When I started writing about my journey of becoming a mother, I intended to just share with you all some cute things Juliet has been doing lately. As I started to write, I thought that in order for you to truly appreciate how sweet she is now, it would help if I took you through the valley of her early days. Juliet really began to improve at around four months. I think back to some changes I made in my life, and I see that's when things began to change. First, I found a MOPS group. It was a huge relief to find a group of women to share with and get advice from. It was also nice to have a morning away from Juliet once in a while. Second, I joined a ladies Bible Study. This meeting was weekly, and the study was timely in my life. Third, we trained our daughter to go to sleep on her own. We did this over the Labor Day weekend, and it made a huge difference in my stress level at bedtime and nap-time. We were bracing for a rough two weeks of learning, but were pleasantly surprised when she picked it up after only a few days. As she learned to fall asleep on her own, we were also happy to find that she slept longer during her naps.
As of November 30, Juliet is now seven months old. She is a totally different child than the one we cared for only a few months ago. My heart is just so full most days with joy as I watch her grow and develop, it makes the misery of the early days a distant memory. When I get her up in the morning, she wiggles and flings her arms and legs inside her Woombie, while simultaneously smiling and squealing with happiness to see me. After she eats and is changed, she usually plays for a while in her exer-saucer. She plays with all the toys and turns herself around and around while squealing and talking to no one in particular. When I take her to the grocery store, or on other errands, everyone comes up and talks to her, and she shows off her best smile...right on cue. I often tell her she's a rockstar. I rock her before her naps and sing to her, and she in turn snuggles up against me as she drifts off to a sleepy slumber. In the evening, when my husband takes her upstairs to spend some daddy/daughter time with her, if I come upstairs, she says, "ma ma ma ma" as soon as she seems me. My husband and I have decided that she knows this is my name. When she's sleepy, I'll pick her up, and she'll rub her face against my shoulder before resting her head gently against it. When I grin at her using my teeth...she smiles. I don't know why, but she loves teeth! She always tries to pull them out of my mouth. Yesterday, while I was letting her taste some sweet potatoes I had just made for her, she grabbed the spoon. I was trying to get the spoon loose from her kung-fu grip while looking at her hands. When I finally looked at her face, she was just flashing her biggest smile at me. Yesterday, I gave her first graham cracker to her. As she was eating it, the cracker became soggy, and she ended up with cracker everywhere. The mess didn't even phase me because she was so cute with bits of cracker all over her face and hands.
The truth is, she does so many sweet and cute things everyday. There is no way I could relate them all to you. It's true what they say; memories of labor, birth and the misadventures of the first time mom are fading. She is growing up entirely too fast. I can honestly say, that right now, I really enjoy being a mother. I remember vividly a time when I didn't so much, but now I do. Don't get me wrong...she still fusses, she still has cranky days, bad nights, and days when she doesn't nap well. I find that I can handle it a lot better now, because I know that it won't last forever. I absolutely love my daughter. I love the little person she is and the person she's becoming. I love having the opportunity to share with her my talents and energies. I love thinking about who and what she'll become someday. I love praying for her future. Being a mom is hard, but it is so worth it!
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