The Life and Times of the Kaemingk's: Kees is ONE!!!

Oh man, we love this kid. He is a blessing and a challenge to us all at once. Straight from the start of our pregnancy, he has been a lot of work ... and so worth it! He loves to snuggle and is constantly is "checking in" with me and burying his face in my leg in his own little version of giving a hug. He wants to be involved and in the middle of whatever is happening - he's always watching Calvin and trying to keep up with him. He does NOT like to be left behind or be out of what's happening around him. And goodness, the kid is determined. He is walking all around right now, but can't yet do it by himself (actually, I think he could do a lot more than he is on his own, but so far he seems to not be willing to try yet). He often crawls up to me, grabs my hands, and stands up and starts pulling me along. He LOVES to play peekaboo, and is all about interactive games and seems to pick up on them really quick. His giggle is fantastic and his bright blue eyes kill me every time. He has three teeth right now - two on the bottom and one big top tooth with another on the way, our own little jack-o-lantern. He's still nursing about 4 times a day and packing in the solid food with vigor and enthusiasm. But goodness, when the boy gets mad, he gets mad FAST. He's our wild horse. Sweet and tender, passionate and determined ... teaching self-control will be a big theme in the years to come I think :).

Reflecting on this little guy and what a gift he's been to our little family also makes me think back to the scariness of the beginning of his perfect little life. From concerns of an unviable molar pregnancy, to placental concerns, to a placental abruption and rapid-fire delivery three weeks early, this little guy has been bathed in prayer from the beginning of his life.

I remember sitting in a room at a friend's house in the Netherlands waiting for Calvin to fall asleep for his nap, 12 weeks into my pregnancy and after news of the possibility of a molar pregnancy, and pleading with God to do a miracle. Praying, begging, crying, and being filled with hope - remembering that God is faithful and that he loves, created, and knew/knows my baby even more intimately than I do. And after living through a pregnancy where SO many things could have gone so wrong, here we are celebrating one year of this perfect little baby boy.

Two nights before Calvin was born, I had a very unusual (and rare) dream of God calling me/telling me to get up and read 1 Samuel. These kinds of things never happen to me. So I did. I only made it through the first couple of chapters, where Hannah has her baby, Samuel, and gives him over to the Lord to do with as he deems necessary for his kingdom. That has always been strongly in the back of my mind when raising Calvin, and now it's part of my verse for Kees' life with us -

"I prayed for this child, and the LORD has granted me what I asked of him."

As we move into year two with Kees, we do so with great, unending thankfulness for God's care and provision of this little one - and with great hope for his life in the years to come. We are so thankful to be his parents!

Right after being born, blood in his lungs, and on his way to the NICU

But still perfectly formed, and perfectly beautiful!

Remember how we started?! I do :)

And now look at him!!! One year old. Perfect, beautiful, healthy.

Melt my heart.

In the typical story of the plight of the second child, we didn't have much of a birthday party for Kees (we did a big one for Calvin and he slept through the whole thing). Calvin didn't like this very much. The morning of K's birthday, Calvin said, "Wait mom! Where are the cousins?! We can't have a birthday without the cousins!!!" Very sweet :).

But we did celebrate with Grandma and Grandpa. Here is Kees (with the "help" of big brother) opening his one and only gift (we are terrible parents). Note the look on Calvin's face. Here comes the greedy monster.