I don’t feel like my baby is a baby anymore; he’s a toddler. The way he climbs, and crawls, and plays with his toys, and looks at me with comprehension, I realize that my baby is not a baby anymore.
We’ve come so far! I remember the early weeks when Kwabena was just a bundle of cute baby, small enough to wrap like a burrito…small enough to hold in the palm of your hand…still enough to assure that you wouldn’t drop him. Now we’ve got a ball of energy zipping around the house, standing up to anything that will support his weight, testing the waters by releasing the grip of one hand, mastering the art of falling on his butt instead of his face.
I remember the breastfeeding challenges, too. Oh, how challenging that was, and I didn’t even have any terrible issues, like mastitis or any other seriously painful complication with breastfeeding. I only had sore nipples (I can use the word “only” right now simply because breastfeeding is now a piece of cake, but–MAN!–was that tough).
I remember having to get up every 3 hours to feed Kwabena, to ensure that he stayed well-nourished. I remember turning on Nick at Nite tv just to have something to focus on while I did my many night feedings. Now, I savor each moment of those nursing sessions, memorizing the way that Kwabena’s eyes roll back in his head in contentment…the way his hand strokes my chest and grabs my necklace…the way the milk seeps out of the corner of his mouth when he pulls off to look at me or to check out what’s going on in the room. I enjoy knowing that I am able to nourish my child. That’s my superpower. What’s yours? (I saw a t-shirt with that quote, so I had to steal it because it was so cool–and true).
Now Kwabena’s got a tooth on the bottom, and the other one is breaking through the surface of his gums. I discovered his first tooth on Feb. 7th, while at the airport in Denver, Colorado, about to fly to San Jose, Califorina. How shocking! He wasn’t fussy, so how was I to know to look?
Speaking of California, it was a great trip! I still can’t believe that Kwabena and I traveled across the US to meet up with some of the ladies and babies from my BabyCenter.com mommy group. It was well-worth it. We had a good time!
The beautiful beaches of Carmel. This picture turned out fabulous! On Saturday, Feb. 11th, the weather was beautiful, so we walked along the beach:
Kwabena did NOT want to sit in sand, and was about to fuss!
At the Monteray Acquarium, at the penguin exhibit:
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