We’re experimenting with the booster seat at our family table. Tommy still has a ways to go before he’s ready to eat at the table full-time, but we give him a snack or meal in his big boy seat now and then. Here Tommy enjoys Goldfish crackers and dried cranberries, one of his favorites.And since he did so well with his snacking, we decided to be brave…a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. We won’t be eating this treat outside the highchair again for quite a while, as this picture doesn’t do the mess justice! Table. Elbows. Chair next to booster. Pants. Ears. Mommy. Daddy. Dog’s fur.

Tommy had his 12-month check-up with Dr. Downey last week. His favorite thing about going to the doctor’s office is the tissue paper they lay down on the examination table. He loves to shred and wave it around!
Here he gives a big smile with Daddy. He is 30″ tall and weighs 23 lbs., 6 oz. (Tommy, not Daddy!) For those keeping track, he has eight teeth now, too.

Tommy here…I had so much fun at my birthday party! I had all my friends over and we enjoyed balloons, swimming, mac & cheese and CAKE! My family, all my friends and their parents sang me the Happy Birthday song and Mommy helped me blow out my candle on my Finding Nemo birthday cake. No fair giving me a trick candle, Daddy!
Then, I got to do what I do best…make a mess! I smashed cake all over the place and ate lots of frosting, too. All the sugar turned me into the Energizer Bunny!Look at me! I got a little frosting in my eyes, so that was a bummer, but a quick dip in the pool helped wash it off and then we got back to having more fun. I can’t wait to do it all again next year. Thanks for making my first birthday party so great, guys!

Tommy here…I’m a big boy now! Yesterday was my very first birthday, and boy was it FUN!
Here I am playing in my new safari tent…I’m body-slamming Monkey in this one. Grandma Norma and Papa Rick gave this to me and I love it!
Then, Mommy and Daddy surprised me with a great birthday present…my very own red wagon! I love pushing it…and when Mommy pulls me around it’s pretty cool.
Next, I took my Birthday Boy balloon on a parade around the house. Look…no hands on my cart!!!
Then, Uncle Derick brought me a present…a cool Houston Astros baseball cap and some snazzy clothes to wear. Despite the look on my face, I do like my hat…and the Astros!
For dinner we celebrated at BJ’s Restaurant with Uncle Brian, Aunt Lisa and my cousins. Here I take a moment to pose with Mommy & Daddy. They really can’t believe it’s been a whole year since I was born!
I had my favorite for dinner…mac & cheese. I don’t know what they put in this stuff, but it’s addictive!
To round out my great day, I got to eat my very first pizookie (cookie baked in a pizza pan with ice cream on top). They even gave me a candle to blow out.* Being one is fun!

*Mommy’s note: Tommy enjoyed the pizookie SO much that he had to ride home in his birthday suit. He got chocolate absolutely everywhere!

Tommy always has a great time playing at Aunt Lisa & Uncle Brian’s house…and his cousins have lots of fun teaching him how to be a cool guy. For instance…
“How cool are my cousins to let me play their drumset!?!” Cameron teaches Tommy how to play the REAL drums…no more of those pots & pans, Mommy! Can anyone recommend a good brand of earplugs?
Cody takes Tommy for a swim. He loves the water!
And not to leave out Uncle Brian! These two have a lot of fun together, too.

What better way to celebrate your birthday (albeit a few days early) than to go to Disneyland? Tommy’s first trip to the Magic Kingdom was amazing! He (and we!) had such a wonderful time exploring the park through a child’s eyes. Here are several photos from our day’s adventure…
With Daddy in front of my first attraction: It’s a Small World. I got to wear a special birthday sticker all day! (Mommy put it on my back so I wouldn’t eat it).
Meeting Mickey for the first time. We’ll try to get video of this up on wedewer.com…he LOVED Mickey and this picture doesn’t do the moment justice!
A snooze during our lunch break in the French Quarter. All the fun wore him out!
Posing with Pooh in the Hundred Acre Wood. (Notice post-lunch wardrobe change…this kid loves to wear his food!)
Snuggling Eeyore.
Bouncing with Tigger.
With Mommy & Daddy in the Tiki Room. Tommy loved the singing birds, the magic fountain and the talking walls! His laugh was contagious in the crowd.
Buzz Lightyear is the coolest! We met him before going on the Autopia ride.
Tommy’s first “ears” – gold for Disneyland’s 50th Anniversary.
Ice cream on Main Street…what a smile!
Nine hours at Disneyland and still smiling. Here Tommy rides one last ride…the parking lot shuttle!

No, you’re not in trouble little buddy! Behind door number one we have all kinds of baby-friendly kitchen items for Tommy to enjoy and explore. We’ve childproofed the rest of the cabinets in the kitchen so he stays away from the dangerous stuff, but we left this one wide open for him to play with…though I didn’t think he’d play IN it! Here he romps around the kitchen before dinner (the menu was messy pasta with tomato sauce, hence the preemptive lack of clothing).

“Come on, Mommy. Hurry up and take the picture already…my pasta is getting cold!”

Last Thursday Tommy had a very busy play day. Grandpa Rick and Grandma Peggy came to visit from Washington…it was so great to see them! Also, Tommy’s friend, Mason, came over to play for the day. They had such a blast together (and they wouldn’t nap at the same time…I think these sneaky guys planned it that way!). Mason, who lives just two doors up from us, is learning to crawl, so Tommy showed him the ropes a bit. These two have many years of mischief ahead of them!

We didn’t catch it on film, but Tommy stood all by himself today. He was holding my hands to “finger walk” and I let go, thinking he would crouch down to crawl as usual. What a surprise when he remained standing without support! In related news, he is getting better and better at cruising on the furniture in the family room and he’s an old pro at pushing his little cart around the house. He goes so fast with it…really, it’s frightening to watch! But you should see the smile on his face as he tears around the room. His happiness puts my fear at ease (at least partly!). Daddy thinks he’ll walk before his first birthday, which is only two weeks away! I can’t believe our helpless little lump of clay is such a vibrant, active boy already.