Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things. ~Robert Brault

I've always appreciated babies, but until I had my own I didn't truly grasp what little miracles they were. When I held James for the first time, I experienced first hand how defenseless and helpless he was. Without an adults assistance, he could not do anything for himself. All he could really do was stare, (and boy did he do a lot of that), and let out an occasional cry to let us know something wasn't right.

The early days with James. We would stare at each other for hours at a time.

Sixteen months later, I can't believe he is the same child. I'm in awe. I am sure other moms can agree with me when I say, every day its something new-and my goodness it goes by fast. I've tried so hard to retain as many "firsts" as I possibly can. I've written things down, but unfortunately lost my "log" and have had to go from memory, and I've taken as as many pictures and videos as I can. It still doesn't feel as though its "enough." I feel like so many of these precious moments are passing me by and I don't have time to sit and appreciate them...so tonight my blog is dedicated to that-those "small things" that in the moment seemed so big.

James Smile-His smile lights up my life-my entire world. Between his extremely expressive eyes (that I swear sometimes twinkle), tiny button nose, and beautiful dimples (thank you Daddy), he can melt even the coldest of hearts. I remember my mom telling me that I smiled from the moment I was born-and she swears it wasn't just "gas." I always figured it was a "mommy exaggeration," but then had a little "smiler" of my own. Within a few days, my newborn was smiling up a storm. It wasn't a "gas" smile, like my mom had once said, it was a real smile. He was born so happy. James cannot keep a straight face-very much like his mother. He wakes up with a smile on his face, smiles even when he's being fresh, and as I kiss him goodnight he puts his head on his pillow with a smile on his face.  I feel like happiness radiates from this boy!

When he smiles, his entire face lights up. No doubt he has the Irish eyes!

His Laughter-As if his big smile wasn't enough, along came his laugh. He started laughing when he was a month old. For those of you who have heard it, you understand just how unique it is. Its not quite a laugh, but more of a cackle-and it is beyond contagious! He "cackles" so hard he can't catch his breath. The only other person I've ever met with such an amazing laugh, was my Aunt Mary. I swear he shares so many of her qualities-and the laugh is one of them. Its like she is living on through his laughter.

Rolling Over-The first time James ever rolled over was actually when he was a day old. It was very strange and Andy and I kind of sat there staring in bewilderment. Thank goodness it was the one and only time until he was 9 weeks old. He always loved being on his belly, but once he grew interested in the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, he refused to play on his stomach, and would roll over to get a better view of the T.V. Before long he was able to roll over both ways. He had found his means of transportation. He would barrel roll over to any object he was interested in. Such a sight to see!

His first means of transportation-the roll. Watson was a common target. James loves his furry friend!

Feeding Himself-I hate wishing anything away, but boy did I miss having my hands free the first few months. I lucked out and James quickly learned how to burp himself. He mastered this by 8 weeks old. This allowed me to prop him in his Boppy with a receiving blanket and bottle and have a few minutes to do things around the house. By 6 months old, he was holding the bottle on his own-as a matter of fact started "pounding" his bottles. I remember sitting with a few friends one day in a Food Court at the mall, with James standing on my lap, bottle straight up in the air-chugging. As soon as he was done, he slammed the bottle down on the table, like the true Irishman he is. As a matter of fact, he was wearing his Scally Cap that day. James was just about 7 months old when he mastered the "pinching grasp," which now allowed for him to feed himself snacks-and freed up more time for Mommy! By his first birthday, he had broken the bottle habit and was a pro feeder! We are still working on the utensils-its quite a messy experience!

Pay no attention to the date-my camera is always wrong. This is circa January 2010. The little guy was able to sit up and hold his bottle! I was hands free!

This picture was taken the day of the food course bottle session!

