Happy First Birthday, little Tenacious D

Happy 1st birthday my little Daniel Ben McPhail.

I'm sorry I don't post as often about you as I did for your brother, but then I have less time these days ;-)

You are so very different from your brother - you are happier, lazier relaxed and far more patient, and you haven't reached the "terrible twos" yet. I can hardly believe I'm the father of a 1-year old and a nearly 3-year old, the two most wonderful little people in my life.

I don't ever want to forget:

• Seeing you yawn in an ultrasound scan on March 2nd 2006. 
• Your birth at 21h45 on April 12th 2006 - they say the second birth is easier for both parents (and I for one was far less nervous) and it may have been if your mother's anaesthetic hasn't started to wear off mid-way through. You took your time, which we should have seen as a sign of things to come...
• How your brother cried when he saw the remains of your umbilical cord and kept crying "ow ow take it off! take it off!"
• How you flap your arms and bounce up and down when excited - wumping and flapping
• Your grins and laughs of pure uncomplicated happiness and joy, which you so freely hand out to everyone
• How you wake up in such a wonderful mood
• How you have started to stand up for yourself, growling at Caleb when steals (yet another) of your toys.
• Your patience and tenacity when figuring something out or trying something new - we call you Tenacious D
• na na na and ma ma ma and da da da
• 3 little teeth (aka Nipple Grippers). Your poor mom.
• How you love to listen to old-style (Metallica etc) rock music on the way back home after dropping your brother off at school. Thanks Radio 2000.
• How you are an aquatic baby, and love to watch water and sit in the bath while it fills up (and cry when you are taken out). Unlike your brother, you don't very much mind getting water in your eyes.
• Your rapidly improving lurch / crawl thing - you had us worried, only learning to crawl relatively recently - but now you're unstoppable
• How you spin round and taking off so fast you fall over when i mock-chase you
• How you point at interesting things and grunt "uh! uh!"
• How you love fruit, especially biltong and mango. Your vegetarian fans are hurt.
• How you hate it when I use the computer instead of interacting with you
• How you love it when I play "where's the baby" with you, and how now you sometimes play the game with me. 

Happy birthday my little son, I love you so much more than words can ever express. Cheesy, but true.

Key in the door, the moment I've been longing for
Before my bag hit the floor
My adorable children rush up screaming for a kiss
And a story they're a gift to this world
My only claim to glory
I surely never knew sweeter days
Blows my mind like munitions
I'm amazed      -Faithless, "Bombs"