Well, that was fast.
This past month has absolutely flown by, and I cannot believe it's already time for me to do this... But at the exact same time, it feels like Ila has been a part of our family for forever.
So apparently a baby is only considered a newborn for twenty-eight days. I googled it. Which means, my little Ila is no longer a newborn!
There is nothing more precious in the whole world than the sweet, sleepy, newborn days... those first days and weeks of a brand new tiny person... the yawns and sighs... the way they fit on your chest... the peace they seem to bring... the smell... oh, the smell! (I keep smelling Ila to make sure she still smells like a newborn... she does!) I've so enjoyed the little newborn bubble that we've been in, and even though Eden has taught me that all the stages are good and that there are so many fun things to look forward to as Ila grows, I can't help but be sad to leave these days behind.
I'm tired, y'all. Tired from getting up all night to nurse and change diapers... But I remember how it was with Eden... how the girl didn't sleep through the night until she was about fifteen months old, and how I thought I was going to lose my mind. And then she finally started sleeping all night, and I missed it. I missed rocking her to sleep in a dark room at 2 am. Ila is probably my last baby, and so I'm cherishing these nights. I'm actually enjoying the frequent wake-ups, and sometimes after she's been fed and changed, I'll opt to stay awake with her on my chest for a while instead of putting her back into her bassinet right away. Because one day soon, she too will sleep all night, and I will miss having a baby to nurse and hold in the middle of the night. After we read our books and sing our songs and say our prayers, I walk out of Eden's room, and she falls asleep on her own, and the nights that she needed and wanted me every few hours seem like a thousand years ago. One day, little sister will follow in her footsteps, and these days will also be a distant memory. So for right now, I am thankful for my tiredness because it means I have a little baby to take care of!
Ila is such a good baby and has cried probably less than ten times this month! I'm not even joking. Even at night, she wakes me up by fussing or squealing when she's hungry, but very rarely does it turn into a cry. (Eden was the same way. God must feel that I can only handle easy babies. FINE WITH ME!) This child is extremely active already though! She is constantly moving and wriggling and squirming, and she is LOUD! The girl has been talking to us since the day she was born, and is always squealing or grunting or sighing. Right now, she is laying next to me, wide awake, just kicking her legs, flailing her arms all over the place, turning her head to look from one side to the other and just a squealing away. It took me a couple of weeks to realize that she's perfectly fine. When we first brought her home, I always thought she wasn't happy and needed something. But even when she's been fed, changed and I have her in my arms or laying on my chest, she's kicking and moving and talking. She's not even quiet when she's sleeping because she snores! It's the cutest thing!
She most definitely has a best friend and protector in her big sister. Eden wants to hold her hand, help me change her diaper, hold her, touch her, pat her back, cover her with a blanket, kiss her, wash the soap off of her when she's getting a bath, etc. And Eden likes to exclaim, "OHHH, HER IS SOOOO CUTE!" Eden has helped make the transition from one to two extremely easy.
I've always done greens and pinks and flowers and birds and animals when buying Eden clothes or toys or decorating her room because of the whole "Garden of Eden" thing. Ila's name means "island", so for her, I've done more blues and purples and water stuff. My Godmother made her the cutest little quilt with mermaids and fish and seahorses and octopuses. Eden got her monthly pictures taken the first year on a lamb mat in onesies that had birds on them. Ila will get hers done on her little mermaid quilt each month. Every girl has to have a theme!
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