We have a one year old!

My baby is 1! Where did the time go! It feels like just yesterday that I was in labor, anxiously awaiting him to make his appearance, and just like that, he is 1. It is such a bitter sweet feeling, I love watching him grow but I miss him being so small!

We celebrated his 1st birthday on Saturday with family and friends.  We did a monster theme party. It turned out so cute, and everything went great! Great food, great friends, great family! It was a great day. We did a cake smash for Noah, but he was not loving it. I think he did not love all of the frosting on his fingers! Noah walked away with quite a load of gifts! He got some great toys, books, clothes and so much more! He is so loved and spoiled!

Monday the 18th was his actual Birthday.  We started the morning by heading to Austin for his 1 year pictures. He did so good! He was full of smiles and giggles, I think Whitnei got some good ones! Here's some sneak peaks she posted online! How cute is he!

After his pictures, before heading home we stopped at the cemetery to see Grandpa and Grandma Stransky.

Once we got home and after a nap and lunch we tried the cake thing again. This time, instead of smashing, I just put some pieces on his tray and let him eat them. He seemed to like that much better then being forced to smash it haha!

Someone also likes playing with his balloons!

Later in the afternoon we had his 1 year appointment.  Noah is:

21lbs 6ounces (52 percentile)

30 inches long (54 percentile)

and his head is 18.75 cm (87 percentile)

He is now in the middle of the pack instead of the end of the pack! He has made great strides in this area! Our doctor was pleased! He is hitting his milestones, and the doctor was impressed with his chattiness! He had to get 4 shots and a finger prick, but took it well. Only a few tears.  We also have graduated to whole milk and are bottle free! Go big or go home I guess!

This past month has been extremely busy for us! Noah had his first Thanksgiving, and he did well! He ate lots and enjoyed playing with all the toys at Grandma Pats! He also had his first adventure Black Friday shopping. For the last 10 years my family and I have gone shopping on Friday. So this year Noah got to join in on the fun on the outside! He did so well going from store to store, he is going to be a great future shopper!

I also took Noah to his first Lighted Parade in Downtown Owatonna! It was pretty nice weather wise, got a little cold as the night went on, but he was a trooper! He loved all the lights and none of the horns from the trucks scared him!

For Christmas, we have been doing an Advent Calendar with Noah. He gets a little gift or treat each day as a countdown to Christmas.  This is something my mom used to do with me, and it is so fun to start this tradition with Noah.  Here's a few snapshots of what he has gotten so far!

Sadly, on December 5th we had to say good-bye to our Oliver kitty. He has been sick since this summer, but had made leaps and bounds and overcame so much. However, this time, our vet found cancer that had spread quickly and his body was shutting down.  It was so hard to say good-bye. I had rescued Oliver 8 years ago as a little kitten I found at my apartment. He was such a loving cat, he loved me and I loved him. I will miss him a ton.

The weekend of Noah's birthday party, we took Noah out to see Santa at Medford.  He did so good, and wasn't scared at all! He mailed his letter to santa too!