15 pounds, 7 ounces, and 26 1/2 inches of pure spitfire. Still 50th percentile in weight and head size, but 80th in height. Tall, skinny, with a normal-sized head. She's perfect!
She screamed through her shots, as usual. She's been to the pediatrician so much in the past couple of months that she knows it's going to be a bad time the minute we walk in the door, so she was angry before it even began. But, when it was all over, she went to daycare and had a great time, acting like her normal self.
I was reflecting this evening on the past six months as I packed up the remainder of her now too-small clothes in the 3-6 month size. (always a tough milestone for me, it means she's growing up). I remember her being only a few days old, and asking questions about this and that...everyone told me "It gets easier at 6 weeks." Six weeks!?, I thought...I couldn't grasp the concept of her being six weeks old. especially being as sleep deprived as I was, with a colicky baby! And now here she is, 6 months.
I had a dream last night that I was talking to a pregnant friend (Hi Cara!) and telling her that when her baby is a newborn, she is going to be so overwhelmed by how much he's going to need to be held...and how much she's going to want to put him down! I know that's how I felt when Angelica was still teeny tiny and very needy. Now that she's bigger, she's not cuddly at all and I MISS those days so much. Between the time I spend away from her at work and her new-found abilities (crawling, pulling up to standing, etc) there's not much cuddling to be had. Part of me would give anything to go back to the zero to six weeks phase, where all I did was snuggle my baby.
Truth be told, though, so far every stage has been precious and wonderful, especially in hindsight (I've found as a parent, I tend to look at the past with rose-colored glasses). Her first cry, her first smile, her first laugh, her first crawl, her first time sitting up...the first time she reached for a toy...the first time she reached for me...I feel lucky that I haven't missed any of these things, even though I am a working mom. I'm lonely a lot for the early days when I was with her 24/7, but even now the time we spend is so precious, and I know I'm doing her the benefit of being a good role model (meaning, showing her that women can have it all...careers, family...they just have to work extra hard to balance it all!) But I would give anything to have one more day to just pick her little 8 pound body up and bring her to bed and snuggle.
So I take the moments as they come and try to be as present in those moments as I can. Babies grow so fast; once they've moved on from a stage, you can never go back. Every stage is a challenge, but is also completely wonderful and fulfilling to experience. So wonderful that sometimes I contemplate what it'd be like to do it all over again (and then I slap myself in the face and return to reality)!
Until you actually have a baby, though, there is no possible way to fully understand this.
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