The Night Before...

I wanted to take a quick second to write about how Chris and I are feeling on the eve of Cadence's first birthday.

From my perspective, I am really happy with where we are now. I am getting to know my daughter and seeing all the things she can do is amazing, but I am also really looking forward to all the cool things she will be doing this time next year, and the year after that, and the year after that. During this past year, I never really gave too much thought to exactly how we were managing our situation, or how things would look in the future. But looking back, thinking about all the hard times and fun times we've had, it's a lot. This past year feels like 5 years rolled in to one. I'd say the first month was my favourite, as she was small and warm and wiggly and cuddly. And then the last few months have also been great with her increased mobility, vocal capability and interest in her surrounding. The middle was very tiring though, and while absolutely I wouldn't trade that time with anyone for anything, I'm glad we don't have to go backwards.

Chris is trying to play it cool, not really saying much when I ask him how he's feeling. But when it came time to feed her, he gave Cadence the bottle and then sat with her and snuggled while she drank her bottle. This is their nightly routine. She can sit on her own, and feed herself,  but Chris just loves the cuddle time. So I think he will take her growing up harder than I will.

Things I am glad are in the past:
- Waking up every 2-3 hours at night for food.
- The gross bit of umbilical cord that falls off after awhile to make a belly button
- The laying around all the time, not being able to even roll over or hold her head up.

Things I am sad are soon to be in the past:
- Baby talk
- Crawling
- Snuggle bottle time
- Cutesy baby clothes. It would seem the bigger you are, the more serious your clothes have to be.

So with that, we are going to spend tonight working on the house and getting it ready to receive visitors this weekend. Tomorrow will be a bittersweet but special day. Thanks for reading!