My Favorite First Year Memories

• Seeing your face for the very first time over the surgery sheet in the operating room.
• Introducing you to the family
• Skin-to-skin in the hospital
• Your first car ride, our first as a family, taking you home!
• Bathing you in the Puj tub
• Seeing your smile. We saw it in your eyes first, and I loved knowing you were happy!
• Holding you at your baby naming while so many friends and family surrounded us as we explained to you the significance of your special name
• Watching Aunt Robin sing "Wheels on the Bus" to you and playing with your feet. You giggled so much!
• Calling Daddy over to watch you right before you rolled over for the first time. I just knew it was about to happen.
• Taking morning naps with you in our bed
• Our first trip to the Arboretum in October for pictures with the pumpkins
• The first party you "hosted" on Halloween
• Watching you give lots of love to Zaide after Bubbie died.
• Knowing you were "with" us a Daddy and I laid three scoops of dirt on Bubbie's coffin for you for your first big mitzvah
• Cold evening walks up and down the block to see the Christmas lights (my favorite house was two doors down, and it had the blinking, color-changing peppermints)
• Taking our first bath together
• The first time you gave me kisses. You did it three times in a row, and one of those times, you actually grabbed my cheeks to turn my face towards you. It was right before bath time in the bathroom. I loved it!
• Watching you take your first few steps. When Daddy got home from work, you took 3 steps to him.
• Watching you play Peek-a-Boo in your high chair by putting your head down and then up again.
• The night you learned how to shake your head "no" in the bath tub. You thought it was so funny! So did I.
• Lighting the menorah with you each night of Hanukkah
• Your first time in the swing at the park
• The first Friday after I went back to work... you fell asleep on the way home, and you actually fell back asleep on me in the recliner once I carefully got you out of the car seat.
• The two nights you wouldn't go back to sleep and ended up in bed with me, cuddling snuggly all night long. One of those nights was at Grandma's house while Daddy was away on business in California. I didn't know what was wrong, and Grandma didn't either. She helped me get comfy in the bed in "your room" there, and we finally both fell asleep. I hated that I didn't know how to help you, but I loved that you finally calmed down and we got to snuggle.
• Introducing you to my Grandpa, your Great-Grandpa
• Our trip to the park on a windy day with Daddy, Grandma, Uncle Brock, Aunt Mischelle, Caden, Mara, and Brycen
• Playing "Somewhere Only We Know" over and over again on that one Glee episode and singing it to you.
• Watching you and Landry play "soccer" under Aunt Jacque's table at our New Year's Day brunch
• Introducing you to the tree outside our front door, telling you how it will change through the seasons just like you will, telling you how big it's gotten since I moved into the house, and how you will grow, too.
• When Grandma came over to babysit one night, and she surprised you while you were in the bathtub. You lit up seeing her at your house, and you reached for her. We couldn't get you to sit back down!
• Fast, late-night grocery trips to Central Market with Daddy when you were really little.
• Being surprised by Daddy beating us home from work on Valentine's Day. I also loved playing chase with you that evening
• Watching you lean over to give kisses to your play date girlfriends
• The feel of your hands and the tugging on my pajama pants on a Saturday morning as I washed bottles.
• Introducing you to string cheese sitting on the kitchen floor. You bit off pieces at a time and loved the mozzarella!  
• When Grandma brought you up to visit me at work and we saw Mara in the computer lab. You reached for her when her teacher was holding you.
• Watching you walk from Mommy to Daddy in the den. You veered off-course a little, and then you corrected your steps, and that's when I knew you were truly "walking" and not just taking a few steps. You amazed me with your coordination and balance, and my eyes filled with tears as I tried to muster an audible "Yay!" while clapping. Daddy and I grinned from ear to ear - and I think Daddy even had tears in his eyes, but don't say I said so! 
• Even though I hated leaving you each day, one of my favorite memories is looking back one last time as I drove away to go to work in the morning. I smiled as you toddled in your footsie pajamas down the sidewalk next to Grandma with the sun hitting you both just right to make a gorgeous imprint in my brain.  
• Your first time in the swimming pool.
• The night before your first birthday - giving you your bottle while Daddy told you your birth story.
• Your first birthday - first thing in the morning, waking you up with balloons and then right before bed, watching you toddle around the living room. You were giddy and smiley. You amazed me - like you always do. 
• Watching you eat your first bites of birthday cake.