Delight in this Moment

Aliyah has taught me some really valuable lessons about being a better person and a better parent but there is one thing that stands out above all the rest. The lesson... Don’t rush it.

Don’t be in a hurry for your baby to sleep through the night or to start solids or to sit up or crawl or walk. If I can offer you one bit of advice, it’s to just enjoy the stage your baby is in right.this.moment.

It’s human nature to look towards the future - to imagine all the fun that comes with the next milestone in your child’s life… but looking back on the nearly 28 months since my oldest daughter was born, I am shocked at how fast my tiny baby has been replaced with a little girl. I sometimes go and study pictures of her when she was infant. I look at those deep thigh rolls that are all but gone now - at her small limbs that are now stretching up and out and I can’t believe how quickly her infancy passed.

Of course It’s important to stimulate and encourage your child - but I feel like I was far too focused on trying to ensure that she was advanced. I found myself (despite knowing better!) comparing her to her peers and worrying unnecessarily when a friend’s baby crawled before she did or reveling in the fact that she was one of the first among her peers to use a cup without a lid. I’d rattle off a list of her accomplishments at every pediatrician appointment so that our doctor would tell me how impressive her development was. In so many ways I felt as if her advanced development was a reflection of my success as her mother.

I look at Aliyah's first year now that I have Everly, and wonder - Did I take enough time to just enjoy the fact that one day soon she wouldn’t sleep with her knees curled beneath her on my chest, sit content and happy in a bouncy seat or chew on her chubby toes for entertainment? Any of you who read this blog and have a child Aliyah's age or older can agree that they all roll over, they all sit up, they all crawl, and cruise, and walk and run eventually. All of them - each will do it on their own schedule - but they all get there.

Armed with this revelation, I am taking my sweet time this go round. Instead of focusing on whether Everly is advancing at a the same rate (or faster or slower) than her peers - I am letting her lead the way. Even as I watch more and push less, she is still moving forward and growing at what feels like the speed of light as skinny newborn legs turn to roly poly baby legs. I am savoring each stage more as I know that it will be gone and replaced with a new one far too soon.

The same now goes for Aliyah - no more over eagerness to move her into her next stage of development. We are filling her life with love, creativity, and adventure while letting her decide how it will manifest into new abilities within her.

I have allowed myself time to just sit with my babies without feeling guilty that the laundry hasn't yet been done, or that we have destroyed the living room from playing all afternoon together. I watch in awe as Aliyah's imagination takes off and Everly sleeps so soundly on my chest. And it is such a beautiful view...

So that’s it. My two cents. Slow down. Let go a little. Delight in this moment, dear mothers. The tiny newborn. The squishy infant. The crawling, the cruising, the walking… it will all come and go faster than your heart can possibly imagine.

And with that, be happy. keep your heart full. know that you are blessed. Even though it does go fast - live in every moment so there is no need to look back and wish for do-overs.

Delight in THIS moment where ever you are.

One Month

My sweet Everly Jean is one month old today! She loves her baby swing and doesn't mind a car ride. She lets her big sister kiss all over her and wrap her up in bear hugs. My heart bursts every time I catch one of those unpredictable baby smiles. Happy One Month Sugar Foot!!

(Ev loving on her Grammy)

I Can't Get Enough of These Two!!

 Thank you to YaYa for these beautiful pictures

27 Days Old

The number 27 will mean something different depending on who you talk to. Form me, I will always think of Bo Michael Rapoff.

There is a girl I went to high school with... she became a wife... and then a mother (she is an amazing mother). She had a baby almost exactly one year after Aliyah was born.

I ooed & aahed over every baby picture she posted on facebook. He was so stinkin' cute. Unfortunately, his parents, grandparents, friends and family only had a short 27 days with Bo before the horror of SIDS completely changed everything.

She is still a mom. Her husband; a proud papa. and their baby lives in their hearts, mine and the hearts of so many others. Her family has probably touched more people than she knows. I pray for them often and am reminded to cherish each day knowing that life is never guaranteed.

I was running a few quick errands on Monday morning and realized that Everly was 27 days old. Bo immediately popped into my thoughts. On the way home, as I drove by a Party City, I decided that we should go in and get a blue balloon. Bo's mama has a blog called 27blueballoons if you want to read more about their story. Aliyah loved that we picked up a balloon. She fell asleep before we got home.

I put Aliyah to bed while Everly & I wrote Bo a message on his balloon.

When Aliyah woke up, we talked about Bo and decided to go outside to send his balloon to heaven for him.

Aliyah ran around with it for a few minutes before letting it go.

Please check out the page Harvesting Hope to make a donation or purchase a ticket to a dinner event in Kansas City on October 19th. All of the money raised will go toward SIDS research and grief support services, including financial assistance with burial and funeral costs. Come out and enjoy an evening filled with food, fun, and friends in honor of Max and Bo and all of the babies lost to SID who are gone, but never forgotten.

Celebrating Love

Aliyah and Everly's Grammy and Papa are celebrating 36 years of marriage today!!

It is such a special gift to find a person whose soul beats in time with your own. As they celebrate today, I am thankful for growing up in a home having them as my example of what love looks like and what a strong marriage can accomplish.

After I moved out of the house, I remember asking my mom if my dad and her ever fought (I seriously couldn't remember a time growing up when they even raised their voices at each other). She chuckled a little and said that they made a deal early on that they would never argue in front of their children. I learned that they did have disagreements from time-to-time but they always worked it out together when my brother and I were not around. They were - and still continue to be - a united front. a winning team. and today they deserve to celebrate.

Marriage isn't always easy, but these two make it look that way!

(these pictures are from Everly Jean's first Royals baseball game)

A BIG Personality in a Little Body

love it!!!

Everly's First Bath

To make a long story short - the camera was lost and just recently found between couch cushions... such is life with a two year old. HA!

We celebrated Everly's new belly button with her first bath. I think she liked it. She didn't cry - but that doesn't say too much since she rarely does! This is one laid back lady. I keep giving her all the credit for making it such an easy transition from one child to two, but I think Aliyah should also gets some credit too. She has been the most amazing big sister. I am so blessed to have two wonderful girls that make being a mother such a joy!

* love *

We filled the bath bucket up and let Everly (and Aliyah) splash around in the kitchen for her first bath.