Quinn had her 1 year well baby visit today and I think she left quite an impression on the Pediatrician. She wreaked as much havoc that could be wreaked within that little 6′ x 10′ patients room. I was overly prepared and packed plenty of toys to keep her busy – which note to self: it’s a total waste of time to pack toys as she wanted absolutely nothing to do with them if we are somewhere other than home. This is something I do when we visit someone (or somewhere) who doesn’t have toys to entertain her and now that I think about it, she never pays attention to what I pack.  Her new surroundings are five million times better than her ol’ toys in my backpack for crying out loud.

Anyway, our little baby isn’t such a baby as much these days. She’s in the 95th percentile for height & weight, measuring in at 30 3/4″ long and 24 pounds light. She’s doing everything a one year old should be doing and then some. Which includes sweeping the floors around here:

Never too early, that’s what I say.

While at the Ped’s office I asked her if Quinn’s eye color is done developing and she confirmed that, yes, the color that they are today is what they will be forever. My next question was, ok, um, what color are they? I seriously have a hard time describing what color her eyes are. Depending on the light and the color she’s wearing they span from gray, to blue, to a hint of violet. It’s not a color I’ve ever seen and honestly, I’m thrilled that they are unique. Take a look below and tell me what you think…

Dear Quinn,

If you can believe it, an entire year has passed by. A year since your dad and I made our way into Good Sam hospital in the dark night, me begging him to drive slow over the bumps because oh my gosh, you wanted out and you meant business!  So out you came and over the past twelve months you have transformed my heart into something I never knew it could become. I never knew how much I could love until I met you. It’s a bit cliche but I suppose that’s alright — because it really is true. One day when/if you have a child of your own, you’ll understand what I mean.

The first 8 weeks you were home was an adjustment to for all of us, me especially. I was probably overly concerned about doing things just right, and just so… I fretted and stressed over the same things that your dad would scoff at. However, weeks passed and we all settled in and before you knew it, the three of us were quite a team. While you and I spend most of our waking hours with each other, your Dad has his things he does with you, his bath nights with you and of course you two have your play time every evening.  And while the love you’ve got for your daddy clearly runs deep it’s safe to say that over this first year you have been a “mama’s girl” through and through. The need to have me in your presence is strong. Especially when you’re tired, sick or teething. You’re not one to sit in a room alone and play solo for any length of time. You’d much prefer that I sit with you, while you play, occasionally coming over to sit on my lap as you continue to play with your toys. You seem to be most content when Daddy and I are in the living room/playroom and you can ricochet back and forth between us.

I won’t lie, there are times when your “clinginess” feels like it’s going to wear me out. Sometimes I’ll try to tiptoe away from you while you’re playing, hoping you’re too preoccupied with your toy to notice I’ve taken 5 steps away from you, however, your little mommy-radar honing device sounds an alert and up you go in search of me. And while this all might get a wee bit exhausting at times, it also feels good. I love that I am your source of calm. I love that we have such a strong connection. So I’ve resigned to the idea that for a while longer, I will have a bathroom companion, who insists on unraveling the toilet paper and handing it to me. I know that this “clinginess” will one day fade. One day you’ll resist being held and your independence will thrive and you’ll beg me to leave you be.

I have many memories over the past 12 months where you’ve caught us off guard with some new thing you’ve learned. We look at each other and think, it’s too soon for her to be doing this. You rolled over at 3 months, not earth shattering, but it was the first big milestone and we were so excited. You also began teething at 3 months and cut your first tooth not long after that – which, BOO not as exciting because you’ve had some miserable moments thanks to those little chompers. You’re currently cutting molars on the bottom and they’re sort of kicking your butt, however you’ll soon be able to actually chew your food, verses “gum” your food which will be nice.

What else? Well, you’re wildly curious and extremely persistent. You want it all and it’s a constant game between you and I, on what non-baby item you can or cannot have. You have fallen in love with my iPhone and I would not be surprised if you end up with one for your 2nd birthday (joking, joking). You crawled at 8 months and walked at 11 months. And now, a month into walking, you’re sort of doing this speed-walking-zombie thing where your body is pitched forward, arms reached out, your knees lifting high, screeching “ooooooohhhh” as you walk. It’s quite hilarious but also slightly terrifying because it looks like you’re going to eat it at any given moment.

