Our Little Monkey

That's right. The sign (that my sister, Carissa, made) says it all. On September 30th, Parker had his FIRST BIRTHDAY.


This is, yet, another gift from Carissa. Isn't she SO talented?

If it weren't for an idea for cupcakes that I'd found, the party never would have happened like this. But, since I did find the cupcake idea months ago, we decided to have the birthday theme be "Monkeys", which worked out nicely since Parker seems to be everywhere, and when he gets excited, his mouth forms an "o" and he just "oohs" at everything. Parker seemed to know that it was a special day; he cheesed it all night whenever the camera came out.

Amidst some family and friends, Parker simply stared at the wavering flame in front of him. Of course, Cam had to blow it out for him, and then Parker set to work on a cupcake of his very own, picking off the Nutter Butter monkey ears first.

He didn't get as dirty as I thought he might. It was only when he wiped his exhausted, too-much-birthday-for-one-day eyes that he got frosting on more than just his lips. He wasn't too excited to be cleaned up after that.

In truth, I was more excited for his day than I have ever been for any of mine (in my adult life, that is). I was sad to see him go down at the end of the day because I didn't want his special day to end. Maybe I just didn't want his first year of life to be over already; it happened too quickly.

Happy Birthday, Parker! Daddy and I love you so much! You teach us patience, but you make us laugh. We are so excited to come home to you when we're gone because you are so ecstatic to see us. You are so forgiving. You are the perfect first child--you make us think that good parenting, for the most part, is possible. We look forward to teaching you the gospel, but know that you will, most times, show us how to live it.