Camden's 1st Haircut...

We took Camden for his 1st haircut today. I wasn't sure how he would handle it so I was a little nervous but he did a great job and seemed to enjoy himself. I think his favorite part was getting the balloon after he was done. He's still carrying it around the house! Here's some pics...

Camden - One Year...

Better late than never -

It's been one year since I saw your adorable little face for the first time. It's so hard to believe that you've gone from this precious little newborn that was so helpless and so dependent on me, to this wonderful little boy who is growing increasingly more independent every day.

You step right into your 1st year…literally. You took your first steps on your birthday and what’s even better is they were right to me. Thank you, Camden!

You’ve been walking around furniture for a while now but this month you've also started pushing your toys around and even started standing on your own. The stairs are no match for you…well going up anyway. We still need to work on climbing back down.

Another big change occurred this month – You are officially off the bottle…Sort of. We replaced the nipple on your bottle with a sippy converter. You’ll drink water out of other sippy cups but you want your formula out of the bottle. I hope this changes once we completely phase out formula.

As for your ears, you had tubes put in this month (July 15th) and you handled it a lot better than I did. Although you currently have an ear infection, you seem to be doing a lot better.

This month, you started interacting with the pups more. You try to wrestle with them when there playing and I’ve caught you feeding them several times. Before you would throw them food, now you let them eat right out of your hand. You also have a new friend you can't sleep without, George... as in Curious George. You love him! You carry him around and we've even had to take him to daycare a few time.

You love going outside and swinging on your swing. Every time we open the backdoor to let the pups out you get all excited. When we close the door and you realize we're not going outside you start crying. It's actually pretty adorable.

Your bedtime as been moved back a half hour. This doesn’t seem like much but this gives us extra time to play after dinner and has allowed us to started taking our family walks again. I swear you’re trying to say dog. Every time we see a dog you point to it and say “du”. I wonder if this will be your official 1st word.

Grandma Ziegman flew in from Arizona this past month and stayed with us. Instead of going to daycare, you spent quality time with your Grandma. She took you to the park and spoiled you the entire time. While she was here, we headed up to Cleveland for our family reunion where you met some of your family for the first time. Everyone just adored you.

Camden - Mommy and Daddy love you more than words can say. You are the greatest gift and we are so blessed to have such an amazing little boy. We've enjoyed watching you grow and change over this past year and are eagerly looking forward to what this next year will bring. I just ask that you take it easy on us. We're still trying to figure out this whole parenting thing!

We love you!

Other exciting things that happened this month: 1. Your friend Colin Matthew Stefango was born. 2. Grandpa showed you how to put breaks on a car.
3. Your 1st trip to the Columbus Art Museum. 4. You earned a degree from OSU! "Bachelors of Infancy" Mommy and Daddy are so proud! 5. Your 1st Birthday Party!

My Baby Boy's Turning One...

The idea of my little guy turning one this Saturday has me filled with so many emotions. I’m so excited for him and have been anxiously awaiting this day but at the same time, I find myself getting teary-eyed just at the thought of it. So far I’ve cried in the car, in the shower, outside while watching him play… This is good right? I’ll just get it all out now, so when Saturday comes, I’ll be okay. I was happy when a friend of mine told me she cried the morning of her son’s birthday and not at the party. I just have this picture of me crying when we sing “Happy Birthday” to him.

I keep telling him that just because he will officially be labeled a toddler doesn’t mean that I can’t call him my baby boy…forever.

Surfboards...

The surfboards for the cupcakes have arrived. I'm having such a great time planning Camden's birthday. I forgot how much I enjoy planning!!! Here's a picture of the surfboards that will top Camden's birthday cupcakes. Poor Camden will not be able to enjoy one though...They contain egg whites. These were ordered from http://www.bakersnook.com/.

Good Day...

Today was a great mommy and son bonding day. The two of us went to church this morning, the zoo this afternoon and then hung out in the backyard this evening. My little guy is truly amazing and my sweet little miracle. Sometimes I just have to stop what I'm doing and try to take it all in. I can't believe I've been blessed with such a remarkable gift.

My favorite part of the day...Besides all the laughs while watching the monkeys had to be when my little guy gave me a kiss. He finally knows how to give kisses! They're big slobbery open month baby kisses and they are wonderful.

11 Months...

It's been a crazy month. I've tried so hard to post your monthly letters as close to the 8th as possible because you change so much day to day but this month just got away from me. Why this you ask...? Well, you're keeping me busy!

