Why I Am Feeling So Lucky Today...

I just can't believe how lucky and blessed I am. I get to be the mother of this sweet little girl.



She has been growing like a weed. She's had a big growth spurt lately and suddenly she's taller. Suddenly, she's a little girl and far far from a baby. I can't get over how funny she is sometimes. Sometimes she's downright hilarious and will tell us jokes that make me laugh so hard my face hurts.

She is sweet and caring and loves to be helpful around the house. She gets so excited if you ask her to help with something. It makes her feel like such a big girl. She loves helping with laundry or picking things up. Her favorite is helping me in the kitchen, baking something yummy.

She absolutely loves puzzles. I am amazed at how good she is at them. We keep a big stack of them in the laundry room closet. We will get them out and set the stack on the kitchen table. She takes them one at a time, dumps them upside down, puts it back together, sets it in a new pile then takes the next one. She will do this over and over until she finishes them all.

I keep waiting for the picky eater to show up, and I am sure it eventually will, but for now, she is still eating just about anything I put in front of her. Her all time favorite foods are salmon, meatloaf, chili, taco bowls, scrambled eggs, cottage cheese, avocados, sweet potatoes, broccoli, carrots, mashed cauliflower, bananas and any kind of berry. And we can't forget cheese. That girl loves her cheese and that is pretty much her snack of choice. She still has some trouble with chicken... she will eat it, but it takes her forever to chew it up.

It's been about 2 months now since we went completely gluten free. All of the wonderful things about her that I would see, amongst the tantrums and OCD issues, are now a part of our daily lives full time. What a difference it has truly made. I am still amazed and shocked, how removing what little we did have in our diets anyway, has allowed her to really get to be herself. And oh, how I just adore her little self.

I can't help but worry what things will be like when the new baby arrives. As much as I am excited and looking forward to it, and know how wonderful it will be, I also can't help but worry how it will effect our relationship as it is right now. I know that it is a common concern for other mothers who have been here, I also know that everything will work itself out. But at times, like when I am sitting with her before bedtime, snuggling up with her and reading her a book, I wonder how much those times will change (at least in the beginning) and how much it will bother her.

What a huge responsibility it is to raise a child. To take care of them every day. To feed them and clothe them. To teach them the ways of the world and to help shape and mold them into the person that they will become. It's not something I take lightly (as most mammas don't, I'm sure) and I just hope that I am doing the best that I can for her.

Now if I could just get her potty trained before the baby gets here. Sigh.