It takes a village...

As a new mom(and yes, I am still referring to myself as new), you often here the quote "It takes a village to raise a child". In our ambitious American culture, this quote is often preached, but rarely practiced. Our jobs and life takes us away from the village of our childhood. Because of our ambitions to be independent, to create exciting careers, or to experience new life we are often far from the protective shelter of our familial support system.

Lane and I are five and a half hours away from our loving safety net. There have been times in this new adventure affectionately called parenthood that we have felt isolated and have struggled to figure out how to make our life work. However, with love and friendship we have started to build the village that will raise Maddox. Our village is tiny but it is priceless. It is composed of old and new friends, co-workers, and yes, it includes our amazing family. This village is necessary because without it, I know that we could raise our child, but I know with the presence of all these people in his life he will be a better son, a better friend, and eventually a better husband and father.

Today we celebrated Maddox's baptism. Lane and I committed ourselves to raising our child as a member of Christ's family. Part of the ceremony involved recognizing the people in Max's life and their commitment to him. We were lucky to have some of our "village" there to participate and their presence meant more than Lane, Max, or I will ever be able to put into words (if Max was to try and put it into words it would sound something like this "ball, da-da, ball, uh-oh, ball").

Here is part of Maddox's village that has the hope and prayer that he will always know that he is a child of God and a very much loved son, grandson, nephew, and friend.

Easter 2008

Uh Oh!

On Friday we had our first big "incident".  Max is a champ at walking (as his birthday slide show tells you) and he is an even bigger champ at falling!  

There is some sort of magnet in a child that draws them inexplicably to the one thing in a room that can hurt them.  Only this would explain what happened on Friday morning.  Max was toddling around our bedroom and tripped over his own cute little feet.  He does this often.  However, somehow this time he managed to fall into the corner of our metal bed frame and hit his forehead smack in the middle.

The result of this was a trip to the doctor's office.  Max was awesome for the doctor, only crying for a second when he got his shot and then just smiling and staring happily at the nurse while the doctor stitched him up.  At the end, when I thanked her, she thanked me in return and told me that she had never had a baby not cry during stitches.  She said he was "an amazing one year old".  Of course, Lane and I knew this but it was nice to have it confirmed by a medical professional.

Max got three stitches to close him up and he looks a little funny.  But luckily Granny Bop had given him some really cool band-aids for his birthday!

  

Here is Maddox about 10 minutes after happened.  You can see he wasn't too thrilled about the situation but the band-aid made it all better!  

I Finally Posted Pictures!

2 and 1

Today is Maddox's first birthday.  It is amazing that a year ago tonight I was holding a brand new baby in my arms and now I have a talking, walking toddler in my life!  Here are the top 2 events from this first year:

#2 Max is a walker.  With this new found skill comes a freedom and independence that truly transitioned him from baby to toddler.  He looks like a Frankenstein monster as he toddles around our house, but he is seriously the cutest Frankenstein monster I have ever seen!

#1 I guess it is only fitting that his actual birth be the highlight of his first year.  On February 21st I started laboring and 36 hours later we were blessed with the most beautiful boy I had ever seen.  It is a moment we will never forget and a moment that changed our lives forever.  God has given us an amazing gift in Maddox and we will always treasure the memories from this first year.

Happy Birthday sweet baby boy!  We will party hard tomorrow and be sure to post lots of birthday pictures!

7, 6, 5, 4, 3...

Continuing with the top memories of this year with Maddox, here are numbers 7, 6, 5, 4, and 3:

#7 The first few nights at home.  Their is an astronomical amount of panic and fear that you experience when the doctors and nurses at the hospital tell you that you can take your bundle of joy home.  Bringing Max home was when it first hit me that I was someone's mom and have been given the gift and responsibility of raising this beautiful boy.  There have been times this past year where I have felt totally inadequate at the position of mother, but I try to remember back to those first few nights of parenthood.  The tiny baby in my arms and the complete and utter faith that Lane and I had been chosen by God to be Max's parents.  

#6 Max and water: a complex relationship.  Max hasn't always been that sure about the water.  His protests were loud and insistent during those first few baths.  This changed as he learned to sit up.  It evolved further when Max learned the joy of splashing.  Then came the baby pool.   Max was joyfully curious in his pool.  What would the water taste like?  Would this fountain feel the same as that fountain?  What happens when the water is hit this way and that way?  Max would have spent all afternoon in his pool if his Daddy and I had let him.  Who knew that a plastic island of water from Walmart was a 5 month old's version of heaven?!

#5 Maddox is Daddy's little boy.  I could spend hours describing the love these two have for each other and the joy they bring to my life.  They are truly already partners in mischief and fun!

#4 A baby comes with an overwhelming amount of gadgets.  There is the boppy, the bouncey seat, the swing, and so on and so on and SO ON!  The one gadget that was not only functional in our house but highly entertaining was the Jumperoo, aka the Pooperoo.  Max loved his Jumperoo, he looked like he was performing intricate dance moves while bouncing to a beat only he could hear!  Not only was Max entertained, but we were entertained... it was better than any tv program.  Also as a side benefit, it would get things moving in the southern digestive region and often provide Max with some much needed relief.  It was a sad day in the Nelson household when the Maddox reached the weight limit and the jumperoo was retired to the basement.

#3 Max has learned very few words but he is able to "cuss" you out if you make him mad.  I will never forget the first time he cussed me out.  I don't remember what happened exactly to make him mad, but I clearly remember his reaction.  He turned to me and in his little baby voice he cussed me out horribly.  Of course they weren't real words, but it was impossible to mistake his intention.  If you don't believe me, ask his Granny Bop, she saw the whole thing and will tell you it is true, Max is a champion baby cusser!

Tomorrow he turns 1.  It is hard to believe.  I will continue my countdown then! (the suspense is killing you, I know)