Memories to Keep

Maisy is 13 and a half months old now - is it possible that the second year can go faster than the first?  It seems like it.  I know that the first 6 weeks of Maisy's second year of life has disappeared much more quickly than the same weeks last year.

When I think back to those weeks, I can remember waking up many times each night, and the feeling of victory I felt if she made it three hours between feedings instead of two, four hours instead of three.  The week she began sleeping until 4 am was monumental!  Now she's drinking whole milk from a sippy cup, and the rare nights that she wakes up in the middle feel in some ways harder... I think.  :)  

I remember thinking she slept ALL DAY LONG - and she pretty much did!  Now I cross my fingers that Maisy will take two naps in a day, or at least one long afternoon nap so I can clear away the clutter for round two.

I remember her sweet newborn noises and the adorable kissy face she used to make unconsciously.  Now she's trying out new sounds and words nearly every day, and her breathless "hi hi hiiii" is a greeting I will always treasure.  Her "kissy face" has been replaced by real kisses, with a big upper-lip-to-the-bottom-of-her-nose pucker up that is irresistible.

Our family will grow again someday, maybe soon.  Judging from my mother-of-4 sister's blog, my cluttered house will get clutterier and my mornings will become hectic.  The days will fly by one faster than the other, yet there will always be memories to keep (even if there is seemingly no time or place to keep them).

I love being a mom, even when I'm greeted at 4:45 am with a poopy diaper, a diaper rash, and a rarin'-to-go 1-year-old.  When she's proud of her first crayon scribbles, taking those first few steps into my open arms, or crawling toward me all puckered up for a kiss and a snuggle, it's worth every blowout she ever had.

And that's a whole lot.