Happy birthday sweet boy!

Today my baby boy turned one! I can hardly believe how fast Malak's first year went by...it seems like just a few months. :) 4 months to be precise, that he has been home with us...and I am completely amazed at how much my love for him has grown in such a short time! When I first met him, I was amazed at his handsome face, I was smitten by his huge smile and adored his contagious giggle...but now? Now my heart is so completely full of love for every ounce of his tiny body. Almost every day Eric and I end up talking about how much we love this sweet child...sometimes I try to convince Eric to let me wake him up at night just because I want to kiss and hold him. His little personality is coming out more and more each day and it melts me to see how much he loves his mama and daddy. He prefers us to anyone and gets quite angry if you try to steal him away. :) It is a tricky thing with family and close friends who would love to hold him, but I must admit that it secretly warms my heart when he throws his arms around my neck and his clenched fists cling to my shirt for dear life.

Here are some of the things Malak likes do do, eat and say...
~Favorite foods-plain rice cakes, whole wheat pasta, oatmeal and spagetti
~He can say- "dada", "wha dada?!" (translation- where's dada?!), "uh-oh", "dog", "mama" (but that is on rare occasion these days) and "ball".
~He thinks it's hilarious when he burps and toots. (thanks Eric) :)
~Malak and Violet (the dog) are BFF. They play all day long- he pulls her hair out, she lays there, he chases her, she chases him, he grabs her ball, she takes it back, he pulls it out of her mouth and sometimes they chew on the same toy at the same time. Ick.
~He is pulling up on everything! He can't quite find the strength to pull all the way up, but can stand on his knees and is trying real hard. I give him an "A" for effort.
~He ate his first fist full of dog food. Mmm...
~He knows sign language for "more" "all done" and "water."
~ Malak has never, EVER been full. He is never "all done" eating and will cry and ask for more as long as you will give it...this has become a bit of a blessing and a curse. Sometimes I am afraid he will literaly pop.
~To most of us a barking dog would sound like, "ruff"- when Mal says it, it always seems to come out, "Ssssss". And it cracks me up every time. Another "A" for effort.
~He loves kissing pictures of grandpa and grandma and will always give you a kiss when you ask and if you're luck he may give you 4 or 5 in a row.

We had a birthday party for Mal on Saturday.
Whoa.
Birthday parties are....crazy. Or maybe they only are when you invite 25 people. Oh, the things we do for our kids. :) Malak recieved lots of toys and books and birthday clothes- it was wonderful! Remember how I told you that I wanted to find a sugar free birthday cake recipe? I found one on line and it was perfect! Well, it was perfect for Malak- it tastes more like a muffin for us adults but was very good nonethess. I am posting the recipe below because it is great for a healthy first birthday cake or if you are just looking for a way healthier version of any old cake.

Baby's First Birthday Cake (Carrot Cake)
(Makes 1 double-layer 9-inch square cake
2 1/2 cups thinly sliced carrots
2 1/2 cups apple juice concentrate (you may use slightly less)
1 1/2 cups raisins
Vegetable Spray/Shortening
2 cups whole-wheat flour
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 whole eggs
4 egg whites
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/2 cup wheat germ
2 Tbsp low sodium baking powder
1 Tbsp ground cinnamon
Prep: Preheat oven to 350 F. Line two 9 inch square cake pans with waxed paper and spray the paper with vegetable spray/shortening.1. Combine the carrots with 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons of the juice concentrate in a medium size saucepan.2. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer, covered, until carrots are tender, 15 to 20 mins. Puree in a blender of food processor until smooth.3. Add the raisins and process until finely chopped. Let mixture cool.4. Combine the flour, wheat germ, baking powder, and cinnamon in a large mixing bowl. Add 1 1/4 cups juice concentrate, the oil, eggs, egg whites, and vanilla; beat just until well mixed. Fold in the carrot puree and applesauce. Pour the batter into the prepared cake pans.5. Bake until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean, 35 to 40 mins. Cool briefly in the pans, then turn out onto wire racks to cool completely. When cool, frost with Cream Cheese Frosting.

Here are a few birthday pics:
He's not too sure about this whole cake thing at first...

Nice frosting beard....

"Ho, ho ho, boys and girls it's Santa Claus!"

Sad sad times when we had to take away the cake. (after he had eaten about 3/4 of it)

This was right after everyone left...can you tell he was a little pooped

As you can see by the picture below Malak was super excited to go to Red Robin for his birthday lunch today! Incase you didn't know, you can get online and sign yourself and any family members up to recieve a FREE birthday meal at Red Robin! What a deal! So Malak had his free meal there and it was a fun little family lunch.

My heart broke just a little the day that Malak started to rip off all the cute hats that I was trying to force him to wear. :) BUT THEN...I figured out a handy little solution. Dorky, but handy. He had gotten a super cute new hat for his birthday and I really wanted him to wear it to church on Sunday, so I sewed a little strap of black elastic to go under his chin, to encourage him to leave it on. :) And low and behold, all it took was one day of a dorky elastic strap and tuh-duh, he hasn't even attempted to take his hats off since! Seriously, he has worn a cutie hat every day since and has kept them on even when sitting in his car seat! Elastic is miraculous. I think I will sell elastic on my Etsy site...I kid, I kid. :)

Happy birthday sweet boy!! Mama and daddy love you more than anything in the whole world!!!