Go to the Head of the Class
My grandson Bryce has passed his first year of life with flying colors. As he’s reached all the normal first year milestones – first smile, first tooth, first step, learning to sit, crawl and walk – we’ve watched with enthusiasm and awe at how much a baby can learn in one year. As much as I’ve been impressed with his physical accomplishments, I’m equally impressed with the sometimes more subtle developmental milestones that assure me of his emotional health and his humanity.
Self-confidence: Bryce often exudes this as he struts his stuff, taking pride in his play and taking his life investigations very seriously.
Sense of Humor: I’m surprised at how early this human trait develops. It’s easy to make Bryce laugh and he likes to make you laugh as well.
Self- preservation: When I see Bryce move away from something strange or when he occasionally becomes afraid of something or someone, I’m impressed by his instincts and I know that his sense of personal boundaries and cautiousness will serve him well all through his life.
Ability to express love: I’m so impressed with Bryce’s hugs. They melt my heart and it touches me to know that he has the ability to form loving attachments.
Ability to express hurt feelings: Recently, while on a walk I handed Bryce a bright red wild strawberry, but then I remembered reading something about a mock wild strawberry and worried that it might be poisonous, so I quickly pulled it away (knowing he would surely put it in his mouth). He cried as though I broke his heart. Even though it was hard to hear him cry, I knew his ability to express his tenderness was a healthy sign.
Watch Bryce exhibit some of these skills HERE. (I could watch this one all day.) If you listen closely you’ll hear him say NANA!
Post notes: Later I did some research and verified that there are no poisonous strawberries but there is a wood strawberry that is particularly large and pretty; it’s edible but has no taste. And just to be clear, Bryce does not wear glasses. Those are mine that he pulled off my face.
May 15th, 2009 9:45 am
Wow, he’s a cutie and, quite clearly, very smart 🙂
May 15th, 2009 9:46 am
Netchick sent me over to say hi, Colleen. Hi!
No sense in giving him strawberries until he’s old enough to drink rum or Champagne. They are pretty though. Nice for picture taking. Strawberries, that is.
It’s great that Bryce is hitting all his developmental milestones on schedule. And very nice that you put as much emphasis on the emotional ones as the more commonly noticed neuromuscular ones.
May 15th, 2009 9:54 am
Those are my glasses I hope you know!
May 15th, 2009 10:59 am
I ate one of those wild strawberries or snake berries as my dad called them. It didn’t have any taste nor did it poison me. I was concerned at first!
Bryce is too cute. Hard to believe how quickly he is changing.
May 15th, 2009 4:01 pm
Next is for you to see if he has rhythm. Does he dance when he hears cool music?
May 15th, 2009 6:46 pm
Click on the video link on the front page for the answer.
Or here
May 15th, 2009 8:48 pm
Happy birthday to the big boy! What a cutie!
May 15th, 2009 11:53 pm
Okay, first . . . he’s insanely cute and that video was hysterical. Second . . . where can I get a bunny like that??? I’d dance around like that too if I had one sitting in my kitchen floor. Hehe. TOO CUTE!!! I love the glasses too. 🙂
May 16th, 2009 8:16 am
He’s a cutie! I always thought those “snake berries” as we call them were poisonous, too. Sometimes it is hard to tell the difference between those and a strawberry. Snake berries grow up toward the light, strawberries hang down.
Or so my mom always said.
May 16th, 2009 9:34 am
The snake berry strawberries are also bigger and more perfectly formed, drawing in many a disappointed picker, I would think.
May 16th, 2009 11:30 am
What a doll and I can hear him distinctly saying “Nana”….you are lucky. xoxo
May 18th, 2009 2:52 am
Well, we also learned that he is Musical and has rhythym, from that Video…Those first 20 seconds or so he is right in time with the music! I love it!
He is so damned adorable, Colleen…I can see why you would want to spend every waking moment with him if you could….! DELIGHTFUL!
May 18th, 2009 6:53 pm
Must be fascinating to see it all open up in real time, a genuine little human.
May 19th, 2009 7:14 am
I loved this post . I have only been observing super cute sigh