Week 52: We are one

Of course we wanted the last week of Lemon's official babyhood to be a memorable one.  In retrospect, slightly less memorable would have been OK too, but that wasn't in the cards.  As you loyal readers will recall, as of last writing Lemon had come down with a fever, which we ascribed to some pretty serious teething action.  Fortunately, by Wednesday, the fever had more or less vanished, but unfortunately, Lemon didn't seem to be feeling any better.  Then, Thursday morning the rash appeared.  Yup.  Roseola.  The rash and the lack of appetite hung around until Saturday--just enough time to put a noticeable dent in his weight gain in advance of his one year appointments at the CF clinic and the pediatrician.  Oh, right, and at the pediatrician he'll be getting a slew of 12-month vaccines, so next week will likely also be off in terms of eating, but I'm getting ahead of myself.

So, by Friday, the roseola was starting to fade, and I was getting my gear in order for a half marathon early Saturday morning.  I got up at 5:30, ate a quick breakfast, and biked over to the start of the race.  I turned in a time of 2:01:40, which I was quite happy with.  I probably had an even faster time in my legs, but given what lay ahead, I knew I had to be fairly functional for the rest of the weekend.  Lemon and Papa Bear came out to watch the race which was wonderful--they saw me although I was so in the zone that I didn't see them. 

I was back home by 10, took a shower, and hopped back on the bike for a ride over to the farmer's market to pick up a ton of fresh produce for our housewarming party.  Yes, in the same weekend as a race.  Next time I announce plans to do something like this, please do go ahead and schedule that intervention.

Back home from the farmer's market, lunch, etc, then in the car and off to Costco for the rest of the party supplies.  Back home for a ton of party prep and baby care.  I did go to bed at 8 which felt luxurious.  Then Sunday morning we were back at it with keeping Lemon amused and getting ready for our party.  I think it came together really nicely--someone asked me if it was professionally catered, which was flattering.  It was fun to finally have a bunch of people over at our house since we are still feeling a little isolated here.  Basically everyone we know in Madison, which amounts to something like 30 all told, showed up for all things local (produce, beer from two different local breweries, wine from last weekend's winery, cheese from a local farm, and of course local muskmelon which is really heaven on earth).  Lemon was taking a nap when the party started so you can imagine his shock when he woke up and there were 30 people in his house.  It was really one of the most exciting days of his life, there were so many other kids here for him to play with and watch.  The party wrapped at around 5:30, Lemon was in bed by 6:30 and Papa Bear and I got the house back in order and then followed suit.












That pretty much brings us up to the present moment, the eve of Lemon's first birthday.  What a year it's been.  This week brought a few more important milestones, including Lemon's very first mini-excursion in the bike trailer (not a fan of the helmet) which I hope is a prelude to many longer outings in the years to come.












Also, after a year of cohabitation, Lemon seems to finally have earned the trust of our cats.

This year has been the biggest roller coaster of my life, with some of the highest highs and  also the lowest lows.  I wasn't sure at all what to expect motherhood to be like; certainly nothing like it is.  It is both harder and more wonderful than I could ever have imagined. 

I can barely recall what my life was like before I had Lemon, before the care of a child and the obsession with cystic fibrosis took over everything.  One thing I do recall very strongly from my past life is my friends and family.  Most of you are much farther away now, but we still feel your presence every day.  You have clicked on our blog 11,865 times, you have helped us raise over $10,000 to fight the disease that we are working so desperately to keep at bay, you have called, texted, emailed, and visited when we needed you most.  So thank you.  We are looking forward to next year, whatever it brings.

Happy, happy birthday, Lemon!