The other day, Jacob and I went to the park.  I spread out a blanket (that my college roommates might recognize from its first life as a couch slipcover) on the now voluminous grass, and plopped the little man down next to me.  With a few toys, of course.

We hung out for a while, shaking toys, smiling, doing like we do.  After a little while, Jacob decided he needed a little more freedom.  There’s big world out there, and he wanted to see what the rest of Brooklyn had to offer.

There was plenty of room around us so I let him wander for a while, but eventually I had to bring him back to home base.  If I’d let him, I think he would have crawled across the whole park!

Every day I learn more about Jacob.  First I saw how relaxed and easygoing he is.  Then he started to smile and I saw how incredibly joyful he is.  Now that he’s crawling, I am seeing his completely uninhibited (is that a double negative? should it just be “hibited”?) curiosity come into bloom.

Maybe I’ve been spending too much time in the botanical gardens, but it seems to me that watching a baby grow up is like watching the petals of a flower gradually curl out from bud into blossom.  Except better.

In fact, it’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.