525,600 Minutes

How do you measure a year?

For this family, 2008 can definitely be measured in love. Please pardon my sappiness as I get a little choked up - my little man is one year old on Wednesday.

As I fed him his morning "ba-ba" today, wrapped up in his snuggle blankie, I held him just a little tighter. I thought about the fact that I wouldn't be able to sit in his glider much longer and have tender moments like this. It seems the bigger he gets, the more he wants "da" (down). Little tears formed in my eyes and rolled down onto his sweet head....about 60 seconds later he gave out a giant toot and then laughed so hard I couldn't help but join in. That's motherhood for you, crying one minute, laughing the next.

Here is a look at our 12 months of love.

Noah James learned so many things in his first year. How to sit up, then crawl and now how to walk! How to say a handful of words and to sign a few too. Mommy also learned a few things this year. Here is a list, lest in a moment of weakness (oh the dreaded baby fever!) I forget and start wanting to try for #2 too soon. This year Mommy learned how to:

1. Read all four novels of the Twilight series while breastfeeding
2. Prepare dinner with right arm, dangling baby on left hip (avoiding stove)
3. Shovel in my own meals in under 3 minutes
4. Drive with one hand while finding dropped toy in backseat with other
5. Survive on 4-5 hours of sleep
6. Shower in about 60 seconds while watching monitor and listening for baby crying
7. Interpret the "I am hungry" cry from the "I am just pissed off" cry
8. Hold the bathroom drawer closed with left foot, brush teeth with right hand, hold Noah's hand with left pink finger (that was last night)
9. How to get to all Babies R 'Us within a 50 mile radius.
10. That the term "mother bear" doesn't even come close.

Somewhere on the list should also be that despite the sarcasm, I learned that I love being a mama . There is nothing like having a little person love you so unconditionally that you just want to stay in that glider chair, cuddled together with a blankie, holding them tight forever.

It was a year of love, indeed.