Liam turns 1.

Last weekend, we celebrated one year with Liam. I was determined to make it a simple event, and promised myself I'd stay far away from Pinterest. There's nothing wrong with going all out for a first birthday, of course. There's so much to celebrate! But for us - with a move just two weeks before and a whole lot on our plates - it felt right to keep it simple this year. Liam had everything he needed: all four grandparents in town to celebrate, a trip to Pullen Park, a roast dinner with his favorite sweet potato fries and baked cinnamon apples, and his first taste of cake. He had the sweetest blessings spoken over him by both his grandfathers. Little does he know how sacred that was.

On the morning of his birthday, I found myself nursing him early in the morning and whispering to him the story of his birth. How my water broke all over daddy's car and we knew right then we wouldn't leave the hospital without a baby in our arms. How he was blue when he came out, with the umbilical cord wrapped around his neck. How his daddy caught him and placed him on my chest and he looked up at me like he'd known me for years. How he was was perfect. The most beautiful little thing I'd ever seen. It's a tradition in my family for one of my parents to recount the stories of our births every year on our birthdays, and now I understand why. It's a bigger day to the parent than it probably ever will be for the child. One of the most joyous, most memorable days of our lives.

I know that he felt so loved all weekend long. You could see it all over his face. As his mom, I couldn't ask for anything better.