ONE YEAR! ( 12 months)

Dear Ransom,
You are a year old today! I can hardly believe it! And yet at the same time, it seems like you've been with us forever, and in that way your Daddy and I know we were always "meant to be" with you!
Speaking of your Daddy, he's had to work many late nights this last month and sometimes he gets home after you go to bed. When that happens he always sneaks in and looks at you while you're asleep. You always have funny ways of sleeping, either all sprawled out, hugging either Lamb or Bear, or huddled up with your little rear sticking up in the air.
On days that Daddy gets home while you're still awake you are SO excited to see him. You are definitely your Daddy's little boy! You start talking very loudly and pointing, obviously telling Daddy all about your day and then you go and sit outside the bathroom door while he showers, waiting ever so patiently for him to come out and play!

This month you've continued to perfect your standing and walking skills. You can now stand up against just about any surface and when we took a surprise visit to Texas to visit Nana and Grandpa and Spicy and Papa, you looooved Spicy's magnet letters on the fridge so much that we had to get you some too! Your favorite letter is "I" because it fits so nicely in your little fist.

Yes, we took another trip to Texas this month and you spent two WHOLE nights with your grandparents while your Mommy and Daddy took a much needed mini-vacay.  Everyone had fun and we celebrated the end of our trip with a little "trial run" first birthday for you! You had your first chocolate cupcake with bright green icing and you LOOOOOVED it! You got it ALL over you and had to take a bath before opening presents from Aunt Anna and Uncle Ryan and Kilsyth as well as Grand Billie and Great Steve, Nana and Grandpa,  and Pawpaw. ( Spicy and Papa saved there present for your real birthday!)

This month you've also expanded your vocabulary quite a bit! You now say, "Mama, Daddy, Uh-oh, Ouch, Bye, Hi, and Book. You've also said "Cow" and "Donkey" when playing your Peekaboo barn game, but since you've never repeated them any other time I'm not sure if we can really add them to the official list! Something to work towards, huh?

My favorite word that you say is "book". You say it like "book-e" with the emphasis on the "k" and you usually repeat the word over and over again while you read your books. This is something that you looove to do. This month you would sit for a good twenty or thirty minutes at a time pulling books out of your book basket, looking at them very carefully and then on to the next! Your Daddy and I are so glad that you are already a great lover of books!

For your birthday week Spicy and Papa were able to come for a visit and they loved getting to see you, and you looooved getting to play with them all day! You loved getting squeezed by Papa and getting his famous Mind-melds. And on your birthday we had a little gathering of friends who came to celebrate your life so far. We strung up pictures of you and all the people that have been a part of your life this year! We had over 40 pictures and it didn't even cover all the people in your life! It reminded your Mommy that we have been truly blessed this year with so much support and help and we know that we could not have gotten you this far without all these wonderful people! We pray that every year is stuffed full of wonderful people to support and love you, teach and guide you and be your friend in all circumstances. Your Daddy and I know that there will be many important people who impact you through the years and we pray that there will be many who are reflections of Christ in your life.

Your official birthday cake was shaped like a drum, because you like to bang on things so much, you didn't get into the cake as much this time around, but it was also a little bigger and probably very overwhelming. However you did overcome and make a huge mess that required two baths to clean up! You also opened presents from friends and cried very hard at the giant stuffed Yoda doll. We're assuming that your love for Starwars will just have to grow through the years.

Yes, you are officially a year old and your little attitude is already coming out and your Mommy is already having to "remind" you of how to be a good boy sometimes. But, this just reminds your Mommy, who loves you so much and who finds it easy to think your just perfect, that you are in fact, NOT perfect and we pray daily for you to one day give your life to Jesus.
Once again we pray the verse that we were reminded of when you were born at 14:21 on August 9, 2010:
He who has my Commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me, and he who loves me will be loved by the Father and I too will love him and show myself to him.

May you learn to love the Lords commands early in your life and may He reveal Himself to you in ways we cannot even fathom!

Your Mommy and Daddy love you!