To Marcus on his first birthday

To Marcus on his first birthday-
I cannot believe how fast this year has gone by! It has been a year of transition for all of us- when you came we lived in MI, daddy worked at a small church, and you came to work with me most days. Now we live in Indiana, daddy works at a huge church, and I get to stay at home with you and the others every day! The many changes this past year have hardly phased you at all- you have found security in the love of your family and seem to have enjoyed the ride!

You are a happy baby and such a joy to your mommy. You have a sparkle in your eye and a fun sense of humor. You get a kick out of each of your siblings. Lorraine and Aggie are constantly mothering you and protecting you, and you are usually quite cooperative. They love to wrestle on the floor with you and make you laugh with your favorite toys. Seth also loves to wrestle, and has been known to give you a smack on the head for good measure whenever he walks by. He can’t wait until you are old enough to play trucks with him! He taught you how to make truck noises and dinosaur noises already. You absolutely love sharing a room with him. I often hear you growling at him in the morning to wake him up!

You started walking all of a sudden at 10 1/2months. I thought you had the balance for awhile, just not the desire. Once you made up your mind you were off! 12 steps by the second day, then I quit counting. You also decided he were weaned that same week. In fact, your preferred method of eating is now standing upright while someone holds the bottle in the air, preferably while you holds on to nothing at all, using only your mouth on the bottle to correct his balance if needed. (I thought maybe your daddy can install one of those rabbit feeders in the house somewhere that you could just go to any time you are thirsty!)

Your favorite foods: Almost anything at all, but especially mandarin oranges, mac and cheese, and anything sweet. Of all the kids you are the quickest eater- dinnertime is about FOOD, and nothing else until you are so full you can hardly move.
I think you might be the most animal-loving child we have. You learned to pant at your doggy very early, and you always want to know where he is. You wrestle on the floor with him and even seem to enjoy his licks. Otis is very patient with you even though you are not even remotely gentle! You have also been known to share his dog food.
You also seem to love music more than any of the others. When we sing songs you already try to sing along. One day when your daddy got out his violin I thought you were going to go crazy with excitement- You flapped your arms and hollered and danced about it! You already know how to dance and will often stop what you’re doing to dance to a catchy commercial (especially with a fast drum beat!)
As I write this we are outside, where I hoped you would have fewer things to get into and less of a chance of waking up the other kids. You seem to need the least amount of sleep of all of us (adults included), and like normal, today you are the first and awake from your nap. If you had it your way I think you would sleep from 8pm until 5am and then MAYBE take one hour nap during the day, but only if all the food in the house was eaten first. At this moment you are getting into the back pocket of the green umbrella stroller where I keep the diapers and wipes when we go to church. Apparently there are also some tasty crayons back there…

Baby Marcus, it has been such a joy to watch you grown and change in this past year. You add sparkle and joy to our lives in your own special way. I thank God for making me your mommy!
Love, Mama