Tuesday, March 24, 2015

No Longer a Newborn

Dear Ash,

You definitely aren't a newborn anymore.

You've grown so much, it almost makes me sad. But it's so fun to watch as you find new ways to explore the world. You are so precious.

You roll over from your back to your tummy all the time. Sometimes, you then love being on your tummy. You've finally gotten to the point where you will push yourself up with your arms and play with toys. You also really enjoy eating the floor or blanket or whatever happens to be in front of you. When you're grumpy, though, you'll roll over and then get mad that you're on your stomach. Ever since that first time you rolled from your stomach to your back, you don't even attempt it anymore. You just play or cry. 

You really seem to enjoy life, as you are getting older. One of your favorite things is going outside. You love seeing everything and hearing all the noises. Dad and I have sat with you in the grass and you think that's the greatest thing. Grandma also took out on a swing and you loved that. Of course, when daddy put you in a swing at the park, you started crying. 

You still love bath time (though luckily, you no longer scream-usually-when it's time to get out). You will sit and suck on your big toe like it's your thumb. You still love to suck all the water out of the washcloth (and I'm still not sure whether that's a good thing or not). 

In regards to sleeping, you don't do too badly. We had to stop swaddling you, for safety reasons, now that you can roll over. You sleep through the night now, but your naps still aren't as great as when we could swaddle. Part of me worries, they never will be. 

You've started laughing, cute little laughs that are only one or two syllables long. It's adorable. When your daddy or I do something that makes you laugh, we can't help but do it over and over again.You also talk ALL the time. Your newest thing is to go "Aaaaaaah, ppp (this is blowing raspberries with your lips) baaaaah." And when I do it back to you, you laugh and grin so big. You've also started talking with me. You'll talk, then stop and wait for me to say something before talking again. 

You still love singing, but your new favorite thing is noises. You love silly noises and especially animal noises. I have to make animal noises every time I clip your nails. Otherwise, you get so mad at me for making you hold still that long. You never want to be still and staying in the same position for too long sends you into fits of grunts (you are forever grunting when you get frustrated or upset). 

We've also started giving you real food. We haven't really "started" you on solids. I don't sit and feed you baby food or anything like that. We mostly just give you tastes of food. Daddy gave you a taste of ice cream once and you love it so much, we can't help but share little tastes every time we have it now. You also love blueberries, peas, pinto beans, oranges, strawberries, pineapple, and pickles. Pickles are probably your very favorite. We give you the big ones and you'll hold onto it and suck and suck and suck. It's adorable. You don't really like bananas too much and you have no idea what to make of lemons. Tomorrow, I'm gong to try cooking some carrots and seeing if you'll eat them mashed up. My guess is, you will. At this point, pretty much anything we put in your mouth, you'll eat. 

It's still hard to believe how big you're getting. In some ways, I'm glad (for instance, I love that you sleep through the night). It's really fun to watch you grow. But it is bittersweet. I already miss my tiny newborn that I brought home, the one who kept me up all night and cried for what seemed like forever and just let me snuggle her while she slept. I know we'll have more children and there will always be newborns for me to hold later, but they won't ever be that baby girl. They won't ever be my first baby. 

That spot is reserved for you. Always. 

Love, 
Mom

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