..sam is 11 months..

my dear samuel james,

i can hardly believe that in one short month you will be a year old. one month! how is it possible?! seems like just yesterday i found out i was pregnant with you, and here we are, rapidly approaching your first birthday. i can't think about it, otherwise i get emotional. haha so for now, we will enjoy the last month of you as an infant. :)

your personality is coming out stronger each and every day, and i sure do love it. you are one little firecracker my man. silly as can be, happy when your happy, sad when your sad. there isn't much "in between" with you. you remind me more and more of your dad each day - yikes! just kidding. dad has a great personality so obviously we wouldn't mind more of that in our lives.

some things i want to remember about you as an 11-month-old:
- you say "boo," as in "peek-a-boo." that is your favorite game to play, still. it gets you rolling on the ground in fits of giggles. i love it, so obviously i love that your first word, besides mama and dada, was boo.
- you can give high fives
- you clap for yourself when we say "good job sammy!" too cute.
- you are ALL OVER THE PLACE. omg dude, i can't keep up with ya! not to mention you're a speedy little crawler.
- you're still very good natured around other people. when we have friends over, or go somewhere, usually you'll play by yourself or sit contentedly in your stroller for hours. unless we are shopping. when we're at the mall you pitch a fit. i'm sure dad puts ya up to that, eh? ;)
- you can drink from a straw. we have to hold the cup, though, otherwise whatever is in the cup ends up all over you and the table.
- you can stand on your own for a few seconds at a time.
- your first tooth keeps coming up then going back down. this is so frustrating because i can tell you're in pain and i just wish that darn tooth would cut through already!!!!! ugh.
- you're a little daddy's boy. you light up when dad gets home, and want nothing to do with me while he's here. i love this. i love it mostly because i know you still love me. more than your big bro did at this age anyway. ;)

my sweet sam, i love you so much. you make life so interesting and this family wouldn't be complete without you. thanks for all your giggles, and for the energy you bring to our home.

love,
mom