Crawling to Walking-James didn't just get up on all fours one day and take off, it was more of a progressive process. The early stages of his crawling, consisted of him lying on his belly and dragging himself with his elbows (yes, an army crawl). I actually remember the first time he did it. He has a Wally the Green Monster stuffed animal and I used it as bribery. I would hold it just a little of his reach, and he would drag himself over to me. It didn't take long before he realized that his knees were helpful in the process, and he took off. He would fly around the house on his hands and knees. It was amazing to watch him become slightly independent (for a six month old). His first steps surprised me around 10 months old. Quickly he was able to walk in a straight line (no quick turns). His first birthday marked the end of his crawling era. He was a big boy, and big boys walk-or these days run-to their destinations!

Up on all fours and moving around at a faster pace-not long until he's up on his two legs! Look at that determined face!

...and he's off! Getting ready to retire his crawling lifestyle!

Pointing-At first James would do the whole palm point. He would aim his palm at anything he wanted or was interested in. It took him a little bit to master the one finger point, but he soon got it. He likes to use it as often as possible. He uses it as a learning tool, by pointing at things and asking "Dat?" or as a means of discipline "BOH! BOH!" Watson gets the "BOH! BOH!" a lot (along with most dogs-he lets them know who is boss) and my dad, who loves to tease him. This past weekend James was getting excited to take a big bite out of a cupcake and my dad decided to fake a bite out of it. James' jaw dropped, and immediately the little finger came out-"BOH! BOH! PAPA!" Nothing comes between James and his sweets!

His Language-I told Andy when I was pregnant, that the baby might come out looking like him, but he'll talk a lot like me. This actually happened. James was 5 months old when he started babbling "Mama." I knew he didn't technically know what he was saying, but I knew it was early for him to be doing it. I wasn't surprised when at 8 months he said his first "official" word. I was changing his diaper (and at this point, he was all about rolling over mid-diaper change). I held a wiffle ball over his head to distract him from the rolling movement, and said "ball." He looked at it, then at me, and as clear as day said "BALL." His wiffle ball became his favorite toy-and everything else shaped like a ball as a matter of fact. Sometimes he'd even say it with an Italian accent-Bal-le. Its almost an obsession for him-for instance, on Halloween while trick-or-treating, he would search for candy shaped like a ball. Between the word ball and his animal sounds, James was in his glory communicating with us. He knew all of his animal sounds by 9 months, of which the lions roar was his favorite. He would growl at everyone. He could fill in the "woof woof" when I'd sing "How Much is That Doggy in the Window," and say "wee wee wee" for all the way home. At 16 months, James has started putting words together-which amazes me. He can understand simple commands and I can understand what he is asking and saying. I am able to successfully communicate with my baby-wow!

There it is-his blue wiffle ball. His favorite toy. This was the actual ball that I used to teach him the word, "ball."

Singing and Dancing-James loves music. Barney and Baby Boost are his shows of choice (since they are based around music). He wants to be able to sing along. He used to just hum along with all of his favorite songs, and sway in his playpen. Just recently he has really started singing. He has almost mastered "Twinkle Twinkle" and can hit a lot of words right on cue in his favorite songs. To me, its amazing. His singing face is a sight to see. He curls his little eyebrows up and just lets out this soft, high pitched, hum. He means it! He has watched Barney and Baby Boost so much, he is now the master of marching, falling down, clapping his hands, shouting "Hooray," beep beeping, etc. He's a dancing machine!

OK-so this isn't him really rocking out, since he was only a few weeks old. It made you smile though, didn't it? Told you his happiness is contagious!

  I feel that I could go on forever, and will probably blog about some more of my "favorites" that were not mentioned this time around. I just don't want to forget each little milestone he has. Time is cruel that way, and sometimes details that meant so much in a moment, somehow slip away. Watching the transformation from a newborn to a toddler has been an incredible journey. I don't think the awe will ever really go away. One day he wasn't here-then the next he was. One day he was this tiny little being in my arms, just staring at me-now he can run up to me and wrap his arms around me. One day I was feeding him his bottle-now he shares his cookies with me and "feeds Mama." One day I would play peek-a-boo to make him smile, and now he plays peek-a-boo with me to make me smile. Life goes by quickly-enjoy the little things-because someday they'll
be big.

My little bug surprising me with a hug. I love that even with his slight independence, he still comes back for love!