Thoughts from long ago

I found a couple of blog posts I had written around the time of Emerson's first birthday.  As my blogging fell to the wayside, I never published them!  The following words perfectly summed up my feelings of her first year...

March, 2013
Emerson woke up with a fever yesterday, and congestion hit shortly thereafter. She has been a fussy, sleepy crankypants for the last 24 hours. Her sweet eyes are red-rimmed and watery, and she was up almost every hour last night wanting to nurse...probably to ease a sore throat, if my symptoms are an indicator of hers. So today we are both exhausted and a bit out of sorts. Poor baby girl screamed and screamed when I put her down for a nap...long enough that I went to get her. But the minute she was in my arms, the screaming stopped, her eyes closed, and her breathing became deep and even. And even though I probably could have put her back in bed, I'm sitting in the rocker with my little girl against my chest, prepared to let her sleep as long as she needs. These moments are almost nonexistent these days...a little girl has too much learning and exploring to do to stop and snuggle with mommy...and is old enough to take a nap without being rocked to sleep.

Everyone warns you that time with your baby goes too quickly, but--my goodness--I was unprepared for how rapidly this year flew by. I'm so grateful for every single moment I've had holding, rocking, nursing, and snuggling this (not so) tiny bundle I've wanted for so long. This past year has been absolutely the best year of my life. God has given me the most beautiful gift allowing me to be a mother to this baby girl.

How does a mom...

Ever take a shower?! Especially when her baby is so tiny that she's afraid to leave her alone (even when the babe is asleep)...

Try putting baby in a swing, vibrating chair, or cradle, and pull it into the bathroom. Then shower away, and know that you CAN'T be the only mom that pops her head out of the shower to check on the baby mid-shampoo, mid-conditioner, and mid-shaving...right?!?

(If your bathroom, like mine, is too small to fit the baby, the doorway works just fine:-)

 

You might find that, even once your baby is older, you still use this trick.  ;-)

It's official.

Today is the first day of school.

 

And I'm not there.

 

My sweet girl is napping and I'm running a load of laundry, with dinner in the slow cooker, blogging to you about my new job!

 

I won't be teaching kindergarten this year.  Most days I'll be at home with Emerson!  I'll also be caring for a delightful eight month old boy a few days each week.  And on the days I'm not watching him, once or twice a week, I'll drop Emerson off at her Grandma's house and then spend a day substitute teaching.

 

So, I'll still be busy.

 

But nearly every day I'll be busy with my girl.

 

And I'm so excited!

 

A day in the life...

I am loving every minute that I'm home with Emerson! Often the house is messy and the laundry unfolded (yes...at least I can usually get the clothes clean!) but I am in heaven spending my days with this sweet baby girl. Come September I'll be working again (hopefully part time!!) and these wonderful days of maternity leave will be gone. So believe me, I am milking this for all it's worth! While Emerson quite literally is...never mind:-P

She and I are still up once at night for a feeding, usually after a 5 or 6 hour stretch. I can handle that! (we were up every two hours for what seemed like forever.) When Emerson wakes up for her morning feeding, she is DONE sleeping on her back. So after she has eaten and has a fresh diaper, I prop myself up with pillows in bed and baby girl sleeps on my chest for the next several hours. Some mornings I sleep, others I mess around on my iPhone posting pictures of Emerson on Facebook, and always I kiss her sweet head about every five seconds!

When she wakes up, smiling and chatting with me, I talk to her while I put in my contacts and grab a quick cup of coffee. Then it's my favorite time of day...bath time!! There's something so sweet about a sudsy little babe, and Emerson is always so surprised by the warm water!

By the time she's dried and dressed she's snuggly and ready for a nap! She sleeps in her Soother by the bathroom door while I shower...

The last week or so we've been trying to find a good napping schedule. So if she is still sleeping when I'm dressed, I have time to run a load of laundry or tidy up a bit. Then when she wakes up it's time for her meal and then time to play!!

We recently got her this little play gym. She was days away from 12 weeks and wasn't really reaching for things like They say she should...but she loves it and now grabs those toys with no problem and either marvels at her little hands grasping or tries to eat whatever she's holding. It's adorable.

We continue the eat-nap-play cycle until her daddy gets home from work. Then he and Emerson relax and play, and that's when I have a chance to really get some stuff done!  I make dinner, we eat, and Sweet Baby entertains us until her bedtime.  I try to get to bed within an hour of Emerson so that I can get a longer stretch of sleep...and a few hours later we start over again!

I know these days won't last forever...I'm so grateful for this time!