snuggles from a non-snuggler

         Henry will be reaching the grand old age of 7 months in 5 short days. The tried and true old adage "time flies" never really hit home with me the way it has since I've had a child. Its humbling for me to sit at home with Henry everyday, watching each new milestone, fresh with all the wonder of a first-time mother. He's been getting around pretty well now, doing his own unique combination of the army crawl jazzed up with a bit of the old school break-dancing favorite known as "the worm". He's had his sights on crawling for a while, and here and there we will actually see the ever-so-graceful movement of a knee and arm scooting forward in unison. But I think it will be a little bit longer before I jot down in ink in his baby book that he's a bonafide crawler. He has all the necessary motions down, its just putting all of those motions together at once that's got him stumped. In due time... I'm not in any kind of rush.

         With every day that passes, he becomes less and less of a baby. Yes, I know, he's less than a year old yet. But it feels as though his babyhood is slipping by, nonetheless.  No one tells you how bittersweet it all is. With each new development I feel my heart soar and sink simultaneously. I chock it up to the growing pains of being a mother. I'm so thrilled that he's thriving and hitting new milestones left and right. But that little voice inside keeps whispering and taunting "He's relying on you less and less each day".. I how that sounds. I know that he still needs me very, very much. I'm trying my hardest to live in the "now", relishing that fact.

         In many ways, he's my big boy.. moving around like crazy, getting into everything he shouldn't be the minute I have my head turned, slurping down his green beans like nobody's business. Something new gets added to the list daily.

         A lot of the time, in lovely contrast, he's still my little baby. At nearly 7 months, he's still flashing me nothing but gums when that smile spreads across his round little face. And, unless I don't know what I'm feeling for, there's no palpable sign of pearly whites on their way to the surface. This past week has, behaviorally, been an odd one and I'm seriously wondering if those teeth of his are on their way. Henry's been running a slight temperature, off and on, and a bit of a runny nose. He's been gnawing with purpose on just about anything he can fit into that tiny mouth of his and, the strangest behavior of all, he's been snuggling the living daylights out of his mama.

         Henry is NOT a snuggler. This is not to say he doesn't like being touched because he does. This is the kid who still needs his mama to nurse & rock him to sleep for each and every nap he goes down for. He just hasn't ever showed the desire to nuzzle into the crook of my shoulder when I'm carrying him around or hug onto my arm with all his might like he has over the past week. Its a welcome change and I'll take it as long as it lasts.