You're now 11 months old. You're 21 pounds 8 ounces and approximately 32 inches long. The big news this month...You have to get tubes and your allergic to milk and eggs. Everyone says you're just like your daddy and you're proving them right!

Mobility Status - Not only have you started crawling, (Yes, an actually hands and knees crawl) you're also pulling up on furniture and even trying to walk while holding on to it. Because of this we finally installed gates around the house and finished putting locks on the cabinet doors... All except for one that is. I reorganized the kitchen and made a cabinet specifically for you. It's full tupperware for you to take out and play with while your daddy and I cook. You seem to like it.

You've also started helping me "clean" your room. I put the books on the shelf and you reorganize them. You helped so much the one day that I eventually had to put you in your crib so I could organize them the way I wanted to.

One of the cutest things about your new skills is that although you can pull yourself up you haven't yet figured out how to sit back down. Sure you sometimes just fall over on accident but if you don't, you stand there and cry until we help you down. For instance, earlier in the month when you first started standing, we put you to bed for the night and a few minutes later we heard you crying. After a few more minutes your cry started getting louder so I peaked in to find you standing in your crib looking down trying to figure out how to lay back down. It was hilarious. Here's a picture of you from the first morning daddy and I walked in your room to find you standing there waiting for us.

I'd have to say your two favorite activities this month are opening and closing doors and golfing. Yes, you've made your daddy one proud papa. Daddy asks you to find your golf club and after you do, you hit the golfball, then crawl over to it and hit it again. I love seeing your daddy's face when the two of you are playing. He's so proud.

We headed to the lake this past month for a long relaxing weekend with Will and Mandy. Your daddy and I have been looking forward to taking you on your first boat ride and for your first swim. Although you love taking a bath and swimming in your pool, we were a little worried that you wouldn't like the lake. I was afraid it was going to be too cold for you but you seemed to love it.

We headed up north for Father's Day weekend. Your Grandpa and Great Grandma Adams watched you while I went to a reception. Your grandpa loves you so much. The two of you played for hours and he layed on the bed next to your pack-n-play until you fell asleep for the night. Father's Day morning, we woke up and took Grandpa Adams out to breakfast then headed back home so you could spend the rest of the day with your daddy.

We're trying to explore the parks around Columbus. Our favorite so far is Liberty Park in Powell. Although it doesn't have baby swings (your favorite) it does have something most parks don't... a Splash Park!!! Your daddy and I took you there Sunday afternoon then headed over to Rita's for some italian ice (sorry, no ice cream for you).

Well, Camden...The invitations have been sent and the planning is done. The next letter I write will be for your one year birthday. Although I'm looking forward to this milestone, when I think about the actual day, my eyes fill with tears. I can't belive that in just a few short weeks my little guy will technically be considered a toddler! I hope you know that no matter how old you get, you will always be my precious baby boy. I love you.

Other exciting things that happened this month:

1. You had your 1st pool party - You and Cole....

2. 1st time at Chuck-E-Cheese

3. 1st train ride at the zoo

Allergies...

A few weeks back, Camden had an allergic reaction to a dairy free cupcake while at daycare. After reviewing the ingredients of the cupcake we were pretty convinced that he had a peanut allergy. However, the results of the allergy test came back and it turns out that Camden is allergic to milk and eggs. The first thing I said to the doctor was, "Milk and Eggs...I can handle that. I'm so glad it's not peanuts".

I'd still rather it be these two things over peanuts but at the time I was thinking milk and eggs... Not milk and eggs and everything that goes along with it. Do you know how many foods have milk and/or eggs in them? Do you know how many foods are processed in a plant with eggs and milk? I took me three stores to find spaghetti noodles that didn't have the words "Processed in a plant with eggs" printed on the box. And the price off these foods...We just paid $4 for eight slices of soy cheese and $1.50 for one little cup of milk free/egg free yogurt. I was looking forward to Camden transitioning from formula to milk but after seeing the price of soy milk... I just had to laugh. Regular whole milk is around $1.98 a gallon. Soy milk- it’s a little less than $4.00 for a ½ gallon. Now the good news is Camden has had foods that list milk as an ingredient (Goldfish, puffs, etc) and hasn’t had a reaction so for now we plan to cut out all foods containing milk and slowing incorporate certain those foods back into his diet after further discussion with his pediatrician. As for the egg allergy, we’re cutting that out completely. He’s only had one item containing egg and it made him break out into hives....enough said. Hey – at least he can have peanut butter!

Any suggestions on milk free/egg free snacks (besides veggies/fruit) would be greatly appreciated!