Granted, she is almost technically 16 months old, but in truth it was tougher than I thought it might be to reflect upon and write about her first year being over! This little diva is our last baby for many reasons--but the fact that I referred to her as a little diva should really sum it up enough. I didn't realize how many emotions would come reflecting on her first year in a way that was so different from reflecting on our son's first year. Maybe it was the severe lack of sleep associated with him, or the fact that we knew we would have at least one more baby eventually; the emotions were much different. The fact year one is done this time around also means we have experienced many last firsts in the past 16 months. The truth is, a first year is filled with a LOT of stuff! It is pretty amazing (and also gross, and confusing, and frustrating...) what things babies go through in their first year of life that they (and we) will likely not experience again; some I am frankly not so sad to kiss goodbye (like diaper blow outs). while others are harder to put behind us (like her first smile and giggle). Which is probably why it took me so long to come to terms with that enough to write about it!
There have been a lot of new life lessons learned from having a baby girl. When I found out I was pregnant again (with surprise baby #2--her brother was surprise #1), saying I was scared shitless is an understatement. When we found out we were having a girl I was beyond ecstatic, but again scared. What the heck do I do with a baby girl? Everything will be different! She made sure of that from day one by doing this cool thing called "well, guess I'll just be born almost four weeks early because I want to!" This has only continued through her first year of life in so many ways. Being a girl mom was basically like having a first baby all over again. Everything from how to change her diaper to ALL THE CLOTHES girls get were a new part of parenthood to me. For example, buying baby girl clothes. It is completely insane. Not that our son's closet is by any means lacking, but when looking for girls' clothes online it goes something like this:
Searches for cute onesie. Finds cute onesie. Adds cute onesie to cart. Website shows you leg warmers, bows, shoes, tutus, leggings, jackets, and jewelry that 'coordinate' with said cute onesie. Clearly, all of those things are needed. Suddenly your cart is totaling an amount that makes you question whether or not you should begin to sell excess organs and plasma in order to maintain a cute wardrobe. Deletes entire cart.
This is why I am a super, mega, huge fan of second hand boutiques--but that's a story for another day.
As much as I miss those little tiny baby cuddles and snuggles, I am having so much fun seeing her personality bloom. Trust me, when I refer to her as a "diva" there is zero exaggeration. She is SUCH a little diva! But, she is also a happy, silly, determined, sweet, animal loving go getter. If I am being completely honest, I actually enjoy this personality bloom much more than the newborn stage. Don't get me wrong, babies are amazing, but I do not miss the lack of sleep or lugging an infant carrier around everywhere with me. I did not realize how with a second child, I would actually look at her walking as a convenience instead of a nightmare. It is so nice that she can keep up with her brother and I don't have to pack her around everywhere. Okay, so she still expects me to pack her around almost everywhere--that's what babywearing is for!
An entire year has passed (and then some) since we became a family of four and I was no longer just a mom to a little boy but also to a baby girl. What a change it has been and what a lesson in chaos! Now, I cannot imagine life without our super surprise little girl keeping me on my toes with all of her energy, sass, and mischief. As a number, 365 is so large but broken down into days it seems like it has been no time at all. Happy belated 365, my sweet wild one.
No comments:
Post a Comment