Excitement in the Mundane

Eliot's bunting came in the mail from an Etsy seller today.  It will be hanging in the doorway to the dining room for his birthday party.  I have been planning out his party perhaps a bit too enthusiastically since it is still over a month off, but I can't wait to celebrate the little guy with our families.  Then I stop to think about how my baby will be a year old and I get all emotional.  Ha!

I have to admit that every new day grows more and more exciting.  The older Eliot gets, the more I see his  personality taking shape.  He is becoming a clear individual, and each new physical development is so much fun.  Tonight we were crawling around in the den and slamming our hands down on the rug, a game that he started.  Then we wrestled some and I blew on his tummy and tickled behind his ears.  He laughed on and on forever.  He grew tired, so I gave him a bottle.  Chris read two books to Eliot and he helped turn each page, leaning forward and paying attention.  Then I brought him upstairs and he fell asleep next to me in bed right away.  That was just the final hour or so before bed and it was so incredibly full of happiness, interaction, and love.  We couldn't do these things and connect in this way when he was a newborn, so he is becoming "more fun" all the time.  I look forward to the future and watching him enjoy the world even more.  But there sure is something that I will always miss when I think of our first days when he fit in those tiny sleepers.

Nine days old

Eliot has been in a little bit of a "funk" these past few days.  I think the trip has thrown off his napping schedule, so he has been emotional and cling-y.  Also, he slept in the car a bit on the way home, but I don't think he really gets a good, deep sleep in the car, so it doesn't fully count as a nap.  Today in the grocery store, I walked around with him sleeping on my shoulder.  He finally decided to wake up when we checked out.

On the way down to Chesapeake.  I need to angle his carseat back some; he has a difficult time leaning back.

Looking at those two sleepy photos, I can see how much Eliot has changed over the months.  When I look at him, though, I see echoes of his newborn days.  I see expressions of his father and other relatives too.  And I see a lot of me, but that is becoming more and more diluted.

I've written something like this before, but I see it becoming more true all the time.  I remember planning my wedding and thinking, "This is it.  This is my wedding.  And once it is over, it is done.  I can't ever plan my wedding again."  Too often, girls romanticize their weddings and don't really think about what comes after the wedding--they just want the dress and the glamor and attention of the day.  I had an idea of what Chris and I hoped to do after we got married (and I was really looking forward to that more than the wedding itself), but I couldn't imagine the details.  I couldn't imagine how much better life would be on days when Chris and I sit around the house to grade and play with our little boy all day.  Our "mundane" day to day is so much better than our wedding day.  I have no clue what is in store for us in the future, but it keeps on getting better.