Joseph you are one whole year!  Happy Birthday!  You have been such a sweet little man and have grown so much we just can’t believe it!

You are talking more and more and this month you say cheese (for pictures), birdie, choo choo, plane, truck, three (when going down the slide), uh oh (when you drop your water cup), cookie, and I’m sure there will be new words today.  You are really getting good at trying to say things that we ask you.  We have started quizzing you on animal sounds and your favorite is “quack,” but you say “moo” and “tweet.”  You also know where your eyes are and you wipe your mouth when we tell you to.  You are so smart!

You love to be outside and you are such a brave little explorer.  You will crawl into the tiniest places and pic up anything just out of curiosity.  You went up the playground steps and down the slide by yourself this month.  It is the cutest thing when you kick your legs over the side and go down on your belly feet first and oh how proud you are when you reach the bottom!  Usually when we go outside, you crawl straight to the swing, your favorite.  Even at Grandma and Papa’s house you will crawl all the way to the side of the house and sit under the swing until we get there.

This month you are getting pretty tough and you don’t let Madeleine take anything away from you without a swat and a little bark.  It’s funny to see you hang with her and you always want to impress her.  When she laughs, you laugh.  When she cries, you cry. It’s adorable.

Your favorite toys are your cars, carts, and balls that you push around everywhere.  You love water and splashing in the water table and puddles.  You have also enjoyed drawing on the chalk board lately and organizing the chalk by taking it out of the cup and then putting it back in.

We celebrated your second Easter this month and you loved the cows in Panna Maria, lolli pops, and bubbles.  You were pretty good at crawling around picking up eggs and putting them in your basket.  Church is getting a little more difficult with you because you don’t want to be held but don’t have room to crawl in the pews.

You are getting very close to walking but you get so frustrated when we let go of your hands that you usually throw your head back and fall.  You will get up on your knees and reach for our hands so we can balance you anywhere you want to go. It’s just a matter of time.

We took you for your one year check up and you weighed 20 lb 2 oz and were 29.5 inches long (30% for both).  Your hair is blonde, eyes are blue, and you have 6 teeth! You are wearing 12-18 month clothes (with some growing room), size 3 diapers, and size 3 shoes.  We love you Joe Joe!