a special birthday

Happy 11-months, Pumpkin! Not only is William 11-months old today, but he also was dedicated to the Lord this morning at church. Bill's family was there in full force. =) And so were other close friends of ours, especially one who was sick, but made it to church just for the dedication to show his support and love for us. (Thanks so much, Jeff!) It is amazing to know that we have God's help as we raise William and to see the support of the church behind us as we parent and care for him. We only pray that we will be able to be a clear reflection of the gospel to William so that He may someday see his personal need for a Savior. We are incredibly grateful to the Lord for him, as well as for our friends and family who came to support us and show their love for us.

William seems to have grown in leaps and bounds over this last month. Our baby boy is quickly turning into a little boy. He has begun to pull himself up on anything and everything, so we had to lower the mattress in his crib and remove the bumper. I think he's still working on his balance, so he hasn't started cruising yet, but it shouldn't be too much longer. Exciting times!

Our little monkey no longer takes a bottle before bed. But we've been introducing water to him, and he really seems to like it, although he won't drink it out of his sippy cup. We have to take the top off and let him drink from the cup. He seems to have a hard time sucking on anything other than his bottle.... and burp cloth. (It's become a security blanket for him.)

Even though William is becoming more mobile, he usually doesn't like to be left alone. =) He likes to be around either Bill or I. And he LOVES to be in the kitchen (the one place he's not allowed), especially if there's something cooking on the stove. For some reason, he loves to look at steam and will extend his arms up above his head when he sees it. It's really cute.

Next month, William will be one-year old! Can you believe it? He'll officially be a toddler! He won't be a baby anymore! =) But he'll always be my baby though, no matter how old he is... all the way down to the little curls on the back of his hair. That's something that will never change. =) I wish he wasn't growing so fast! If only there was a way to slow time down...