There are a lot of babies around lately. My own, obviously, who will be three weeks old tomorrow and is so far an absolute delight in all respects, but also my brother and his wife had their second daughter yesterday (YAY FOR COUSINS!). And A.'s brother and his wife have a five-month-old daughter.
Point is, we're currently in the Young Parents stage of life, along with many of our family members. And I found myself thinking yesterday, in the midst of the toddler screaming and the newborn nursing and the changing of diapers and the embattled potty visits and everything else that this stage entails, that . . . I kind of miss it already.
I know. Perhaps I am certifiable. Perhaps I am totally delusional from lack of sleep. Perhaps Cubby's shrieking has pierced to my very brain and rendered me senseless, but, well, I anticipate this will be the last newborn I will ever have. And so I can see now that all of these stages, they are finite. They all end. Both the good and the bad.
There are many things that I will emphatically not miss. Like the aforementioned shrieking. But the shrieking is prompted by the fact that my older son depends on me so much, loves me so much, trusts me so much to keep loving him despite the atrocious behavior. And I know that will change. Just as I know that Charlie will change, that he will never again be three weeks old and making the absolutely hilarious faces that newborns make when they want to eat.
I can't stop the change, but I can remind myself that even on the very worst days, I wouldn't trade any of this for anything.
lots of video and pictures
ReplyDeletegrandchildren are even better!
Look at you, though, just living in the moment.
ReplyDeleteSure, you're all maudlin in the moment, but that counts as living in it.
Enjoy it with all your might.
Neat "mom" moment ! Beth
ReplyDeleteOf course, there is a solution to all this--baby number three!?
ReplyDeleteAmen. We have that discussion a lot - for as much as he drives us crazy, we can barely even remember what he was like as a baby. Each phase has things we'll miss and things we won't, but we try to appreciate it all because they'll never be as old as they are today ever again.
ReplyDeleteYou seem to be really good at this "mom thing", and ya'll live in such a unique setting that I think you should have at least one more child. (As if my opinion counts for anything)
ReplyDeleteI know you know this, but cherish all the stages becaust they do "grow up before you know it". I cannot beleive my oldest is 19 and my "baby" is 14. Where did the time go?