It's the little things.

Every day Jake does a hundred things that, if I had this blog up 24/7 I would write down. Things that I hope I never forget. Moments that seem like the whole world when they happen, but are over in a minute and, sadly, more sadly than I can express, often forgotten. So I wanted to take a few minutes to note a few of the little things that I hope I always remember, as much for the feelings they evoked in the moment as for how darn cute they are and how embarrassed Jake will be when I tell the story to his future girlfriends.

The fact that he can't remember the difference between potato and tomato. He knows they're different but he can't remember which word is which.

The fact that he thinks meatballs grow on trees. You know, those little spiky balls that grow on liquid amber trees, those are meatballs and, apparently, in Jake's world, ducks LOVE to eat them.

Him reenacting the octopus rescue scene from Diego where the octopus digs the animals out of the cage and then they swim away. Reinterpreted for carpet floors.

How much Jake loves Dippy. He gives her hugs, gets upset when she won't let him pet her, and one night sat on the floor next to her and dug with her just to be near her. You have to know Dippy to get this, but trust me, it was a moment.

How much he loves to help. I swear his most often said phrase is "Mommy, I help you?" Someday this will be a distant memory so I'm savoring it now (and writing it down so I have proof he used to be like this).

The nightly ritual whereby Daddy has to give a hug and a kiss to every animal in the bed. This is no small task. The roll always includes Elliot the dragon (watch out for the spikes, Daddy!), Bink, Wolfie, Meow, Magic Lion, Murphy, and Merely. There are also often visiting animals, so you can see how it might take up some time.

Ah, there are a million more. I just hope I remember 10% of the darling. That would probably be doing pretty well and it might even get me through 15. Memory is a funny thing though. You never can tell which moments will imprint indelibly and which will slip away. And I wonder, what memories are we creating for him every day, every week? All I can do is my best to make sure there are more happy moments than sad ones so that the odds are in his favor.