October 9th 2005... Where has the past year gone? Yes, there were months when time seemed to be at a standstill and I wasn't sure that I'd ever get the hang of parenting two kids but for the most part I look over the past 12 months and ask that same question over and over again. Where has the time GONE?

Leo will likely be my last baby - there I've said it; so I've been savoring his babyhood even more than I did with Clara's. Every first of his, is a last of mine... first bite of food off a spoon - last time I exclusively nourish my baby, first tooth - last gummy smile, you get the idea.

Leo's first year has been thrilling; it was scary, exciting, funny, frustrating, and oh so emotional. As far as babies go Leo has been relatively easy. As an infant, as long as I was willing to keep him close and nurse when he wanted he was happy. There were many late evenings with him in the pouch while I swayed in the dark livingroom but those moments were so different from the late nights with baby Clara... Instead of wondering "will he ever sleep through the night, am I ruining him with this kangaroo care" I was content (well, relatively) knowing that this was a phase and he would get through it and that yes, eventually he would sleep longer periods away from my beating heart - just not yet.

At one year old Leo is not what most would consider a champion sleeper, he still needs a warm body snuggled up with him during the wee hours of the morning but he does sleep alone for several hours in the evening. Our nighttime routine is this; change into pyjamas, read several stories, nurse, and rock to sleep (not in arms mind you, but in his stroller!). Depending on the day the routine can last as much as an hour or as little as 10 minutes.

Watching Leo grow up this year has been a completely wild expereince. He went from a helpless baby, to an infant that light up when his big sister put her face in front of his, to a baby who played and followed big sis around, to an almost-toddler who not only follows Clara but is very capable of getting into fights and stand-offs with her too! Can you tell what a huge influence Clara has had on Leo? He seems so in love with her and it has been this way since the very beginning. Leo would ONLY laugh for Clara for several months, nothing Marc or I could do would get more than a drooly smile. As he got older, Leo could sit and play contentedly on the floor if Clara was close by playing as well. And, now that Clara is in school two days a week he obviously misses her. He looks around the condo for her when he wakes from his naps calling "Ca". Of course Leo loves Papa and Mama too, we know this from the head butting, open-mouthed kisses we both receive daily!

As much of an adventure these past 12 months have been I forsee many more adventures in the future. Leo will continue to be my "baby" and he will continue to grow and learn and laugh and love. What more can a mamma want on her son's first birthday? I've got a beautiful, healthy, loving, sweet little guy to enjoy and there is nothing more exciting for me than to see what the future holds for him.

Leo's first birthday! Our boy is hardly a baby anymore...

Yesterday Clara, Leo and I went to an apple orchard and pumpkin patch with Clara's class from the Carrefour. Sadly I have no pictures to share because it appears I've lost our camera! I thought it would turn up today while I was cleaning but so far nothing. I have no idea where I might have lost it... the last place I've to search is the car.

After a long day out in the sun picking apples, pumpkins and gourds and an equally long and exhausting bus ride home, I asked Clara what her favorite part of the day was. She said "eating apples". Then she elaborated, "I liked when you picked the apples and I ate them." Simple pleasures :)

You think your are careful, you think you can keep your kids safe, you think all these things until you find your baby sucking the tip of a very sharp paring knife!

Ugh, while I was distracted by the mess under his high chair Leo helped himself to the open dishwasher and pulled out the only sharp thing in there. It was also the only black handle sticking up out of an ocean of stainless steel so obviously that made it an interesting find. My heart stopped when I realised what he was holding and believe it or not, other than tears of anger that resulted from my careful extraction of the offending knife Leo is none the worse for wear.

I'd like to just note that normally I am highly paranoid about Leo playing with the dishwasher and I always close it if he is on the floor (even if I'm coming back with more dirty dishes). But this time he'd made such a mess eating dinner that I becasme focused on the need to clean it up immediately, which apparently provided Leo with an opportunity to explore uncharted territory. Yes, I've learned my lesson; leave high chair messes for Marc to clean up!

OK, it is 8:35am and I have already been up for hours (it seems). What is with the new 6:30am wake up time? Where did the days of 8am wake ups disappear too? Oh well, at least we can get places on time now, there's got to be a bright side to every bleary eyed morning right?

Clara just set a handful of toys on the floor for Leo to play with and informed us both that she would be playing with her hands so she didn't need them. Right now one hand is Dora and the other is baby jaguar, characters from Chloe and Zach's Dora The Explorer story book. What an imagination :)

I just sent this in an email to Ann Marie, seems like it should be a public fact not just kept between the two of us :)

"Can I just tell you... Leo is so SMART!!! I can recite a story from one of his books and he'll crawl off the bed to the pile of books in front of the bookcase (where they tend to reside) and pull out the one I am reciting!!! It is not luck, we tested him this evening, he knows Goodnight Moon, Mr Brown Can Moo, and Wibbly Pig as well as I do!"

Leo seems to have his first crush. I caught him gazing deeply into someone's eyes during our impromptu brunch on Sunday. Yes, little loverboy was snuggled right up on Natasha's lap, looking deep in her eyes and then he PURRED! I kid you not, he was courting her. Problem is, the crush may be mutual... I think poor Natasha may have fallen for his charms.

This past weekend was a whirlwind of fun. On Saturday we all attended Kate and Rory's 3rd birthday party. Check out the cute hairbands the girls recieved!
That evening Marc and I were able to sneak away for a dinner alone while Papa T babysat Clara and Leo. Then we came home just long enough for Clara to ask "why are you here" in a very unimpressed tone and whisked Leo off to Trina and Mehdi's farewell party. Leo was supposed to sleep most of the time but his cough was really bothering him so he ended resting on my lap instead. The couch was comfy and the conversation entertaining so I really wasn't too disappointed.

Today has been grey and wet so we did nothing but get groceries. That is what an outsider might think anyway. But in reality I read books out loud for a good portion of the morning. Clara is really, really into Dennis Lee poetry right now. She has one book of her own and we just borrowed Jelly Belly at the library last week. Now I'm deep in sing-song rhyming and it is a lot of fun! The better the beat of the poem the more we both seem to like it.