What Were We Thinking???

As Client Two gets older and further and further from that newborn baby stage, I realize more and more how much he is changing. Every day is a new milestone. Part of me is thrilled to see him getting so big! But a big part of me misses that little baby. And, even though I didn't see it so much then, babies are in many ways easier.

Do you remember the day you brought that new baby home? I remember Client Two like it was yesterday. He was a sweet bundle of snuggles that smelled amazing. He was so sweet and innocent. Even the squeaky little cries at two in the morning were precious.

His needs and desires didn't go much beyond needing to eat and sleep and poop. In fact, dealing with the new baby was fairly easy. Yes, there was less sleep and frustration when you couldn't figure out why he was crying, but all in all, you had it good. 

But then the milestones start. The milestone stages are super exciting! Afterall, you get to watch your baby grow and develop new skills. All babies develop at slightly different rates, but you know what to watch for. First, they learn to hold those little heads up. At first they're all wobbly like a little bobble head. So, you give them tummy time and their neck muscles get stronger and that little head stays up.

And of course, there's the rolling over- another benefit from tummy time. At first, it's a half-roll, just onto his side. Then, eventually, he makes it all the over onto his back. Then, he has to learn to roll back over into his belly. It's fun and exciting and you sit there encouraging him like crazy. You celebrate and clap when he accomplishes his task and he looks up at you in half-confusion before an adorable, toothless smile spreads across his face. But then, you realize that this means that those days of easy diaper changes are over. You can no longer leave him propped up on the bed by himself for a mere second while you grab him some clothes. You have to pay extra attention to him when he's propped up next to you on the couch. He's no longer immobile and safe. He can move now, which means he can fall. It also means he can roll over in his sleep and all those articles you read about the dangers of babies sleeping on their tummies come flooding back. Yep, your life just got a bit more stressful.

And then they are start strengthening all those other important muscles, like the ones that allow them to sit up. You prop your little baby up on his Boppy, the corner of the couch, next to you in the chair, in his Bumbo seat and wherever you can encouraging this big milestone. Finally, you see some progress. He manages to unsteadily raise himself into a sitting position for a few seconds.

You rejoice in excitement and the poor little guy topples over, but he's smiling as he topples. This, of course, leads to you trying to get him to sit for longer and longer periods of time until you have a full-on unsupported sitter. This means that means that you can start giving him little snacks and fun stuff. There are more toy possibilities. But now, you have to entertain. Your baby is no longer content to just lie there and coo up at you. Nope. He's a big boy now and demands even more attention. Besides, no matter how good of a sitter he is, he will inevitably topple over and bust his head wide open if you leave him for more than a second. Or at least that's what you envision in your head every time you're tempted to move even an inch away from him.

And, somewhere during the learning to sit, you start feeding your baby. You move beyond just milk or formula and give them the good stuff. It's an exciting milestone! Of course, if your baby is like any normal baby, they gag at you until you're convinced you're going to have to do the Heimlich on them. At first, the feeding is fun. It's all new and both you and baby like it. But then you realize that you have to take time to prepare extra food every day. And it's messy. And sticky. It seems that every time your baby has a mouth full, he decides to stick his whole fist into his mouth and smear food everywhere. 

All of this leads up to the big moment: the first time he crawls. I can't even tell you how many minutes, hours even, I have spent down on the floor, camera posed trying to get him to crawl. There's a lot of basic encouragement like "Come one! You can do it!" mixed with some bribery like "If you crawl to Mommy you have have food!" And then you try placing objects and toys just out of reach. And then it happens! That first forward movement! Or, in the case of both my clients, the backwards movement. But that's okay. Even if they crawled backwards, it's an accomplishment! Right? 

The next thing you know, your baby is mobile. You can't leave them alone for a second. It doesn't matter how many hundreds of toys are well within reach, he wants the cord to the fan or the pencil his sister left out or that tiny little thing that is sure to choke him or maybe the poor little kitty who isn't used to the mobile baby. (I can't even tell you how many times I have had to remove cat fur from Client Two's grip and mouth!) 

This is the moment when you realize that walking is just around the corner. This is when you wonder why you encouraged it all. Now, your days are full of extra worry and stress and panic. The days of casually going about your day with a sweet snuggly baby are gone. And you encouraged it. It's a good thing he's so darn cute!