Thanksgiving and Jack turns ONE!

Jack's first birthday was on Thanksgiving Day this year.  He was born the day before Thanksgiving last year and we got to come home on Thanksgiving night.  The year has gone by so fast!  He started out at 9lbs 14 oz and my guess now is about 23-24 lbs which we will be able to confirm at his one year check up next week.  We had a family celebration after we ate our turkey and pie and it was an overall great day.  He had fun with his little cake and the proof came up twice a little later on!  Too much green frosting for Jack but he didn't mind!  There are too many reasons to list why I am grateful for this little (big) boy, but here are a few of my favorite things about him:

• He is a great sleeper when he's not cutting teeth (that thumb sucking really comes in handy right now, but hoping it's not a problem later on).  I put him in his crib with his bottle (no judging) and he is usually out as soon as his bottle is gone.  If not, then he pops in his thumb and grabs his blanket with the other hand, rolls over to his side and knocks out.  I love watching him fall asleep on my monitor.  If he does cry, then it usually only lasts 10 min or so and then he lays back down and sleeps.
• Speaking of teeth...he currently has one that just broke on top and a wierd situation on the bottom.  He has one regular tooth and one that looks like it should be two separate teeth.  Kinda funny, but hope it's not an issue later.
• He started taking steps about two weeks ago and is doing better each week.  His biggest drawback is that he tries to go too fast...he just wants to start running I guess!  Crawling is still his fastest method of travel!
• He knows quite a few signs (some legit and some I just made up) and he's pretty good at communicating.  My favorite one is when he is tired, he will put his hand on his ear, and if he's REALLY tired, both hands go up on the ears.  It's so cute.  I started tilting my head on my hand when I would put him to bed, and he just caught on.  He also puts one or both hands in the air if he wants "up".  He will do the official "more" sign and "bottle" sign when prompted.  And he points at a lot of stuff.  I can only imagine how fast his brain is working...it's amazing to see it at work!
• Our favorite song in our household right is "Dynamite" by Taio (I think that's right).  Dane LOVES it and when we put it on and sing the chorus part..."I throw my hands up in the air sometimes...." Jack will put his hands in the air like we do and start moving his body by bouncing and pumping his hands...SO fun to watch!
• He comes to work with me each morning and all the female "regulars" just adore him...he's like the TFitness mascot!  I need a baby gate, though, cuz he always wants to leave the office!  When it slows down in the late morning I let him crawl around by me while I'm wiping down equipment or vacuuming.  I'm so glad I am able to take him to work with me.  I didn't have that luxury with Dane, and although he still did great at the montessori school we sent him to, it would have been nice to be with him during the day more often.
• Overall, he is just a really happy and loving baby.  He is tormented a little by his older brother because Dane just wants to wrestle with him and play with him like a big boy.  I keep reminding Dane that one day Jack might be bigger than him and he will take him down, but Dane insists he will always be bigger than his brother.  Hate to break it to him, but Jack is the brewser of the two! 

There are so many things to list about this little chunker (I call him my little fatty), but there's just not enough time in the day and I always forget stuff and remember it later on anyway!  I'm just so happy to have both of my boys....don't know what I would do without them.  Ike and I did pretty good, I must say!

(Oh, and by the way, Ike and I celebrated our 8th wedding anniversary on the 16th of this month!  Love him more than ever and we have two beautiful boys to show for it!)