p's first dentist visit

the real reason the dentists have a lot of money is because they have all of their patient's teeth under their pillows. 

that's what I will tell Paxton some day so he understands the importance of taking care of his teeth. and the tooth fairy.

he did so well for his first dentist visit! he opened his mouth when i asked him to 

{and its totally becos I yell 'AHH' at him, when I feed him} 

he let the dental assistant brush his SIX teeth and his gums and everything look good :)

Before his appointment, we had a lot of paper work to fill out 

so baby boy played on the indoor playground and had a BLAST !!

So he made a few new friends. 

This little girl helped him climb up and then he started to climb all on his own.

He had so much fun watching them run around, he was squealing!

I had to help him down the slide the first couple times,

but he got the hang of it.

He's a quick learner and I love giving him the opportunity to try new things!

work like a captain; play like a pirate.

P went into the doctors for his one year well check; so he got two blood tests done & three shots in his legs. It was a nightmare. He has a small ear infection, but he's still smiling. I let him play with my eye glasses to cheer him up :]

he's such a stud.

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I threw babyboy a pirate themed first birthday party this past Saturday.
All the crafting that went into it was so worth it and all of my ideas turned out great.

I cut a number one into a piece of foam board and then glued coffee filters with a hot glue gun to the foam board. I spray painted in an ombre effect so the bottom was the darkest shade and the top was almost white.

 
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Ever since I was a kid, me and my brothers had a pinata at our birthday parties.
It felt good passing down a family tradition for Paxton
Here's his pirate ship pinata: 

 

Obviously it was a costume party :]

 

I really rushed decorating his cake. 

It was a chocolate cake with vanilla frosting and coconut on top. I made the banner cake topper myself and put brown sugar around the cake plate so it looked like sand.

Overall;

it was a crazy experience for my first time.

the most difficult part was doing all of it on my own;

the hosting, cleaning up, restocking, being the dj, and photographer.

i wasn't able to snap photos of the food, but we had fried parrot {chicken wings}, blue jello cups with swedish fish and slices of oranges with a pirate flag {they looked like ships}, a hot chocolate bar, goldfish crackers & pretzels, pizza rolls, and a veggie platter.

... 

towards the end of the party, all of the kids were crabby and ready for a nap. 

but in the end, they all had a blast and so did p and I!

One already?!

A year ago I would have never pictured my life the way it is now. Paxton Valentino Howell, born on this day at 8:22 pm

I may be biased, but he's pretty perfect.

Lately, he's been full of kisses and laughter. He's taught me that you can get around much faster on all fours. 

He loves to read and draw. 

He loves GiGi's cane {great grandma's} and it helps him walk.

He's a great napper and loves to play with anything that has wheels.

Playing with all of his uncles is probably his most favorite.

One of his friends Karsyn, 

has taught him the simplicity in anything. 

She can take something so simple, and turn it into a game. 

& he adores her.

He admires his older friend, Taylen, for the sake of his mobility and the ability to run around. He loves to watch him run and climb and they give each other hugs and kisses.

They both make my boy laugh so hard and it melts my heart.

I love bringing him around other kiddos so that he can socialize more.

...

His vocabulary is still short.  

Clear words that he can say are ba-ba for bottle 

and mum // mama for mom.

that's about it.

He repeats what we do and say all the time!

 I obviously will be a pro at understanding his baby talk by the time he's 18 mo. old

...

 

 One thing that I have noticed is he tends to be rough when he plays with Jaxson or younger littles. Or kids that are around his size.

I've been looking into ways to encourage kindness. 

I need to teach him to be nice before the day care days come.

I know it will happen, one good deed at a time. 

 

 Other things P loves :

music. all kinds. from the television, my car, anywhere. my boy will bust a move.

going "bye bye" or playing outside.

Little Einsteins & Jake and the Neverland Pirates

pasta & carrots

snuggles

spinning // dancing w mama

reading "Making Friends"

anything that lights up

playing at the park on the slide & swings

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Today was Tuesday so that meant P was going to spend his birthday

 with Taylen & Jaxson for a few hours

...

 

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Then I baked P a cake and we sang for him. 

We're not opening presents until his party this Saturday;

but we had a blast smashing his cake and I took lots of photos!

   

It's been an incredible journey. 

Paxton has reached so many milestones with my love and care, 

and help from grandma and my siblings, and other caregivers.

I'm so proud of him!

    

Now that he's ONE; ive been reflecting on times like:

• when i first found out i was preggo
• the first flutter i felt in my tummy when i was at a music show in muncie
• my first labor pains
• even the car ride home from the hospital 
• the first few nights when he was home w me
• & all of the diapers .. potty training is going to save a lot of dollars 

forever my baby

FLASHBACK TO THE SECOND SESSION WITH

 SUSIE'S PHOTOGRAPHY

 

IT'S BEEN A GREAT YEAR. IM SO PROUD!