The Early Days

I have to admit that being a mother to 2 kids is a change, one that slowly I am getting used to and hopefully getting better at juggling each and every day. I have discovered a huge benefit to being a mother of two though - being able to enjoy and love the early days of a baby.

When I first had I., everything was new and confusing and though I loved being home with her, I know I was a little off kilter trying to figure out what this new baby was all about and how to handle being at home with her by myself all day long.

This time around, I have a better understanding of the foundational elements. The fact that D. is going to want to go to sleep about 1 hour and 45 minutes after he's woken up. The fact that he is going to want to eat every 2-3 hours. That kind of foundational stuff. It also helps greatly that I. was a difficult baby from day one. She liked to be entertained and constantly stimulated and had a hard time soothing herself down from being upset or to going to sleep. Funny how not much has changed with her in respect to any of these things.

So with the foundational elements out of the way and the knowledge that one, this is my last baby and two, these early days go by so quickly and you never ever get them back, I am greatly enjoying D.'s early days. Instead of the days feeling slightly stifling with their simplicity, they feel like a splurge, an indulgence of my motherly senses. I smell the top of his velvet head constantly throughout the day. I stroke the softness of his skin. I feel the loose skin on his thighs which someday will be filled with strong muscles that propel him away from me and into his own future life. I enjoy wrapping him tightly against me and carrying him around, just as though he was back in the womb. I just enjoy HIM and find myself mentally stopping to be in the moment and savoring it.

The early days...a blessing that is best appreciate the second time around.