15 Months Old!

Dear James,

You are fifteen months old this week!  You are at such a fun age and are truly coming into your own as a little boy.  Daddy put your Cozy Coup together this past weekend and it is a big hit!  You love to go down in the basement with Daddy and Drew and ride in your car.  You mostly enjoy getting in and out of it over and over again.  It's fun to watch!  

You are quite an explorer... always getting into something.  You have even figured out how to open the doors.  I frequently hear a beep beep and catch you just as you are backing your little self out the door and into the garage.  You love to be outdoors and become very angry when others get to leave the house and don't take you with them!  It is a joy to watch you at this age as you discover new things on your own two feet!

You definitely keep me on my toes!  You are constantly tumbling, tripping and pulling things over on yourself.  You don't have fear of many things at this point.  Daddy likes to throw you into the air as you laugh gleefully and you love to do it over and over again.  

My favorite things about you at this age are your curiosity and eagerness to explore new things.  I love your independence, but you still need your mama too.  At story time you frequently toddle into the middle of the room with the other little ones.  Once you realize you are alone you scan the room looking for me and then run back for a quick hug of reassurance.  This fills my heart to bursting.  I love that you are all boy, but you still want to sit on my lap and read a book.  As a matter of fact... you love to look at your books and spend a good part of the day tearing them off your bookshelf and then flipping through the pages.  You are frequently carrying a book to someone and handing it to them to read to you.  

The other day I asked you to bring me your Twinkle Twinkle book.  You looked around the room, spotted it on the floor, went and picked it up and then brought it back to me.  I'm sure you are a genius!  You are a good listener and most often follow our directions when we ask you to do something.  You are such a sweet little boy!

Your word bank is coming along.  You have added baby, bye bye and all done to your vocabulary.   But your two favorites are still wow and uh oh.  Wednesday mornings are a favorite time to stand by the window and use your words as you watch the garbage truck go by.

I wish I could bottle you up and capture all of your sweetness during this time.  The days pass so quickly and I know some day I am going to be sitting and looking at these pictures and wanting to have just one hour of this time back.  There are so many little things that happen during the day and I just want to remember them all, but I know that I won't be able to and so I am content in the fact that I get to spend every day being at home with you.  There is no greater joy than just soaking up the moments... even if I can't remember every little detail... I will rest in the fact that I got to be with you and invest in your little life and just love you.  I praise God for that and I know that it will make all the difference.  

I say this to you all the time and I pray that you know it in your heart... you are a blessing and a gift from God and we love you.

Love,

Mama

He gives... making her the joyous mother.

~Psalm 113:9