I'm so excited about Cole's upcoming birthday party. It'll be fun to celebrate his first year of life, but today, on his real birthday, I'm giving myself permission to be weepy. Okay, so that's an understatement. I've been spouting out tears all morning. How in the world did my precious baby grow so fast? He's almost a real walker (he only takes 8-10 steps tops before he drops back down to crawl), he prefers to feed himself, and he's speaking (mostly dada, mama, dog, ball, quack-quack, mmmmm, papa, and book).
I kind of feel like his birthday is also a time to say good-bye to and reflect over our summer. We've had a fantastic summer. I like pretending I'm a stay-at-home mom (who travels a lot and has time to actually read fun books). It's been great bonding time for Cole and me. Here are some highlights:
MO trip: Cole still loves going outside with his Grammy.
MO trip: The drum is an early birthday present from Mamaw.
NY trip: Ummm, I do believe JP caught the bouquet. When's it gonna be Kyle?
NY trip: Dancing at Josh's wedding
FL trip: Cousins having fun in the sand
FL trip: Our first night out 
