Was the last time I wrote here really when you were only 6 weeks old?? And now you're 6 MONTHS old?? I could apologize endlessly but the fact is, you and your sisters have made me one busy little mama. I guess it doesn't really matter though how long it's been, right? What matters is that I'm here now and I have sooo much to say to you.
Even though I'm just now writing this letter to you let me tell you that I've been writing it in my head for months. Every time you do something new and every morning I get you out of bed and you look like you've grown over night I try desperately to freeze those moments in my mind. I try to convince myself that I'll remember everything but that gets tougher and tougher every day. I hold you close, shut my eyes, and it's like we just met yesterday. But we didn't meet yesterday. We've had 6.5 beautiful months with you already. So in an effort to freeze time I want to tell you all about you in these last 6 months.
You are incredibly sweet. And I mean incredibly sweet. When your sisters were babies I found that each of them could be summed up almost completely in a word. Ana was an "angel". She slept, ate, behaved like an angel. Maddie was utterly "happy". She made me and everyone around her incredibly happy. And you, my sweet sweet girl, are just that - incredibly "sweet". You can be so quiet but are always paying attention. You smile at everyone that has the pleasure of looking your way. And that smile, oh that smile, it will turn even the grumpiest person into a pile of giddy mush. Sometimes you smile with your entire body - arms go up, legs kick out, and you're big ol' eyes get so squinty they almost close. And sometimes, which are Mommy's favorites, you give just the faintest little smirk that makes you appear so much older than your 6 little months.
And while you are certainly the sweetest, let me tell you, baby, that when you are unhappy about something - anything - you don't shy away from letting us know. In fact, I think you're convinced that you not only have to let us know there's something wrong but you must scream it at the top of your lungs. You can go from your sweet, calm little self to quite the demanding little girl in a matter of seconds. But even then your cuteness doesn't fade in the least bit. Because as quickly as you get upset it's never anything a simply hug and smooch can't just as quickly fix.
You've been my worst sleeper :). That said, any baby book would still put you in the "great sleeper" category for sure. Your sisters spoiled me by sleeping 12 hours through the night very early on and, though you were sleeping 7 hours straight by 3 months, it wasn't until 5 months that you gave me the 12 hours. With that you brought a patience to my heart that wasn't there before. We're a family of sleepers and going over 6 months without a solid 8 hours of sleep wore on me. But each night, as I would nurse you back to sleep after you inevitably woke up between 3 and 4, with heavy eyes and tired arms, I would sink into your rocking chair and just watch you. I would watch you nurse and then drift back to sleep. Most nights I would sit with you long after you were already asleep just to hold you and have it be just you and me (something we don't get much around here :).
Speaking of...let's talk about your big sisters. They love to dance and sing and yell and run. And they LOVE to do all of that for you :). In fact, there is nothing those two little girls wouldn't do for a chance to see you smile at them. And smile you do! Maddie can crack you up like no one else. She dances and makes funny faces that you apparently find hi-larious. Pretty much anything Maddie does makes you laugh. You love to watch her and I swear I can see you taking mental notes on how to entertain. I have a feeling that the two of you are going to be putting on some pretty fun shows in the future and getting into your share of trouble together :).
And then there's Ana...oh Ana. You and her have already developed the sweetest little relationship. When she walks into a room you light up. You love to watch her and listen to her voice. Your relationship with her is the first one I really noticed. From very early on you were smitten with her. And vice versa all the way. She ADORES you, sweetpea. Like nobody's business. She calls you "our baby" because to her you're not her sister, you're her baby. She says things like "I feel like I've waited my whole life for this baby" and "Mia! You need to stop with all of this cuteness because I just cannot handle it!" Yeah, she's a pretty sweet and funny one.
Now let's talk about what I don't want to forget and you're sure to want to know:
- your first smile came on the day you turn 1 month
- your first giggle happened just a couple weeks later as I was kissing your sweet chin
- from your very first giggles you started getting the hiccups every time you laugh and I LOVE it! It is, hands down, one of the cutest things everrrrr!
- by 3 months you were sleeping 7 hrs at night
- at 3 months you rolled all the way over
- at 4 months you could find your pacifier in your crib and put it back in your mouth (something that doesn't "normally" happen until 8 months)
- at 4.5 months you started sitting up
- at 5 months you started sleeping 12 hours through the night
- just after you turned 5 months you reached for me for the first time {looooove}
- at 6 months you started giving me, and only me, hugs and big, open-mouthed kisses and I can't get enough of them!
- at 6.5 months (on Easter, actually!) you sat yourself up from laying down
And today, at 6 months and 3 weeks you did the army crawl for the first time AND you said your first word.
And your first word would be....
Dada :)
Oh that Dada of yours. He is kind. He is patient. He is so in love with his third little girl. You melt his heart with every smile and every cuddle you give him. And although you're more of a mama's girl than a daddy's, the moment you see him come home from work may very well be the happiest you look all day! Every single day you great him with an ear to ear toothless smile that's something for the books. And if he walks away those bright brown eyes will follow him wherever he goes. Even though he's not Mommy, he's found his own special way to calm you down when you get upset. If you fuss or cry he will sing "Miss Mia Mack" to you and it calms you down every.single.time. It's awesome. You have managed to steal away a heart that's been stolen 3 other times already. Oh yes, sweetpea, you're that good :).
My sweet girl, of all my girls you are the most attached to mama. So long as you're in my arms, you rarely cry. If you are upset it usually takes little more than my attention to turn your little tears into a smile almost instantly. Even for Daddy, until recently if you were in his arms you were fine as long as you could see me :). I calm you down like nobody else and I'm the sole recipient of your hugs and kisses. How lucky am I that I get to be loved by another one of God's miracles? I couldn't possibly explain to you the blessing that you've been to me, sweetpea. I feel as though you are an extension of me and I of you. This attachment you have to me, it certainly isn't one-sided. You were 10 weeks old before I left the house without you (even only for a couple of hours) and 12 weeks before I could leave you even after you were already in bed for the night. When you cry it hurts me. If you're upset I can't calm down until you're happy. So much of this I know comes from the mama that your sisters have made me - one that's softer and loves like I didn't know was possible. But so much comes from you. You're a sensitive little soul and it's made me a different kind of mama. I don't worry about the "right thing to do" anymore and I don't have my nose glued in a book like I did when you're sisters were babies. My only concern is what's right for you. You teach me every day how to be more patient, more loving, and more present. How lucky I am to have you. How lucky our little family is to have had you for these last 6 beautiful months of your life.
We love you to the moon and back, sweet girl!
Love,
Mama xoxo
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