Archives: December 2007
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We had a crazy day at work yesterday -- holiday shoppers gone wild and what not. Thus far, I am really enjoying my job as far as a temporary gig goes. The BCS is really nice to its employees, and I have been getting a fair amount of positive feedback from my managers, which is always good for the ego. The combo deal means I don't really mind going to work, outside from the fact that it's tiring and of course I miss Mateo while I'm gone. Still - I know it's good for me and probably him too.
Yesterday, I was helping a customer who had her little boy in tow. He was blond and looked like a bit of a troublemaker, and was missing a few front teeth. In other words, cuteness extreme. He started telling me about a book he had recently read, and I half talked to him and half talked to his mom for a moment. Then he whispered to his mom, " I want to ask her alinadsg lknadsoginag." She leaned down (trying to keep the conversation confidential because you never know what a little kid can say), "What was that honey?"
He loud-whispered back, "I want to ask her if she has a son."
Before the mom could get awkward, I leaned over and said, "Did you want to ask me something?"
"Do you have a son?" he asked, with a big semi-toothed grin.
"I do!" I answered.
"How old is he?" he asked.
"He is six months old," I said.
Triumphantly, he pointed at himself and said, "I'm SIX!!!"
"Well, what do you know? You're six years old and my son is six months old. Of course, you know how to do a lot of things that he doesn't know how to do yet, but you guys have the number six in common."
He paused for a moment, looked at me kinda sweetly and said, "I bet he's wondering where you are right now."
Just about broke my heart.
In other news, I sort of accidently got placed in the kids department at the BCS -- much to my own happiness -- so these kinds of stories might abound.
Wow, Mateo, you're six months old today. How did that happen? You were just an itty bitty guy and now you have exploded into full-grown baby mode. It is amazing to me that you have grown so much in these six months, and that time has passed so quickly. Of course, in many ways, I feel like you have been a part of my life forever -- so in that sense six months seems like so few. I find it hard to believe that in another six months you will be a year old... but that's the way it works, I suppose.
Six months old and proud of it! from odessa on Vimeo.
Last night, I went through some pictures from your first days. Everything since your birth forward has been so magical for me, I wanted to relive it all a bit. Driving home from work yesterday, I was also thinking about humility, and how nothing in my life has been as humbling (in a good way) as the experience of being your mother. Thinking about and caring for another being day in day out is an oddly efficient way to learn more about one's self. I have changed a lot since I've met you -- it might not show on the outside, but I can feel on the inside that I am not the same person. Though things have at times been very difficult, I think most all of these changes have been for the better. Now, I just appreciate that even hard times are part of the human experience and that there is something to be learned from everything. The last few months haves made me a much stronger person, and I hope that these lessons that I have learned will help me be a better mama to you.
Before leaving Paris, I had a conversation with your dad about attitude. I told him that going into things and thinking you are going to make the most of them is sometimes half the battle. This has been my mindset since we left France, and I think it has paid off. I am still as happy as I was in France, even though my living situation is a little precarious. I am proud of myself for remaining positive and being able to laugh through the hard times. Of course, you make that pretty easy. Why, just yesterday you shook your head at your grandmother and me when we were singing an enthusiastic version of "Old MacDonald." Clearly, you weren't impressed, and we were dying of laughter at your vigorous rejection of our song. You make me smile and laugh so many times per day, and I often get tears in my eyes when I think about how lucky I am to have you here. You are the light of my life.
Yesterday you had your six month check up, and you are right on target for most things. You weigh just under 19 lbs and are about 28 inches long, which puts you up in the 75th and 85th percentile respectively. I told grandma and grandpa that they need to stop calling you chunky, because you're clearly much taller than you are wide. I think you're just fooling everybody because of your superman cheeks. Don't do anything to those just yet -- they're almost mindbendingly cute.
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Somebody around here has figured out the sitting thing. Well, mostly anyway. He topples occasionally and then is either pissed or confused, depending on his mood and how close we are to nap time. It seems like this sitting thing happened overnight, as one day he was sitting up reasonably well with the boppy supporting him, and the next I could sit him down on the carpet unassisted. In reality, I know this development has been months in the making, but it really came as a shock to me when he sat on his own for ten solid minutes for the first time.
This milestone seems symbolic in a way as well, as if Mateo is turning into a full-blown baby before my very eyes. He giggles and interacts so much more, he reaches for things and makes his desires known. He's genuinely FUN to hang out with and I am just flat out smitten. It is amazing to watch his coordination develop. Now that he can sit, we play games facing one another and I can watch him discover new things. It's so exciting and he is so dang cute.
Having him sit on his own has also alleviated some of his dependence on me. He is happy to sit and play with his toys in a way he wasn't before. Yesterday, for example, he sat with me on the bed playing with something while I folded laundry. I kept expecting him to ask me to pick him up or carry him around, but he just played away happily next to me. I continued talking to him and we were still interacting, but I was also able to get maybe 30 minutes of work done at the same time. Effortlessly.
Another development is that Mateo has now gone four nights without waking up before five am. He was doing this for a little while before we left France, but with all the changes and travelling, he was all over the place. These past few nights have left me more rested than I have been in months, and I think liberation from sleep deprivation is the most glorious feeling ever.
I was reading in a baby book that many parents feel some relief at around six months because the baby gains some independence. The idea sounded daunting to me when I read it a few months back, but now I see what they might mean. The sleeping, the sitting, the ability to entertain himself... all good things in my book.
The other big news around here is that Mateo experienced his first snow fall. He didn't think much of it, but then again neither did I. There's only so much positivity to be found in very cold winter days.
This next week I am working 36 hours -- which is now only *almost* full time (by American standards). I didn't ask for that many hours but that's what I got scheduled, and I'm going to see how well I can handle it. Should be interesting, but let's hope I don't return to the land of the sleep deprived as a result.
