So, I didn’t realize there was a universal law dictating that one’s child must acquire a disfiguring scar on his or her face just in time for first birthday pictures. I had heard these stories from several of you, but I didn’t realize it was a rite of passage for which I needed to be prepared.

Monday was the lip busting. The little guy tumbled over and bit his lip so hard that it bled for awhile.

Tuesday Ian flipped over a diaper box while pushing it, but no visible scrapes resulted.

Wednesday Ian was playing in the living room and ran into the leg of our coffee table. Not the top edge, which we have protected with foam, but the leg. He just crawled into it and ended up with a corner-shaped bruise.

Thursday was blissfully accident-free, and I was relieved to see that his previous battle wounds were fading.

But Friday…… oh, dear. Friday. Friday is when Ian continued to chase the cat despite hearing “No kitty” several times. Friday is when I wasn’t quite fast enough to intervene. Friday is when Ian got a giant kitty scratch across his face.

Sigh.

It could have been much worse, and I’m thankful that Ian’s forehead got the force of the scratch rather than his eye. But still. The day before his birthday? Across his face? Sheesh.

I was quite worried that when the grandmothers arrived for our family gathering on Saturday, they would either call Child Protective Services or quickly dispatch the cat to a farm in the country. Fortunately, they  both raised little boys of their own, so they know how such things go. (However, grandmothers, if the cat disappears, I’m questioning you first!)

Ian seemed to have a wonderful time celebrating his first birthday with Mommy, Daddy, Grammy, Papaw, Granmama, Grandaddy, and Uncle Matt. He even got a taste of his first cupcake!

However, all the pictures of the day look like this:

Created with flickr slideshow.

Okay, okay, maybe not. The scratch wasn’t that bad, and besides, who can resist this adorable mug?