a different kind of milestone

I'm taking a quick break from all the baby babble to mark the second anniversary of my marriage to my best friend.

We're sometimes too sleepy these days to clearly recall how we got into this boat in the first place. In the midst of all the diapers, doctors' appointments, and three a.m. wakeups, it might come as no surprise that I almost forgot about our anniversary altogether.

I want my man to know this, though: I might not remember when we got married, but I always remember why.

visitors

We're lucky to have lots of friends and family nearby, but some of our favorite people live very, very far away. Poor Miss M had to wait a whole month to meet anyone from her mama's side of the family.

Her patience finally paid off last week when Grandma and Grandpa Ohio came to visit.

Needless to say, everyone got along just fine.

As the photos will attest, M logged plenty of face time with her extra special guests. There were long walks, lots of laughing and crying, a (grand)Father's Day brunch, and countless rounds of Pass the Baby.

Watching my parents grow into grandparents was a wonderful thing. Having extra hands to help with cooking, cleaning, and baby-entertaining was also pretty great. My man and I were more than ready to hand over our kitchen for a few days. Handing over the baby to duck out for a quick dinner for two turned out to be surprisingly easy, too.

For her part, M had absolutely no problem being the center of attention for two additional grown-ups.  She is, as her grandfather says, rather advanced for her age...

one month

We are celebrating this week. Somehow, it has already been an entire month since M first moved in with us. Maybe it's the general lack of sleep at our house, but it seems like the days have been flying by. On the other hand, it also feels as though Miss M has always been a permanent fixture in our lives.

Of course, she's much smarter than she was a month ago. She's also gotten better at posing for photos. This bodes well for my plan to pimp her out as a Baby Gap model in order to pay for her college tuition.  Oh, and maybe to fund a few trips to the grocery, too...

She has an amazing kissy face, which cracks me up every time I see it, even though she tends to use the face to announce her pressing desire to eat something. I still like to pretend that it means she loves us immensely. Which she does. She just hasn't realized it yet.

She's eating like a proverbial horse, or at least a foal, which has been incredibly challenging and incredibly gratifying at the same time. She's finally starting to gain some serious weight, and of course, we're convinced that it's all brain mass.

We are celebrating with cupcakes, reveling in a visit from Grandma and Grandpa Ohio, and taking the time to appreciate all the ways this little one has already grown.

what babies do

I was warned about crying and howling. I was prepared for sleepless nights and endless conversations about poop. Everyone promised me that I would be exhausted beyond belief and that my brain cells would dwindle to a number that could be counted on one hand. Nobody, though, told me this:

Babies are boring.

Seriously. They sleep all the time. They sleep when you're trying to feed them. They sleep when you're taking them on exciting adventures, like to a birthday party for a favorite auntie.*

While they will absolutely refuse to sleep on any surface specifically designed for the purpose, like, say, a crib, there is a slim chance that they might sleep on the living room couch for ten to twenty minute stretches.

Above all other options, they prefer to sleep on top of mamas and daddies, which is how this particular mama has managed to consume an entire season of Grey's Anatomy and a season and a half of True Blood, just in the past week. **

An unfortunate downside to this arrangement is that one, if not both, of my arms is being monopolized by a small person, preventing me from performing any task that requires six or more fingers.***

And of course, I know I'm supposed to "sleep when the baby sleeps." I'm starting to regard this as a funny cliche that people share with new parents, rather than something that anyone actually does. As far as pithy advice goes, I prefer "fantasize about doing the dishes while the baby sleeps."  Or maybe "wish you were taking a shower while the baby sleeps."

It's pretty obvious, though, if you're looking at this post, that my favorite thing to do while this particular baby sleeps is watch her sleep. In spite of her ability to decimate brain cells, dominate our tiny apartment, and literally immobilize me, she fascinates me by doing something as simple as breathing.

*Before the cat fights begin, you are all her favorites. Clearly.
**Season six and seasons three and four, respectively.
***Total number of fingers used to type this post: four.