13 months- 1st word

My sweet and trouble baby Evan is 13 months old. At moments this is hard to believe, and other moments it's hard to believe he hasn't been with us forever. Not to mention he is convinced that he is just as old, just as big, and just as capable to do anything that Caleb and Elizabeth are doing.
Today he said his first word! What a big boy. Now, you might be thinking... 13 months, and only his first word. That really isn't that impressive. You're right. He's been babbling and repeating sounds for months. But for a Brown kid none of that gets to count as you're first word. For starters, I have to know that this word can be repeated. And you have to be willing to repeat it on command and show off. Also, this word must be used in context.
So yes, he's babbled LOTS of things. Many I probably could have considered his first word. But I didn't count anything before today.
Here is the scenario:
We were dropping Elizabeth off at her bus stop and she was getting out of the car. (Yes we drive to the bus stop. We don't in decent weather, but it is significantly below freezing, there are inches of snow on the ground and sidewalks because no shoveling ordinance is enforced, and the wind chill is more than I feel right about making my boys walk over half a mile through. But enough of my aside...) I told the boys to tell her good bye. Caleb did, and Evan waved as usual, but he also said "bye." I was so excited! He told her a couple of times, told me again later, and we called my mom so he could tell her too.
I'm sure before long we will be telling him not to interrupt, but today I am so excited he's finally decided to start talking. :)
Just for the record:
Elizabeth's first word: "Dada"
Caleb's first word: "woof" He said it every time he saw a dog, and anytime you asked him what a dog said. :)
So maybe I'll never get a kid who says "mama" first... oh well

2011?!?!?

Does it sound weird to anyone else? 2011? I don't know why, but for some reason it sounds really weird to me. 2010 didn't, but 2011 does. I can't explain it.
I'll go back and fill in the large blog gap with a few stories soon, but I wanted to take this time and think about the new year.

2011.
Justin and I stole a toast from a friend and officially toasted to this at New Years: "To a year that is more like the train ride around Kennywood (the local amusement park), and less like one of the roller coasters!"
Because I'll be honest 2010 was a roller coaster!
That night I listed off some of the good things that happened in 2010. Here are a few that made the list:
1- We really adjusted to and handled being parents to three kids.
2- Caleb and Elizabeth both embraced and adore Evan. We have had no real adjustment or jealousy issues.
3- Each of our kids has really grown, and their personalities continued to blossom this year.
Elizabeth is super helpful (on the verge of too helpful occasionally), a great reader, loves school, dancing and her friends.
Caleb really enjoys being the big kid around the house, he dotes and loves on his baby brother, he is really getting good with numbers, and his letters are improving daily. He does great at school. His obsessions with airplanes, guns, and sharks continue.
Evan started out being so content just as long as he was watching the chaos. Now he wants in the middle of it! He is curious, and into EVERYTHING!! He is positive he is just as big as his brother and sister, and is constantly following them around to be involved in what they are doing. He is happy and tough little booger, who is only really upset when he doesn't get to play with everyone else, or gets told no! He has an adorable mischievous grin, and loves his daddy.
4- We had an amazing summer vacation. We were together for a week, toured some of the famous and historical sites of Pennsylvania, and had an absolute blast. Our kids got along and traveled well. Justin had a great and much needed break from work. Overall it was an amazing adventure, and I loved it!
5- We have successfully added a puppy to our family. Didn't know that? Oh yeah, in the 2 1/2 months I haven't written we've had 4 birthdays, 3 holidays and we got a puppy. But at least we fulfilled a dream of our daughters that has been delayed for 5 years.
6-While still not official (the contracts should arrive in the mail this week), Justin has a job lined up for the end of residency!! And more importantly than that it's not just a job. I really believe that we are being called to this place. (How do I know? I didn't want to go there, but it is THE place that has opened a door for us, and I feel good about it even though part of me still doesn't want to go there. Besides, I'm noticing this pattern in my life.... Des Moines, Pittsburgh, now McMinnville. I might be slow but I get it now.) What does life hold for us there? Who knows? It's one of the less "train ride" feeling parts of 2011. But it is also what makes 2011 so interesting.
7- We have seen the power of prayer and fasting work in our lives. Some friends of ours had an extremely difficult 2010, and it looked like it could be the last year of their family. We prayed and fasted and spoke words of difficult honesty, and rebuke. We cried, we fought, we prayed, we waited, and GOD worked. God still has a lot to do, but I saw these friends take comfort in each other's arms as the new year was about to begin. He is real and alive and at work. I know. I saw it in 2010.
I wonder what he has in store, and what ways he will work in 2011.