the thing about being 8.5 months old

Here's the thing about being 8.5 months old. We're ending one season and right on the very edge of the next. A friend once told me that she felt that babyhood seemed to end at 6 months and toddlerhood started to peek through soon after. For us, that season seems to have been stretched out.

The first-time mom in me would be eager to see my sweet boy conquer the new feats. Crawling. Climbing. Cruising. But the second-time mom that I am knows that will come all too soon. So, I'm not rushing it. And I'm not concerned.

For us, being 8.5 months old means that crawling is on the horizon, but not yet here. It means being content to sit and watch big brother and roll in laughter, without necessarily feeling the need to keep up. It means napping twice a day, eating lots and lots of baby food, and needing complete and utter focus and silence to complete a nursing session without distraction.

Being 8.5 months means getting on hands and knees to only scoot backwards and deciding that rolling is a more effective means of transportation. It means not liking it at all when mom even considers leaving the room, much less being out of sight.  It means that everything in sight must be touched and tasted.  It means making the sweetest cheeky cheese smile ever seen.

It also means that the baby days are quickly passing by.  I know that it is literally a matter of days before this boy takes off crawling, standing, and cruising.  I know that in a matter of months he'll be walking.  And the little peanut that contentedly sits and snuggles in my lap will be on. the. go. and will resemble more of a boy than a baby.

If you ask, yes, it makes me sad.  I ADORE the baby stage.  The squishy, cooing, gurgling, bitty baby stage.  I am already feeling the itch for #3 but sanity tells me that we need to wait.  I sometimes worry that I'll never feel done having kids even when I need to be.

So, yes, I'm sad that my baby is growing up.  I suppose I better get used to it.

But on the other hand, I have another boy who is turning two in a matter of days (10 to be exact)!  And with every new stage I find myself more and more in love with being a Mama, more and more in awe of our Creator, and more and more challenged to be on my knees before Him.  While, in my opinion, the toddler stage is far more challenging as a Mama than the newborn stage, I absolutely adore each and every stage that Jude has gone through, including this one.  He continues to grow and learn and blow me away with his humor and his smarts.  I've never once thought, ya know - I don't like this Jude very much.  I wish he would go back to being baby Jude.  Because we've come so far in two years and I love every part of his two year journey.

So, while I am sad to see my little bug growing bigger, approaching a rite of passage of sorts into toddlerhood, I know that I will love the next stage as well.  And the next.  And each part of his journey, because I have the pleasure of watching him grow and learn and explore the world for the first time.  And it is simply amazing.  I don't think that will ever get old.


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