Some would say that I was blessed with that new title eight years and nine months ago, but for me, the title became real at 3:47pm eight years ago, when Julia Rose entered the world.
My pregnancy had been a bit of a surprise, so most of it was filled with learning my new role in life (as wife) while simultaneously preparing for another new role (mother) that would essentially turn upside-down everything I'd learned to that point about being a wife. Now I can look back and say my pregnancy went by so quickly, that it was a blur, but I'm not sure that I would've said that back then.
At eight pounds and two ounces, and 20.5 inches long, she entered the world screaming and crying with a lower lip that quivered with such fury. Perhaps she was thinking what I was: Put me back in! I'm not ready for this yet!
The early days of motherhood brought with them a startling reality: The child we lovingly called "Bebe" before she was born was REAL. I mourned feeling her move and kick inside of me and simultaneously celebrated her squishy face and the way she curled her toes when she pooped. Together we learned to be a team--when she was hungry, I fed her. When she was dirty--I changed her diaper. The Beatitudes of Motherhood, I guess you could call them!
What a long, strange trip it's been, as I've evolved as a mom and she's grown as a child... Eight years seems so old and yet at the same time, it all went by so fast. The other night as I stared at her in her sleep, all I could think was, "I never knew you'd look like this." It's hard to explain beyond that... I just remember holding her as a tiny infant and wondering what she would look like, what she would love and what she would hate, what her voice would sound like, etc. when she was this age. And now the reality of who she is is right in front of me. It's breathtaking. As many challenges as we have endured together, it's still been such a wonderful thing to get where we are today.
I may feel frazzled, overwhelmed, short on patience, and spread-too-thin most days, but when all is said and done, I am so lucky to be a mom.
Happy birthday, baby girl. Aaaannndddd many moooorrreee!
Her last day of being 7 & first day of 3rd grade.
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