After an appalling pregnancy and a crippling case of pre-natal depression that sent my heart and mind to places I never could have imagined, a miracle bursting with joy, laughter and Love arrived in our world very early on a crisp April morning over Easter weekend in 2014.
We are a year on now, and we’re all more in Love with him than ever, but he’s growing up pretty fast, and is absolutely the last Hobbit child to come up the ranks. Makes me a little sad. Also looking forward to some independence again!
I can’t begin to tell you how well this child fits into our family and among our friends.
He is bursting with life and Love and smiles ALL the time.
Just thinking about him and listening to him splashing around in the bathtub with his big brother Adam as I attempt to get this blog out for you brings happy little tears to my Hobbity eyes.
I guess, he must have been sucking the joy out of me and building up his reserves while he was growing in my tummy, as he is absolutely one of the most joyful people I have ever met. And I don’t begrudge him it, as now that he is on the other side of the womb, I have felt nothing but Love for the little man.
So here is a quick journey through pictures of our first year with James David Leondard West.
Smiling three and a half months before he was even born.
Lynelle (we went to high school together) at my very last hospital visit before James arrived.
Meeting another gorgeous gestating girl at the Skid Row/Ugly Kid Joe concert.
Gearing up for a quick and drugfree birth. So they weren’t just braxton hicks, they were actual contractions and an actual baby came a few hours later….
Whew. Hi there James!
Meeting one of the people I adore most in the world. My Daddy Bruce
Adam feeding his very own baby 🙂
Big Brother Daniel
Auntie Leigh and Steph and James
Adam and Steph having a snuggle early one morning
Auntie Sarah
Big smiles from James on my Birthday morning (he is six days old)
In California with Aunty Cat and Mommom.
Granny’s shoulders at the big kids’ parent teacher interviews
Hanging in Pauanui with the only girl cousin Amara and Bapo (Pappa Strat)
The whole family
Aunty Cathy
Aunty Cathy and Uncle Bob at Granny and Poppa’s house.
Wellington and running in to Delightful Danni!
Up to no good with Hayley!
Visits with Kyrin
Looking pretty cute in an outfit Katie got for him
Happy as a bug in a rug in Matakana
Barcelona tiredeness
Helping dad read the menu in Roma
Sneaking in some sleep in Italy
Barcelona Tapas
Norway. Airport.
First steps at four months? No… just a camera trick 🙂
Taking a wee nap under our favourite willow tree in Central Park
Auntie Lara
Uncle Derek
Meeting the cousins from Calgary
You! You are AWESOME!
Auntie Emma and Kiwi cuz Quinn
more smiling
All of us
Black and white, quiet moment
Phteven’s idea of parenting.
Yoda
Meeting one of his two god mums… The other Godmum has heaps of beautiful pictures with James but doesn’t like me sharing them online. Sigh.
So I have hundreds and hundreds of pictures of James, but this is just a small collection I wanted to share with you. We’ve had a great first year getting to know this guy, and we thank all our friends and family who have tuned in and watched him grow up in the chaos that is our family!
XXOO
Dee
Dee’s Meanderings 
Oh I adore the black and white photo of you both near the bottom! So serene! Happy birthday to James from all of us. (I never realised he and Viv were only a day apart!)