Our most recent rice grain is thriving and hit a year old on April 8th! Tim worked a half day Wednesday, and we had a family afternoon at the Maryland Science Center. I spent that entire day in and out of tears. Time gets away these days. How can my little baby honey badger be one already? Although Gabriel was the most beautiful baby boy I've ever seen, Tim and I are actually overjoyed that he isn't a bitty baby anymore. They're tough! And we've had the TOUGHEST babies. They don't sleep, hate their bottles, cry, have colic, spit up, have to visit GI Dr's, etc. But, I can 100 percent say that it was and is worth it. The accomplishment I feel as a mother is beyond words. The adorable personality that Gabriel has developed is worth all of the sleepless nights..seriously, he's adorable and makes me laugh so much already. Although, I would prefer to be well-rested as I laugh at his funny personally, ;).
Honey badger has tested my limits, no doubt. Which is why we call him honey badger. Honey badgers are nocturnal menaces, and if anyone gets a change to watch the Netflix documentary about the Honey Badger, you'll think "Gabriel Timothy Rice..that's him!", haha.
Every mother can remember being sleep deprived. It's an exacerbated situation when he's screaming from tummy pains at dark:30, and you had just fallen into a deep sleep 20 minutes prior. I don't know about other mums, but I become kind of psycho when I'm exhausted and pacing the room with a screaming baby. I'm not saying that dent in my bedroom wall is from a bottle being thrown at 2am... but it's a possibility, ;). When Gabriel was 3 months old we said, "omg, it'll be so much better when he's 6 months. He'll be over the colicky stage and hopefully not feeding through the night anymore". Then when he hit 6 months we said the same thing."When he's 8 months, he certainly won't be eating through the night anymore, should be full from all the table food he's now eating, and we'll all sleep better". 8 months rolled around, and you get the picture. Now, at a year old our pediatrician is finally referring us to a pediatric GI specialist, because this guy is in pain. It's really sad :(.
We survived Sophia, so we'll definitely survive this guy!
Gabriel's favorite things:
His sister
Pasta
Being held all day by his mom
Pasta
Goldfish crackers
Rolling a ball with Sophia
Screaming
Pasta
Not wearing shoes
Blueberries
Being outside
Gabriel's' least favorite things:
Being put down
Milk
Wearing shoes
Being strapped in carseat
Being strapped in a highchair
Mom leaving his sight
Sleeping in his own bed
A FEW of my favorite things about Gabriel:
He loves me more than I deserve... it's unconditional.
How he immediately lays his head on my shoulder when I pick him up; even if IT IS a nano second, lol
His hilarious facial expressions and personality
The fact that he LOVES being chased and giggles when I go after him
How we can make him laugh at the drop of a hat, even if he has just been screaming
How frustrated he gets if I take something out of his hand (like a pen that he could poke his eye out with... doesn't he get it? :) ). It's quite cute to see his frustration. I just laugh.
His scrunchy face he makes when smiling.
And of course I could go on, but I'm at work....shhh
Both of my kids are miracles... we all know Sophia's hard start to life. But, it was a very tough year before having Gabriel, and I couldn't be more thankful that he was given to us. He is my rainbow baby.
Parenthood doesn't work for everyone. We can all think of a deadbeat that we know. But my children have made me a better person. I will love them unconditionally and hope that they will forgive me when I fail them as a mom.
Gabriel, if you ever read this: You are the perfect addition that I didn't realize I needed. When we found out your gender, I couldn't wrap my head around having a boy..I was a girl mom! I played dress up for 4 years. But you are so perfect, and I know that I was meant to be a boy mom as well... we click. I get excited when I see boy toys that you may enjoy playing with. I love the balance our family now has. We're stuck together... mainly because you won't let me put you down, :) You and your sister are my greatest successes in life. I love you, honey badger.
HAPPY FIRST BIRTHDAY!!
