Miss Independent

One of the weirdest things about being a mom is having two completely opposite instincts at war with each other all the time. The first is wanting your child to be healthy and thriving.  The second is the desire for your child to remain tiny and in her current stage forever.

Our little monkey is four months (almost) going on 14.  She is getting so big and has started really interacting with us in the last couple of weeks.  And she is becoming very independent, both to my relief and sadness.  Where she used to want me to rock and cuddle her into a nice cozy nap, now she cries when she's sleepy in my arms, preferring that I put her in her crib to allow her to fall asleep on her own.  She has perfected the art of self-soothing (a big-time thumb/finger sucker) and loves her alone time.  This is great, on one hand, because it allows me more time to get other things done.  But I can't help but acknowledging that this is one step in many towards the inevitable: she is going to grow up and leave us!  I know it is a long way off still, but seriously, my pregnancy was over in the blink of an eye and it feels like she was just born even though it has been 4(!) months already!

So, in an effort to hang onto every minute, and as my Facebook friends can attest, I have attempted to document EVERYTHING she does in pictures and video.  Here is a very small sampling of what she has been up to lately:

 Ballet dancing

 Big girl bath time

 Dressing like a pumpkin before bedtime...not to be confused with a carrot!

Sitting up like a big girl.

This picture melts my heart.  It perfectly captures how big and little she is at the same time.

As far as baby's go, we really feel like we have hit the jackpot.  We would love her no matter what, but she has turned out to be a super chill baby.  We would have been happy with a tenth of her temperament.  She rarely cries and when she does it is usually easy to sooth.  She goes to bed at the same time every day and always sleeps all through the night.  She is a good little eater.  She is just a very happy camper.  Sometimes she has so much joy bubbling over she doesn't know what to do with it and will let out one ear piercing, adult-sized scream.  At first we were concerned because we thought something was wrong with her, but when we would look she would be smiling ear to ear.  I will leave you with this little video, which perfectly encapsulates her personality.  Warning: it is like two full minutes of the same thing, so watch at your own risk.  However, if this doesn't make you smile you have a heart of stone :).