Last spring, my daughter celebrated her first major milestone; she turned 1 year old on April 30, 2013. It was an exciting time. The first year was a whirlwind of ups and downs. Trying to adjust to our growing family and mastering the art of transitioning from a toddler to a toddler and a newborn, was very difficult. Much harder than I thought! Take the normal challenge and tack on a baby possessed by the devil and it will throw you into full blown postpartum depression. After two months of Alice Wren’s life, the devil left her body and she became the sweetest angel you’d ever laid eyes on and has been ever since.
I remember the day I learned I was pregnant. It was the summer of 2011 and I was at the beach when all of a sudden, I had an enormous urge to pee. I ran as hard as I could to the ocean and barely made it. The following Monday, I went to the clinic to test for a UTI and left with a positive pregnancy test. I could hardly wait to tell Mike. He was as stunned as I was. Sure, we had recently started trying but, like Foster, we had no idea it would work so quickly! I knew in that moment that I wanted a little girl but didn’t know just how much until we saw the ultrasound and they finally said, “you’re having a girl!” I instantly burst into tears. Having a little girl would complete our family and I immediately envisioned shopping sprees and pedicures.
Alice Wren and my son, Foster, could not be more different. Alice has pale skin and beautiful blue eyes, with a calm personality. She’s very cautious and observant, preferring to sit back and watch her brother make all of the mistakes. Her first birthday was very bittersweet for me. Mike and I both had to work and barely saw her before she succumbed to exhaustion and went to bed. I cried a lot that day. My precious Sugabug is the last baby we’ll have and her birthday was the last first birthday we’ll ever celebrate. We had a party for her the following weekend with family and were so excited about her tearing into her birthday cake. We remembered how much Foster loved his birthday cake and had the camera ready to capture the same sweet mess. Unlike her brother, Alice Wren did not like her cake, either of them. I had a healthy cake made by a local baker that she hated, and I had a yummy cake on standby for the adults, which she equally hated. So, she sat in her seat wearing her darling birthday hat and ate a teething biscuit. The year went by too quickly, and now she’s walking. Before we know it, she’ll be heading off to kindergarten like her brother!
Over the last couple of months, I’ve noticed that she doesn’t like me rocking her as much anymore. Our nighttime routine of mommy/daughter time is dwindling from what used to be 15-20 minutes to 5 minutes, if I’m lucky. She’s a busy girl, wanting to climb and explore her surroundings. I suppose it’s time to accept that my little Sugabug is now a toddler, eating all food groups and drinking from an open faced cup. The milestones she reaches through her life will always be bittersweet for me. Each one will be a reminder that life is moving, my baby is changing, she’s finding her place in the world…and despite all of her changes and discoveries along the way, one thing is for certain – she’ll always be my baby girl.
Sugabug eating her birthday biscuit
Strawberries & Collard Greens 