I'm 1!

Sydney turned 1 year old on Thursday! It felt like any other day to me. But by the time Mom and Dad came over for cake and she started opening her gifts, she seemed older. Don't ask me why. Right then is just when it hit me that we will no longer be referring to her age by months, but years. She is 1. A toddler. (Unless you start calling a child a toddler when they start walking. Up to you I guess.)

Here she is opening her gifts!

(Warning!! These videos contain an annoying person yelling "Yaaay!" all the time. Please plug your ears when you hear this, because it could be detrimental to your eardrums.)

When we were in Utah for Erica's baby blessing, on the way home we stopped by my aunt Kristen's house and they had a bead maze just like you see in Pediatric offices. And Sydney loved it! LOVED it! She played with it for a good half hour to an hour I think without much distractions. So we got her a miniature one. And what do you know, she loves that one too! She will even move the beads back and forth on it like you are supposed to.
After gifts we had cake!! Let me just mention that I had been worrying about this cake for months before hand. I wasn't sure that I was going to be able to pull it off, with us not eating white, brown, or any other kinds of refined sugars. I was nervous. To say the least and make a loooong story short, it turned out perfect! I made one huge double layer cake without sugar, and no sugar in the frosting either, and another half a double layer cake that had sugar in the frosting only. Successful baking day in my opinion. It tasted just as good, if not better, if I do say so myself, then store bought. I guess I am allowed to say that about my own baking.
Here is Sydney having cake for the first time!

 I think Sydney was a little apprehensive at first about the cake, not knowing what is was, but by the time she was done eating it, she loved it. Although she didn't like getting all messy. She was begging for a bath by the end.

And this is the cake! Mmmm so moist!

 

Some of her 1 year stats are: (weight and height I will add on Monday after her appointment.)

-She waves "hi" and "bye bye"

-She tried and loves real milk and has about 12-15 ounces a day now. Goodbye formula!!

-She doesn't like plain ol' water, like her mom, so we put a tiny bit of juice in the water with some stevia and she drinks her water that way.

-She gives "high fives"

-She can stand up on her own without pulling herself up with anything. She was thinking about taking a step the other day. You could see it on her face clear as day. So walking is in progress.

-She eats all the same food we eat. Except those which the pediatrician recommends waiting on of course. She eats: Rice, beans, pasta, soup, the occasional Costco pizza, bread, butter, apples, bananas, dried apple slices, cake (as you can see), cheese, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, squash, (any type of fruit or veggies really), Quinoa, she has tried chicken an a little piece of sausage, whole milk, watered down juice, rice cakes, and a tons more that I can't think of. Well I can't think of a food she WON'T eat.

-She signs milk, more, and I am teaching her apple, bread, and peoples names. 

-She points to what she wants, she points to where she wants to go.

-Her first word: Banana or "Na-na" as she says. We were grocery shopping and passed by the bananas today and she just busted out saying, very excitedly with ankle and hand twirling, "Na -Na- Na- Na!"

-She also will say "more" (mo), "mommy" (mama), "daddy" (dada), but usually only after we say it first. Actually she pretty much will copy whatever we say but in a baby talk. I think she said "no" at one point. (crossing my fingers that stage hasn't started yet.)

-She plays with other kids and "talks" to them. She just loves her cousins.

-Of course she loves to dance and watch others dance.

-She loves being outside and having the wind in her face.

-She loves getting into drawers and emptying them still. I guess that is something she won't grow out of for several years.

-She absolutely goes NUTS when she sees a dog and gets near one. I haven't seen anything like it. She gets super duper excited.

-She had her first real cold/flu this past week we think. Poor thing.

Next adventure I need to have her try... try a playground swing! I have a feeling she is going to LOVE it.