I don't know if it's because she is learning so many new things so quickly, or if it's because I'm preparing for the arrival of a brand new baby, but my Bean seems so big these days.
In the span of a week she started talking in 2 and 3 word sentences.
Last week we walked to the park. No stroller. Just my big girl holding my hand and chattering all the way.
She is almost fully potty-trained and almost always tells me when she has to go.
Last week we said good-bye to her bottle.
And on the weekend she reached for me, said "Mama". And then, of her own accord: "Wuv woo".
I can't even tell you what those two little words did to my heart. She's been saying "love you" back to us for a little while now, when prompted, but this was the first time my daughter told me she loved me because she wanted to.
It is an indescribable feeling to have love returned to you by your child. This little bean, who I have loved and cared for whole-heartedly since before she was born is starting to recognize love and affection, and is beginning to demonstrate it on her own.
To me, this is a huge milestone. A big development for the Bean. While the physical milestones (like sitting, crawling, walking) have been so fun to watch, these new emotional and mental growth spurts are even more exciting to me.
We have inside jokes, my daughter and I. Things we do to make the other laugh. I am loving watching her sense of humour develop. She is, without a doubt, a little person with her own personality.
It makes me excited to see who this next baby will be and how different or similar he/she will be to the Bean. Isn't parenthood the greatest adventure?
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| how did we get from this... |
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| ... to this?? Bean, 19 months old |
