Parent fail #1245
I can't believe I haven't added a single post here about Nola's growth in 5 months.
SHAME!
I am going to condense it all into one post, in hopes that she won't pack a bag when she is 13, yelling and screaming at me that I loved her sister more than her. I'm trying to avoid a meltdown in 12 years from now. What can I say? I'm a planner.
Here are the stats from her first couple of doctors appointments...
Here is a little bit about my new girl, Nola. Just some of the many things that I never want to forget.
1. The very first thing, is her obsession with me. It's my favourite, obvi. When we are in our room at night getting ready for bed, Daddy does the final burp and swaddle. I should note that this is not limited to our bedroom, it's pretty much anywhere I am at all times. The entire time he is holding her she is looking for me. She cranes her little neck and head around as far as it can go just so she can look at me. And if I look back and make eye contact - well - the smile is absolutely magical. It shines light in a very dim room.
2. I can count on one hand how many dinners she has missed since being born. Even as a newborn she was always awake for dinner time. Demanding to be a part of the ritual. We learned to do a lot with 1 hand at the dinner table.
3. Her tiny little features.
In particular her biggest smile...
and the little sparkle in her eye.
4. How she figured out how to roll from back to belly but just couldn't seem to consistently roll from her belly to back until she was almost 5 months. She used to get so frustrated when she got stuck on her belly.
5. How she's starting to become really interested in toys. With a particular interest in her feet. She grabs at everything, EVERYTHING!
6. How I can NEVER lay her down in a place where she can't see Hazel or she cries. She is very often sitting in her Bumbo or swing so that she can see all of us at all times. Especially when Hazel and Daddy are wrestling. Nola gets very protective of her sister and she has a very concerned cry when she thinks Hazel is getting hurt. I DIE!!!!
7. The way she talks to us with quiet little coos that sound like shes actually talking. She also, has very VERY loud yells just because she can and she learned how. I especially love those when Hazel is asleep.
8. How when she grabs her toes, her belly and chest look so chubby and edible.
9. She laughs so hard every time we say the word "Boo"
10. She is seriously high maintenance. ALL THE TIME! She is not an "easy going - go with the flow" type of gal. She's happy all the time - sure - except when we are making her do something she doesn't want to do. Example, when we make her sleep, ride in the car, walk in the stroller, go in the sling. She likes all of those things and is completely content in any one of these situations, as long as it is on her terms that she is entered into said situation. If she's not up for a car ride, then FORGET it! Yet, she's still always smiling.
There is so much more that I try to stash away in the depths of my memory. I pray and hope that I never forget the way her feet are always sweaty, the way she rubs them together constantly. Or the way she looks at me while she's nursing (sometimes with a smile, sometimes with a furrowed brow). Or the way her mouth hangs open when we eat in front of her (she wants it bad). She has the most expressive little eyebrows (it really is quite something - one up, one down, straight line etc.). The way she thinks she a big girl. Just how fast she went from being a newborn to a little baby girl (way WAY too fast).
I'm still always working on her birth story, mostly in my head, but still. It's beautiful. I want to make sure I get it just right for her to read one day and know exactly what an impact she had on my soul. These things take time. Of which, I currently have none of due to the high maintenance caliber of my newest little. It shouldn't be much longer now.
Here you go, my dearest Nola. Not a day passes that I don't thank God for our most perfect gift.