You have successfully learned a few signs: airplane, baby & more. You absolutely love airplanes — thanks to our house being in PDX’s flight path. Every morning we listen to plane after plane zoom overhead. You wave your little hand and say “mmmmmmmm” to mimic the sound of the plane above. You say a few words that are mostly only detectable by your dad and myself, however four things you say very well are: mama, ki-kaat (kitty cat), when asked, what does a lamb say: you reply with “bababa”, and what does a cow say? you reply with “mmmmmmmmm”. Your dad and I along with your grandparents are so impressed with this and we ask you to repeat them often, preferably on video.

Quinn, you have brightened our world more than I can describe. You can melt the stress of a day away with one of your smiles, waves, or even better – one of your kisses. Your dad and I are so proud to have you a part of our family. I can only imagine what the next year will bring for all of us. Happy Birthday sweet pea. I love you.

So yeah, um, our daughter is walking and I think we might be in trouble. Actually, her crawling speed can lap her walk speed like 3 times, so I’m sort of liking this, wanting-to-walk-everywhere-but-does-it-carefully-and-slowly phase. When she’s not walking to “man” her station which is located, around my shins, she will just sort of walk aimlessly around the house, talking some beyond cute gibberish going from one toy to the next. Sometimes stopping to just pivot around in a circle. Jake and I sit here and silently crack up because we do NOT want to distract her and have this adorable image end.

And seriously, she is soooooo curious. She wants everything. I would really like to slap some blinders on her as I carry her from one room to the next because her eagle-eyes spot every single thing she is not able to have. And yes, when she doesn’t get something that she has staked claim on, she screams. Luckily distractions work, however, I gauge how pissed she is by how many different distractions it takes to remove said “illegal” object from her memory. Guaranteed distraction that works 100% of the time is the CAT. I will seek out poor Maya and place Quinn in front of her. Maya puts up with it for as long as she can, usually a few seconds before she bails. Long enough to reset Quinn’s attitude.  (Thank you Maya — you’re really coming around with this whole baby thing. Remember when you hid for the first week after we brought her home. Hehe)

In other news, I’m mentally making some preparations for her upcoming birthday and like I mentioned on Twitter, how can it be that she is going to be a year old people? In fact, it was a year ago today that I decided, my body could no longer take the daily grind of the office, so off I went to prepare to have my little one. Little did I know that I’d have to wait 2 weeks before I’d have a bouncing bundle of joy. Officially the LONGEST 2 WEEKS OF MY LIFE. Anyway, so birthday preparations have commenced and I’m going the small/low-key route. Well, small/low-key still means there will be 15 people here to celebrate, but that’s only immediate family. I’ve made the sad decision to keep it to family only for two reasons: 1. Our house is too small for 30 people (which would include our close friends & family), and 2. Quinn is sort of taking after her father in that she prefers smaller crowds. A bunch of people hovering around her in our too-small space would probably reduce our chances for a pleasant 1 year old. I’m bummed that our friends won’t be a part of this event, however it’s a compromise that is necessary.

Also, while I’m not really uptight about Quinn having sugar on her birthday, I would prefer that if possible, I’d like to make her birthday cake that is as baby-friendly as possible. Today I came across a recipe for a Pumpkin Apple cake that people seem to love, so I think I’m going to give it a shot. I’m still going to make a REAL cake for everyone else because, no need for us to suffer, RIGHT?! Here’s the recipe:

Pumpkin Apple Harvest Cake

INGREDIENTS

1 cup cooked or canned pumpkin puree
2 large eggs, beaten
3/4 cup organic sugar
3/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup chopped apple
1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans
Whipped cream or confectioners’ sugar for topping (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 325F. Prepare an 8-inch round cake pan by greasing and flouring it.
2. Combine pumpkin, eggs, and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Add flour, cinnamon, baking powder, ginger, and salt, stirring to combine. Add apples and nuts, stirring again. Pour mixture into prepared pan.
3. Bake 20 to 25 minutes, until a cake tester inserted in the middle comes out clean.
4. Cool the cake, still in the pan, on a wire rack for 10 minutes, then invert the cake onto the rack, remove pan, and cool cake completely.
5. When ready to serve, turn cake on to a pretty plate and top with whipped cream or confectioners’ sugar, if desired, or serve plain.

I’m thinking I’ll do a test-run of this bad boy to see if it really is edible. However, something tells me it will be.