Girl’s Life

Happy six month birthday, Sophia!

Wow, time sure does fly. It really does seem like just yesterday that we were bringing you home from the hospital (in Friday evening traffic, no less). I was yelling at your daddy and practically clawing him to step on the breaks and be careful every time a car came near us, which was quite literally every few seconds. This is Southern California. There are a lot of people on the roads here at 5:00PM.

You were such a different person then. Back in your blob stage –the era of the “Soph Loaf”. You slept and nursed and slept and nursed. Usually during the day. At night we would hang out. I would wake up, after dozing off with a baby attached to me, in all manner of places — in the rocking chair, on the couch, at the computer. But we had some of our best moments together during those nights. Sweet smiles and milk drunkeness. All of which I helped provide. What a cool thing to be your mom.

Now you are all grown up. Look at you! (You can visit the Sophia archives someday. I’ve already got a bajillion photos of you. Just ask Mr. Flickr.) You can sit up (pretty much). You can stand (with a little help from the coffee table or dad). You can laugh. You can even be a drama queen when you want to. That’s the best part. Because all the other stuff is so typically baby. But the attitude is what I love because it’s so unexpected. You’re becoming you. You’re working out how you’re going to deal with this world.

And I love the way you’re dealing so far! When things are funny, you belly laugh. When you’re tired or hungry or teething, you’re pissy. When you’re excited to see me when I get home from work, you squeal with pure joy. (By the way, have I told you how that makes my heart leap?) Why can’t adults be as straight-forward as you?

I’m having so much fun being your mom — teaching you about the world and learning about the world from you. I do love the way you see the world. “Tired, mom? Take a load off. Come watch a video with me!”

We made it this far, baby girl. We’re doing fine. We’ve had some hard times lately, with cutting that first darn tooth and trying to get you back to sleeping in your bed, but we’re figuring life out together. I couldn’t quite have expected how much I would have enjoyed these last six months. And no one in the world could have prepared me for how much I love you.

Goodnight, sweet girl. Dream of all the cool new things you’ll get to see and do over the next six months. But don’t go too fast. I’m trying to soak this all in!