Today my baby is one. I've been going through pictures for a slideshow John is making and had to post some of my favorites from his 1st year. I can't believe how quick this year has gone by. It has been the busiest, craziest year of my life as we've adjusted to having four kids, which by the way is 10 times harder than 3 (at least in my opinion). Luckily, Matson has been a delightful baby. He is sweet and happy and I constantly wish I could keep him this age forever. He is so fun! And if he'd just sleep through the night I would have no complaints!
This little guy has completely won me over and I think he senses that he is my baby and I'll let him get away with about anything (which would explain why he still gets up 3 times a night, is rocked to sleep for every nap, etc...) I better stop before I admit to any more major parenting mistakes that I never would have allowed with my first three. :) I am more aware than ever at how quickly they grow and I want to enjoy every second of him being a baby...and I may have a great desire for him to never grow up. But I'm working through that one!
My Matson grins up at me every time I pick him up and I melt every time. He also has this adorable habit of batting me on the back when I'm carrying him around. He started doing it very young and I really think it was his way of letting me know I was doing okay and and I was going to make it. It sounds silly that a little pat from an infant could do so much for someone. But there were some days that his little pat brought so much comfort and helped me find the energy to make it through another day. We feel so blessed to have Matson in our family. You have brought us so much joy and happiness. We wouldn't trade the little moments of this year with you for anything in the world. Happy Birthday to our Matti boy!
I adore those big blue eyes and that shaggy blonde hair.
The first time I held him
Waking up long enough to scream!
cooing at daddy
yawning again (he was a really sleepy baby)
Some of my neighbors saw my pics from Blackridge Reservoir and wanted to check it out. A few neighbors organized an outing there and we ended up with quite a crowd (about 6 moms and 32 kids). We enjoyed chatting and the kids had a ball in the sand and water. Have I mentioned how much I love our neighborhood, lately? We really love it here.
Matson was a bit of a handful when he discovered the lake water was way cooler than the sand. I kept chasing him and barely catching him before he crawled into the water---he is FAST. A few of the little neighbor girls came up with a solution for me. They carried buckets of water over and turned a sand hole into a make shift pool for Matson! He loved it! The kids are all so and sweet to him.
The next day we headed to the Orem Fire Station for a neighborhood field trip (our neighbor is the fire chief there). Here's our group in front of the fire truck.
After the fire station tour, we followed the trucks to a large park and they they turned on the hoses and soaked us down!!!!
Here's all the kids getting pelted with water. It was mayem as they all ran around. I didn't plan to get wet but I ended up soaked and so did the baby. There was just no escaping it with that much water coming down. So fun! The girls loved it. Carter was terrified. He was convinced that the fire water would burn him if he got in it... :)
The whole fire station trip was made even more delightful because of a guest appearance of Devon and kids, all the way from PA. McKinley was Kelsie's best friend in preschool and kindergarten and they still love to see each other each summer. We got to take McKinley home with us for the rest of the day and they had the best time together. That evening a bunch of us ladies went to dinner at Cafe Rio to celebrate Devon being in town, which is always a great time. Devon is one of the funnest people in the world. We just wish you'd come back to stay! 
We spent the next two days outside in the water. The kids turned our playground into a waterpark. They put water down the slide and put the pool at the bottom and had an obstacle course set up to race through. It completely entertained all my kids and their friends for 2 full days and we had a great time. John wasn't so amused when he realized that we were killing the grass with all the water and feet trampling over it so we had to take a little break from our waterpark. :(
On Friday I took Matson to his 1 year check up and was surprised to find out he's kind of a shrimpy little guy. Stats to come--when I find the papers. :) That day we got organized to start school again. We went to Open House to meet our teachers and see our brand new school, which is totally awesome! The girls both had playdates with school friends that are in their classes again this year (super good news!). We've heard great things about their new teachers and the girls are SO excited to start school! 
We got him this zebra that bounces (thanks to a neighbor that's been passing down baby toys to us). He was a little scared of it and but was quite thrilled that it makes a horse sound. He loves horses!
His favorite gifts were a hippo you throw balls into, a dog book, and a bubble maker the girls picked out for him and HAD to get him. They knew he would love it and he does! He loves his hippo toy and roars at it every time he sees it. So cute! He sure loves animals.
He was pretty unsure at first and wasn't sure what to do. He poked his finger in it and took a little taste.
Yummy!
Then the balloons took flight. Luckily Kelsie and Grandma tracked them down and grabbed them right out of the hands of the boy who had caught them. :) We had fun day spoiling you and watching your happy reaction to all the excitement of your big day. Happy Birthday big one year old!
My mom invited my girls over for the afternoon and they sewed their own aprons! Aren't they the cutest aprons ever?!? My girls are so proud of them and loved spending the day with Grandma. They love to go and sew and bake with grandma. She's the best!
We spent Pioneer Day at the Splash Park with all our Peterson cousins. Here's our 3 three year olds. The only thing better than 1 independent 3 year old is three of them!
