Sara is 14 months old today.
I realized today that she's not a little baby. Okay, so she still doesn't have any teeth. And she likes to be wrapped tight in her blanket and rocked to sleep. But little babyhood is over.
I guess it's time to let it go. She hasn't been as eager to escape babyhood as David and Mary were. So it has been a sweet time for me, for the two of us. But it's time for the next stage. The next stage will be cute too. But different.
Nothing in Sara changed today. But for the first time I saw the sweet little girl in her--not just the bald little baby.
The thing is that Sara has been so different from David and Mary. (And, please, spare me the "oh it's because you're more relaxed" baloney.) David and Mary are good, bright, pleasant children. But they are intense and high-maintenance. And they were intense and high-maintenance as babies. I spent their babyhoods feeling utterly exasperated. Exasperation. Yes, that it the best word to describe how I felt every single second of those years. Of course I was absolutely crazy in love with them. But when babyhood was ending, I was sort of sad but mostly I was like "Good riddance!" I'm sadder with Sara's babyhood ending.
Sara is gentle and strong.
She chooses to trust. To accept life as it is. And bring others happiness.
She is a special child. God has given her a special, specific mission in this life. And she already knows what it is.
It has been a tender time for our family, with Sara as our baby. (We have felt so lucky to have a baby in our family. And super lucky that Sara is the baby in our family!)
Baby Sara, I will miss you. But I am also looking forward to seeing who you become.
I have a feeling we will love her more than we can imagine.
