Our little girl turns one year old today. I feel like I have known her forever. I look back and realize how incomplete my life was before she graced us with her presence. This last year I have learned so much about myself. I have learned patience and compassion for a child who doesn't speak my language and for a husband who sometimes feels like an outsider to the bond Ruby and I have and for myself because I have overcome so much physically and emotionally and still have the ability to make my daughter laugh. She is the greatest gift I have ever gotten. She is the greatest teacher I will ever have. This time last year I was getting ready for surgery to have her extracted from my womb. I had a scheduled c-section exactly 40 weeks from the day we conceived her. A good friend of mine reminded me that if we had been in a third world country that Ruby and I both may have died during childbirth because she was not only breach but very large. Without modern medicine it is quite possible that I may not have been able to pass her. So how insanely grateful I am that we have those luxuries here in America. I am no less a mother 
because my vagina wasn't engaged during childbirth. I have known many women who have had c-sections and I always felt sorry for them - somehow they had missed out on a rite of passage. I realize now how silly that is. Being a mother at all, be it by vagina, surgery, or adoption is truly the greatest rite of passage. I hope for Ruby that she will one day know this feeling of being a mother and having this incommunicable love for another being.
because my vagina wasn't engaged during childbirth. I have known many women who have had c-sections and I always felt sorry for them - somehow they had missed out on a rite of passage. I realize now how silly that is. Being a mother at all, be it by vagina, surgery, or adoption is truly the greatest rite of passage. I hope for Ruby that she will one day know this feeling of being a mother and having this incommunicable love for another being.Okay so now for her stats...
- Unassisted steps taken - 0
- Seconds standing unassisted - 1
- Drawers/Cabinets opened & emptied on a daily basis - 7
- Daily naps - 2
- Average daily hours of sleep - 12-14
- Words - ba ba (bye bye), ki ka (kitty cat), maow (meow), ma ma ma ma ma (mommy), pa (daddy), ga (all gone)
- Sign language - milk, bath, eat, change diaper, nap, all gone, hello/good-bye
- Body parts she knows & can point to - toes, belly button, ears, tongue
- Teeth - 7
- Favorite book to read alone - The Cat in the Hat
- Favorite book to read to her - My Pretty Kitten (at least that was her favorite yesterday)
- Favorite Lovey - Rattone the Rat
- Favorite Pastimes - Chasing the cat & playing in the bathroom
- Favorite Food - Bananas
I think that pretty much solidifies what a totally normal and exceptional child she is. I am honored that she chose me to be her mom. I love you Ruby. You are my shining star!
3 comments:
Yeah! We made the first year without seriously damaging the goods! Who would of thought? Thanks for allowing me to walk through this journey with you. I can't wait for all the years to come.
heather, this is fantastic, gracious and wise reflection as a mommy. i love reading your sense of discovery and expression.
ps..the pictures are awesome!
oh, and, bygod you are such a LOVER!
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