At one year, Will was 20 pounds and ? inches (considerably bigger than Jack). While he isn't walking yet, or talking, he has the same ability to point out things in a book if asked. Most importantly, he now loves books. For the first nine months, the child wouldn't sit still to read for 60 seconds to read "Moo, Baa, La La La." Billy and I were flummoxed at his intolerance for reading. Jack would sit and read with us for hours (seriously) when he was 4 months old. We read books all the time in this house. We have multiple bookshelves that are overflowing with books. How could we possibly have a child who didn't want to read? My pediatrician, whom I love dearly, talked me off a ledge and told me just to wait a little while. Fortunately, Will's impatience with books was not a character flaw but merely a phase. Perhaps he was trying out rebellious at an early age. Fabulous.
He and Jack continue to love each other more than I thought possible. Jack has been exceptionally good at sharing with Will, which has become more of an issue now that Will is not only mobile but also actually interested in Jack's toys. Jack is no saint but his patience with Will is remarkable. They "share" (by which I mean Jack gives Will the toys that he is not interested in and plays with the more exciting ones himself) and there are very few arguments. Indeed, Jack has taken to negotiating with Will, cementing my belief that we will have a third generation Reeves lawyer. Will always listens to Jack's reasoned pleas and explanations with great interest and then goes back to whatever he was doing before.
To mark the occasion of Will's birthday, I took this shot of the boys (on the left), almost one year after Kelly took Will's newborn photos. Same chair, same boys, but what a difference a year makes. Despite how different they look (at least to me) a year later, the incredible love and affection between them is still apparent. I marvel every day at how lucky they are to have each other and how phenomenal it is that they realize it.
We started the celebration with a birthday lunch at Perfectly Frank with Sabrina and Benji, who had thoughtfully brought party hats. The babies weren't so much into the hats but Sabrina and Jack loved 'em.
I got an explicable bee in my bonnet about making Will's birthday cake and decorating myself. Jack thoughtfully lent his support to the endeavor and all, in all, the cake was a success. And by success I mean it tasted delicious.
We had a small family celebration (including godparents) at the house. And I am pleased to report that there were no finger-in-the-candle-flame incidents at this first birthday party. It's reassuring that Billy and I have managed to learn from our past mistakes.
The funniest part of the evening came when Will was eating (dare I say shoveling) his cake at the coffee table and accidentally (allegedly) knocked his plate onto the ground. Rather than become upset by this turn of events or wait for me to pick up the crumbs and get him a new piece, he simply plopped down on the floor and started eating right off the carpet. It was so hysterical that Jack and Charlie decided they wanted to eat like little piggies as well. Look ma, no hands...
It is so hard for me to believe how different our lives were a year ago. And while life with two is slightly more challenging than with one, I could never imagine how much fuller our lives would be as a foursome.
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