Happy Birthday to you....

H turned one year old today! This concept is simply unbelievable! None-the-less we celebrated. After we all got home from our respective schools, I set to work at getting dinner ready for the small group of friends who were able to join us for H's first birthday. The apartment had already been decorated with some fabulous dollar store finds to make the atmosphere as festive as possible so all that was left was the food and celebration.

The evening was a glorious mess of food, playing, and laughter. H was a champ and ate his fill of Mediterranean cuisine. He dined on olives, tomotaoes, cucumber, hummus, pita, and falafel. I was really impressed that he ate it all. Then he got down and played with the two D's that were visiting. Our living room floor became an sea of blocks and other toys in one state of use or another.

The cupcakes were done just before H was ready for bed. Everyone sang happy birthday and H looked around beaming with happiness, swaying to the song. Somehow we thought that we would be able to put a cupcake in front of him, sing, and then not have him eat the cupcake. It became clear from the deeply concerned look on H's face when Jason went to remove the cupcake that we should just let him have it. It is his birthday afterall.

If it is possible to describe H's cupcake eating style as carefully messy then that is what you should imagine. He takes the cupcake and crams it into his mouth and uses both of his little hands to keep shoving more and more slowly into his mouth not letting a crumb escape, if he can help it. And his expression is super focused. You can just imagine him thinking, "This is so good and such a rare occurance that I am not letting it go, no matter what."

After all of the fun H went to bed happily. I laid him down and he rolled to his side waiting for his blanket to suck on as he difted off to sleep.