With this week comes a wave of emotion as my little man turns one. It’s such a big milestone in his life and I really can’t believe how much he has grown and changed in the last year. As enjoyable as it is to watch him grow, it also make me a little sad. I’m not ready to lose my baby yet. I know , I know, he’s still very much a baby, but I feel like he’s growing so quickly and with every new thing he learns to do, the quicker he’ll be running away from me.

Think I’m being a drama queen? Well maybe I am being a little dramatic, but I just don’t want him to grow up so quickly. Can’t we slow down the whole process? Can’t he be a baby for a bit longer?

The last year with him has been one of the best in my life. Never did I fully appreciate how much purpose he would provide me. Everyone told me that it would happen, but you never really know what it’s like until you experience it for yourself. To think that this little person has enriched our lives to an extent that we can’t remember a time without him, nor would we want to go back to that time really amazes me. Along the way there have been some really hard days, where I questioned why on earth anyone would want to put themselves through this, but realistically they don’t compare to the majority of joyous and rewarding days.

He really has flourished over the last year, going from doing something as simple as smiling for the first time when he was 6 weeks old, to now climbing any obstacle in his way, eating a whole steak on his own (the kid will demolish it with no help despite the fact that he only just got his first tooth) and attempting to walk around anything he can hold on to. I can sit there for hours watching him play with his toys and discover new ways to do things with them (he just worked out that he can push his toy cars around the house). There is genuinely nothing better in life than seeing him smile, watching the intrigue in his eyes and the sheer excitement in this face as he discovers something for the first time.

This stage of his life and development has really been the best so far because he’s mobile and really interacts with us. We can play with him, talk to him, hug him and for the first time he reciprocates. He joins in on the game, he tries to talk back (albeit jibberish at this stage), he points at something he likes and the best one yet, he give us big cuddles. He’s so innocent and his emotions are so pure, when he’s excited you really know it, he shows his emotion with his entire being, waving hands and all (smitten much? #sorrynotsorry).

So just like that, in the blink of an eye a year has passed. Time really does fly by that much faster when you have children, so new parents, cherish every moment you have with your children. Take loads of photos and videos because before you know it the things they do completely change – the sounds they make at 1 month old are completely different to those at 3 months or even 6 months, as are their movements and reactions. Each new stage does get better from the last, so although I’m saddened by the fact my little man is growing up, I’m sure the stages to come in the next year will continue to get better. Chances are in a few months time I’ll be telling you that the stage he’s going through then is better than any before, but for now, I love the way he is and I want him to stay like this forever.