Everyone told me time would fly by. That he would grow up fast. Not to wish the days away because they would be over before I could blink. Of course I half listened. He was an infant and I would rock him to sleep only to have him pop his eyes open the second his sleeping body hit the crib. I knew it would be like that forever. Sleepless nights that left mama and baby exhausted and in tears were something I got used to. Bottles and wipes and diapers and snacks and extra changes of clothes and toys were permanent decorations in the house and car. I carried him on my hip most days and it was a perfect fit, not to mention an upper body workout. And then, one day, he put himself to sleep with no rocking necessary. He decided that nighttime was made for sleeping. Sippy cups replaced bottles, underwear replaced diapers, clothes got bigger and toys more high tech and expensive. And that perfect fit? It is sadly no longer. I should have listened. Coulby started first grade at the end of August and I am lamenting his infancy. The adjustment to knowing my oldest is now a first grader has been way more difficult for me than sending him off to either preschool or Kindergarten. Why? Well, look at him! He is a little man! I swear he grows right before my eyes!
I guess I just never thought this day would sneak up on me so quickly. There were times when Coulby was a baby that I was not even sure I would send him to public school. The thought of exposing him to so many illnesses terrified me. My plan was to protect Coulby's health and keep my sanity intact by secluding him from any and all threats. I would have done him such a huge injustice in doing so. He loves school. It suits him.
Now I repeat the advice given to me because my baby is growing up way too quickly for my liking. And every time I pass it along I want to roll my eyes because I know how it sounds; that it is meaningless to the sleep-deprived, frazzled mother with a baby on her hip. But I say them anyway because eventually, for all of the mama's out there, these words ring true.
