Things That Happened In December:

Eric had a great December, with his first birthday party, and Christmas all tied in. I'd like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who were able to celebrate one wonderful year of his life with us and those who celebrated with us from afar. As I write this, we're well into his second year, but I'll never forget how this year was a life changing blur of amazement. Here are a few things that happened in December and then some pictures!

* Eric climbed the stairs for the first time. He just decided to do it and went all the way up! We were shocked.

* We had our Christmas tree decorating day (an annual tradition in the Leo household) and Eric was just amazed at all of the decorations and things that we could produce. He especially liked the lights! Then, anytime he could get close, he was trying to pull things off the tree!

* We took Eric "sledding" for the first time! We took him out to Adam's in his baby sled and even let Bosley help pull him along the trail. He LOVED it. He was all bundled up in his snow suit and just laughed and laughed every time we ran forward with him in it!

* On Eric's actual birthday, we went to meet Peter for lunch at Panera and got Eric a brownie after his lunch. We didn't do much to celebrate because we had the big party coming up on the 10th.

* Eric's 1st birthday was a Winter "One"-derland theme. We had many friends and family come to the clubhouse at our townhouse complex for chili, cake, and fun. Eric loved his balloons and spent much of his time running around with them! Once he figured out he liked his cake, he went to TOWN on it, picking up the whole piece and shoveling into his mouth. :-) We had a lot of fun watching him eat it, and I think he had a blast. Everyone who came was so sweet and brought gifts, which he just loved. One of my favorites was a rocking horse that my Deda (maternal grandfather) had made for me when I was a baby that my grandpa (paternal grandfather) refinished and made like new for Eric. He calls him "Gig-guh" (Trigger) and loves to rock on him.

* Eric has taken a really long time to get more teeth, but on the day of his birthday party, I was tickling him and noticed FOUR MOLARS! He got four molars before he even got any upper front teeth! the doctor said he must not have read the teething manual. :-)

* On Christmas Eve, we were in Des Moines and went to Don and Danielle's out in Woodward. It was unseasonably warm and we went out to the prairie and watched a burn. We also hung some new Buddhist prayer flags at Eric's tree. Then, we had music and singing and Eric got to eat one of Don's homemade fresh rolls!

* Christmas Day was filled with family. First, we were at my mom's and Brian's to open presents and have breakfast. Eric got his first taste of monkey bread (a tradition in my family) and loved it, of course. (Who DOESN'T love biscuits with butter, sugar, and cinnamon?) and got some new books and toys. In the afternoon, we were with Peter's family and there was a whole other round of food, family, and fun! Eric was a little grumpy by the end of the day, after not napping very well all day, but all-in-all, it was a great Christmas!!

* Our New Years Eve was spent in Lincoln, Nebraska visiting Mara and Jon. This was just two weeks before their son Eli was born, and we had fun spending some time with them before their lives changed drastically for the better!! We sure love that family!!

I remember that during this whole month, we just spent a lot of time reflecting on how much our lives had changed and our hearts expanded over the course of the previous year. We are so lucky.