One Year Old!

One Year (seems so short, it has gone so fast)

Twelve Months (puts things a little bit more into perspective.)

Fifty-four Weeks (Every week I get an e-mail that tells me what developmentally Roman should be doing right now, how it is possible that 54 weeks have already passed since he was born?)

Three Hundred Sixty Five Days (Every single one with it's one special memories. Every day that has formed together to make one very sweet very adorable very amazing little 1 year old!)

I look at these pictures and I can't believe all that has happened in just one year. I can't believe how much he has grown, learned. How much of a personality he has developed.

Two days old - June 2007

One Month - July

Two Months - August


Three Months - September



Four Months - October
Five Months - November
Six Months - December


Seven Months - January

Eight Months - February
Nine Months - March

Ten Months - April
Eleven Months - May

One Year OLD! - June



I never knew that one year could change my life so much. One Year ago today I was sitting at work, mildly distracted because I THOUGHT I only had 2 more days of work. My cell phone rang. I wasn't near it so it went to voicemail. When I looked at the missed call list my hands started shaking. It was Katie! She never called! I tried to call her back and it went straight to voicemail. A voicemail came in as I was trying to call her. I listened to it and couldn't believe what I was hearing, we didn't have 5 more days, it was happening, and it was happening NOW!

The next few hours were a flurry of uncontrolled chaos. I know that Heavenly Father had things under control though, looking back I can not explain how it was that there was a flight that left just a few hours later, I was able to get a rental car and a hotel room for relatively inexpensive. The jewler called a few days early letting us know that the necklace we had made for Katie was done. (Although in all the craziness we forgot to stop at the jewler to pick it up and had to have my mom pick it up and overnight it to us.) Somehow we made it and were able to be there for Roman's birth.

That week will always be one of the most amazing weeks of my entire life. Wednesday Roman was born, Friday he came to live at the hotel with us, Sunday we met Katie at the agency for official placement and went to lunch at Cheesecake Factory. Tuesday we went out for Ice Cream with Katie and her mom, Thursday we met her at the mall, then that night we had to say good bye for now. It was so much harder than I ever imagined that it would be to go home, to leave Katie. Friday morning we were able to meet Roman's birthfather, then we went straight to the airport to fly home.

Roman has become quite the little man over the past year. He has developed such a personality. He is so smart and funny, he loves to be around people, and loves to be the center of attention. I am sure every parent thinks their child is the most amazing sweet child in the entire world, but I am here to tell you that Roman is right up there. He gives the sweetest hugs and kisses, he is such a little cuddler. He laughs at all the right times (and all the wrong times) and he is my life. They say having a child is having your heart walking around outside of your body. It's so true.

Love you bug-a-boo!