Letter to James #1

My sweetest baby James,

I thought I'd start writing little letters to you, recording what new things you're doing and discovering and telling you over and over how much daddy and I love you and delight in every moment we have with you.  You are simply the BEST!  :)

Today is Wednesday, January 25, 2010.  It's around 9:30 in the morning and you're settled into a nice, mid-morning nap in your swing.  You like to face the window and enjoy the sun coming in and shining on you.  It's a pretty day here - but cool, for Texas.  I'm drinking warm tea and waiting for you to wake up from your nap so we can go upstairs and you can play while I get ready for the day.

You like sitting up and standing up with help from me and daddy.  You do NOT like to lie on your stomach.  You have beautiful blue eyes, and a little gummy, toothless grin that lights up our world.  You've started giggling when we are playing with you and you seem to be a little ticklish around your ribs.  The sound of your laugh is awesome!  We've started to introduce you to "solid" foods... really, just liquid with more calories made from instant rice flakes and formula... MMMmmmmmm.... delicious, huh?  ;)  Don't worry... we'll share the joys of foods with more flavor with you in the coming weeks and months.  You love to kick your feet and often kick covers off when we put a blanket over your legs.  Recently you've started pushing your body up with your feet and scooching yourself down whenever we have you sitting up on our laps or on the futon or chair.  It's very cute!  And you've also discovered how to shake your head back and forth and you especially like doing this when you have something in your mouth to chew on - I think the back and forth motion feels good on your gums and you can control that movement better with your head right now than you can with your hands.  But your hands are getting better and better and grasping and holding on to things and bringing things to your mouth.  Yesterday for the FIRST time (!) you grasped one of the hanging toys over your bouncy chair and managed to place your fingers through the handle and pull it down to start the music playing. I was very surprised and excited when you did this - and you looked up at me like, "What's the big deal, mom? It's easy!"  :)

Daddy and I love you SO So So much, Jamie.  We tell you all the time that we love you.  We hope you can feel our love and that you will always know our love for you.  You are the best sight for us before falling asleep and the first thing we look at when we wake up in the morning.  We pray for you and love holding you and talking with you.  You can make quite a few sounds now and we have the best time listening to you as you explore the range of your voice.  You like to stick out your tongue when you "talk" and we love it!  You look exactly like your father (lucky boy - your daddy is VERY handsome) but we joke and say that you must have gotten your tongue from me.  When you stick it out, it looks long and pointy, like mine.  Daddy enjoys making fun of the fact that I have a long, pointy tongue so we get a little laugh from watching you stick yours out the way you've been doing.

Here are some of the names that we like calling you:  James (Mommy made up a song about everybody who loves "James"), Jamie (Nana uses this one the most), Jamie Ju Ju (Sometimes Jamie-Ju-Ju-Bee- like the candy - Daddy loves these), Jamerz (Dziadzi used to call your Uncle James this one), Jamesie (One of Mommy's favorites), Jimmy, OochaMaJooch (another Dziadzi creation), the Ooch (for short), Little Goomba (Uncle Brian's favorite), Sweet Baby James (James Taylor recorded a song by this title long before you were born- Mommy's godmother, Maggie & our friends Becky Thurner and Jennifer Juliano and Gayla Easley all have referenced this song in regard to you before you were born and since you've been born too.  Jennifer Juliano sang it to you one Sunday after liturgy outside the Bookstore, her first son's name is James, too - You have a great name my baby boy), Little Peach Head (Daddy made up a song about this one), Jameroo, and sometimes I just call you "Sweet Baby Boy". 

You're very tall for four months.  We have trouble keeping you in footed pajamas because the ones for your age are too short for your legs AND your feet (you have beautiful, long feet) and socks are difficult to keep on you too.  Jammies that are long enough for you are too wide for you and when you play your kicky-kick game at night you kick your feet right out of the legs and they get trapped and you get a little mad, so I just unsnap them and let you kick your legs out and you look like a little mini-octopus with your two legs and the two legs of the PJs.  :)

Well, my love (that's another one we like to use here in the Groh house) you'll be waking up soon, I expect.  So I'll sign off for now.  But I will write you again soon.

Praise be to God for bringing you into the world, into our home, into our lives, into our hearts for all eternity.  May Lord Jesus have Mercy on us all and grant us MANY years together.
WE LOVE YOU, JAMES!!!
Your Mommy & Daddy