The Half Birthday

I’m amazed that it’s only been six short months, half a year, since this little one has graced us with his delicious presence.

Today, this delightful, chaotic, beautiful, weird, pleasant, crazy, normal day, was my little guy’s half year mark.

I’m sure the day will come when his electric smile, that shows up just for me when I walk into view, won’t send a jolt of electricity through my body and make me want to leap over whatever objects are between us to swipe him up and draw him into my arms. There will come a day when I won’t stare at his pouty little lips while he sleeps, when my heart won’t try to leap outside of itself when he takes a break from our own special little happy hour to look up at me with those round liquid center eyes and smile a little crooked smile. I know there will be a time when his curled up toes won’t beckon me to mercilessly kiss them and the way he tenderly reaches up for me won’t make me cry.

But today, my little love’s half birthday, is not that day.

Today we celebrate the gift of life, we celebrate that early morning hour when his slippery little body slid out of me and his daddy and I reached out to pull him up with open arms and outstretched hearts.

I knew this having kids thing was going to be good, wonderful even.  But spectacular, tear-inducing-at-the-thought-of-them, tiring and exhilarating, something I could never… ever… ever… imagine my life without, well, that was something I wasn’t expecting. This having kids thing has been more than I ever dreamed it would be, and I couldn’t let a half birthday slide by without celebrating it. These six months that seemed to escape our grasp so quickly, and yet I can hardly remember life before him. The daily changes that remind us to take our time and walk a little slower because babyhood is seeping through the cracks.

It’s not unlike trying to hold water in my hands… it trickles and seeps no matter how tight my grip, no matter how hard I try and hold on.  He’s trickling.

I know that I have so much to learn and so much growing to do right along with you, but for right now, Brayden, I’ll smile and enjoy your body molded across mine, inhale your scent and once again, commit it to memory. I’ll hold on and embrace the ride until your babyhood trickles through my fingers and we have a new stage of life to enjoy together… but know that no matter what age or what stage of life we’re in, I’ll always love you.

The Month by Month:

And since we’re in a celebratory mood, here’s a little peeky-peeky of the preparations underway for big sister’s fourth Birthday Party.  FOURTH.  It shocks me every time.

We still have one more thing to celebrate… the winner of the surprise giveaway. So without further ado, the winner of a fresh, homemade, mostly organic jar of blueberry jam is Tara from One Stop Giveaway Shop! I guess what you give out really does come back around to you, doesn’t it.

And after a post all about blueberry picking, you had to know something like this was coming.