A Year in Review

I cannot believe it's actually here. This Saturday, Rebekah turns 1 and I am floored. Do all the years go this fast?! Faster?! Well, I hope they bring just as much happiness and hopefully a little less misery than this year.

After bringing her home, we had a brief week of getting used to her before the colic set in. It wasn't as bad as some of the horror stories I've heard, but bad enough to make a very steep learning curve for us newbies. Malcom was working nights and started his Master's program and I had only 7 weeks of time off work to get into some sort of groove before forcing myself back into real life. Those first weeks were especially difficult due to lack of sleep and general postpartum hormone craziness. I called several friends and family members in tears asking for advice and support, just hoping something they said would help. Bekah wasn't a bad baby, just fussy when she was awake and I didn't figure out all the nuances of feeding and napping for a while.


Then, at one month, she smiled for the first time and I began to see the light at the end of the tunnel. She could actually communicate something more than crying and whining; she could smile and tell me she was happy, even it was brief. Then she learned to get more sleep at night; only 4 or 5 hours in a stretch, but it was great! That month she had her blessing with lots of family to visit. It was very special.


Month two brought better naps, and some crazy drives to and from Phoenix for Thanksgiving. We learned that spitup was a part of life and kept a stash of burp rags in every room of the house.


Month three was when she started teething which brought lots of drool and crankiness. She was more aware of people around her and was cute and entertaining in public. Bekah began sleeping through the night longer and was very happy in the mornings. I became sane and aware of the world around me again.


In the fourth month, January, she began almost laughing and tried cereal for the first time. She still spit up a lot, but it was better because the colic was mostly gone. She was actually fun to be around when she was awake.


It was in the fifth month that she learned to sit up which helped her play on her own a lot more. She was already interested in toys but could now really enjoy them. Finally came the first laughs and giggles which we tried desperately to coax out of her at every opportunity. I began to enjoy being around her and playing with her, feeling like it was a great age.


Month six is when she learned to respond to her name, kiss herself in the mirror, kick her legs when she was excited, and FINALLY take a pacifier. Miracle of miracles! We were also happy to discover two new teeth to account for the previous three months of off-and-on teething. I especially remember the fabulous six-month pictures taken by Rachel and how those photos were able to capture Rebekah's emerging personality.


Month seven brought crawling and pulling up on furniture, which resulted in more head bonks and tumbles. She was able to get to any toy she wanted and play independently for longer stretches of time.


In month eight we lived with sponge baths due to her casts. That was annoying! The colic and spitup were completely gone. Her naps became regular and a lot longer each time. Yeah! She learned to wave, only for Daddy at first, then for everyone else.


Month nine was full of new foods, especially little ones that she could fit in her hands and feed to herself. She loved learning how to do that! Overall, she was such a happy baby. That is the second most common comment I get about her, that she's really happy. The first is that she's so pretty. I eat it up every time! :) The casts came off and we got the brace which was so much better. She began to creep, walking while holding on to furniture. She was such a pro that we predicted she'd be walking before her first birthday.


Month ten included more teething and more teeth, the two on the top. She began to show a preference for cheese and bananas, hence the nicknames "mouse" and "monkey." We started enjoying all that curly hair and putting it up in ponytails. Rebekah went to the pool a lot that month and learned to really like it after a while.

Month eleven brought lots of family time, "reading" books all by herself, more teeth, and a few independent steps. No real walking yet, but that's okay. Bekah already gets into so many things she shouldn't that we can hardly keep up right now. Lately we've really come to love all the babbling and baby talk she does, her own little made up language that doesn't help us understand unless she points to what she wants. So cute.


She's becoming even more independent and a little demanding at times, signaling the onset of toddler life. I wonder if I'll look back at these months, from 4 to 11, and think they really were the best age! Honestly, I'm optimistic that I'll be able to enjoy most of her ages if the first year is any indication. Sure, there are challenging, stressful, and cranky times, but the happy, silly, exciting times more than make up for it.

Happy (almost) birthday, my sweet, wonderful little girl!