Warning: Besotted Mummy Ahead!

Alipuddin' is so yummy I could eat him up with a spoon! Saturday was his birthday. He's a year old now. Time flies so fast when Ali's around!

For his present we bought him a charming wooden toy truck. But after a while he seems to love the new toy just as much as he loves playing with the wastebasket in the kitchen. Sigh.

With Alipuddin', there's no middle road for him. If he's happy, he lets everyone know through his mischievous eyes, loud squeals, and energetic bounces. If he's frustrated or unhappy about a situation, his shouts can wake the whole neighbourhood up. But his needs are easy to decipher. Most times, all he needs is someone to pick him up and he's instantly back to his ol' bubbly self. He rarely cries when he wakes up after a nap. But he would let us know that he's awake by calling out to us. A couple of times I found him alone on the bed, his face turned towards the window, seemingly lost in baby thoughts. I often wonder what he was thinking about. I had to stop myself from gathering him up in my arms and smother him with kisses hence disturbing his gentle reverie.

He gets still and quiet when we cover his neck, ears and cheeks with smooches. The only signs that tell us he enjoys the barrage of kisses are through his wide eyes and equally wide open grin. Speaking of grins, he now has two baby teeth on his lower gum. He only started growing his first tooth 2 months ago. He is so adorable when he flashes his two-toothed grins at us. I wonder how he'd look like when his mouth starts to fill up with pearly whites. I know I'm going to miss the baby smiles he sports now.

He loves going out. It doesn't matter where. When we took him to his first check up at 2 months of age, his round eyes would suddenly become animated and he'd start having 'conversations' with me. Even the nurse was surprised at his apparent enthusiasm at such a tender age. Later as he gets older, he'd lunge at any of us who dons the headscarf in front of him. At that age of 7 months he'd already started showing observation skills and can anticipate upcoming events. If we're slow to pick him up, woe betide his caretakers!

Fortunately he loves car rides. It's a breeze traveling with him on long car journeys. The constant motion keeps him contented while the nooks and crannies of the car's interior keeps him relatively occupied. The baby seat only works for him when he's asleep. I welcome anyone to try get this bundle of muscles and willpower strapped to his baby seat!

When he first started to crawl, he already had it in his head that I could oftentimes be found in my bedroom. If the door was closed he would bang on the bedroom door with his fists so that somebody would open it up. One day I observed him from behind; first he would pause at the threshold, then his eyes would sweep the room then look up towards the bed to see whether I'm there or not. Failing to find me in there, he turned around to seek his mother somewhere else. Oh, what joy when his eyes met mine!

Aliuddin stretches me in ways I thought I could never be stretched. His boundless energy and need for constant stimuli can sometimes become too much for me, as I'm a person who craves peace, quiet, and tranquility. But after having spent the past 365 days as a mother to my baby Ali, I wouldn't trade my tears and sighs of frustration for a moments respite. One year has passed since he was lifted up by the midwives all bloodied and bruised and placed on my chest. I could still feel the heat of his body warming up this new mother's heart. Now he is one year old. I love it whenever he puts his pudgy, dimpled hands on both of my cheeks and look deep into my eyes. Or today after I finished my prayers, he would crawl right up to me and put his head on my lap. What mother's heart wouldn't melt at this sweet gesture?

May Allah guide my son on his journey towards pleasing Him and make him one of the Righteous people. Ameen.