What a Month...

This has been a month of many firsts for us in the McKillip house. Maelie has sat up for the first time, eaten solid food for the first time, taken a bath in the big bath, gotten two teeth, gone from being on her tummy to sitting up on her own, sat in a high chair at a restraunt, sat in the buggy in the store, taken her first school picture, learned how to "give five" and clap....I'm sure I'm forgetting something. It seems like everyday she is doing something new and fabulous. I'm just so proud of her, not just of her accomplishments, but of the little person that she's becoming. She is so sweet, so happy - she just smiles and laughs so much of the time. Everywhere we go, people stop to talk to her, to tell me how pretty she is. She just attracts people. I love how secure she is. She will ususally go to anyone, be happy anywhere. Although when she won't go to someone else and just wants her Mommy, I have to admit that it doesn't break my heart. I love being the person that she depends on, the one she looks for when she's sad or tired or upset. She'll lean towards me, put her arms around my neck and nuzzle her little face into me, and I know that that moment is a gift. Don't get me wrong - she has her moments! She will definitely let you know what she likes and dislikes, but I love that about her, too. She's very opinionated, and it cracks me up.

Through all the joys of being a mommy, I think I have discovered the hardest part. With all this growing and changing and doing new things that Maelie is up to these days, I find it hard to find the balance between being excited about her accomplishments and grieving the end of her babyhood. When I look back at pictures of her in the hospital, the pictures where she's learning the smallest things like how to smile, part of me wants to cry (and sometimes does) that she's getting big. I cried so hard the first time I had to clean out her closet and put away things she was too big to wear. Then I had to laugh! Here I was sitting in her closet with tears on my cheeks, and she was in her crib playing away, babbling and rolling around. I feel like that is a special gift that God has given mommies - it is hard to get too sad about anything when one of the greatest joys He has given you is laughing nearby.

One of the other great gifts of Maelie growing is how her relationship with her Daddy is growing. Every Monday night several other couples and us meet at a restraunt and have dinner. This Monday night I had training at work so Kyle took her without me. I came home at 9:30 to find her in her jammies, with a fresh diaper and a full tummy laying on his shoulder. They both looked so sweet and content, I just stood at the door and watched them for a few moments. He has always been an active Daddy, but I think as she grows his confidence with her does, too. It is so precious to watch the two people you love most in the world bond and love each other.