and that she loves me. They are my precious babies- each of them- and I hope they will always know how much they mean to me.

So, the point of this rambling on Quinten's birthday is to mention that we've had a lot of milestones lately. I've been a horrible blogger and need to catch up. I started a post on Leah's birthday that I still need to finish, we've had another soccer season begin and end, preschool graduation, a family vacation to Disneyland, the end of the school year, more lost teeth, potty training going on, celebrating both Leah's and Quinten's birthdays... and the list goes on. Or I should say, the pictures go on and on and on. I have intentions of catching up. I will catch up. And I'll get it done before we get too far into the summer. We have plenty going on in the next few months before school starts again to blog about as well. So, look forward to my posts everyone... aren't you excited??? I am.