Baby Is Going to Be a Year Old :(

I so didn't have my family at the hospital, and won't this time either, it was so much nicer to focus on us than pleasing extended family :) But you are right, times does fly. It upsets me b/c we always forget to video tape the kids, and their little voices and saying and actions and just everything about them are so adorable. Every phase is special.

You are doing it again. Instead of allowing yourself to enjoy the moment you are letting it pass you by and worrying about the next stage of the process. Just slow down, enjoy the moment and look forward to his new accomplishments. Try to find a way to truly enjoy his milestones. Once you start looking forward to them, rather than dreading them, you will get so much more enjoyment out of it all.

Mama, you'll look at each new milestone with pride in your heart, and enjoyment of every stage (well, except maybe tantrums and fits! LOL!) You'll move from each stage to the next, right along with him.

I just sent one off to college. It's something else, I can tell you! Learning to let go is hard, but part of the reason we bring a child into this world - to watch them grow and then send them off to be a man or woman.

Have a little b-day party, let him eat messy cake, take pictures and enjoy! 17 years from now, you can put a scrapbook together for him to take to college. I did that for my son, and he loved it! It was cathartic for me to do it, too!

Dawn

I know EXACTLY how you feel . . . our sons have the same birthday! I had my fall apart moment last week when my husband and I were watching tv. The teenage son on the show didn't want to snuggle with his mama and I fell apart. My son has been super independent lately and is now a walker! Every chance he gets he is running away from me and when I do get he snuggle time that I so badly crave, it makes me more sad to think that there will be a day that he will not want to snuggle with me at all!

Ughhhh... so hard to let go of some of those sweet times, isn't it? I remember feeling really sad, oddly enough, when I bought a potty chair for my daughter. How dumb is that??

I've always been super aware of my kids growing quickly. I had older siblings and friends with children that always said, "You'll blink and the time will be gone. Cherish every moment." So I tried to, and even so, I look at my kids now and it feel like a flash in time.

I slow down as much as I can and enjoy the time I have with them and the stages of development that they are in. You just have to realize that after one wonderful age and milestone there's another with new experiences and things to appreciate. And you have to realize the part you play in letting them become who they are by allowing those experiences to happen and guiding them through.

Take your time to grieve the stuff you will miss and what you feel sad about, and then embrace the next step and all the fun things age 1-2 will bring!

Hugs, mama!

Last year I was in the same place you are as my daughter will be 2 this coming December 19.....so last year I was all sad that she'd be turning 1. I felt she wasn't a baby as long as my son was (because we didn't get to sit back and just watch).....

I hate to tell you, but it'll always be too fast. Except maybe when he's a teenager, and then you'll still look back with nostalgia.

Keep your brain where the action is. That's the way to do it best. Go look at your baby right now. Really look at him! Enjoy it. Stop and listen to him. Don't let you mind wander into realms of laundry and dinner and when he gets married. Right this moment focus on your son as he is now. Thank God for him. Don't worry about his growing up. There would be something wrong if he didn't do that.

Keep your brain where it needs to be, and your heart will be a little happier.

I am right there with you. My daughter is 2 1/2 and I think about this daily. It is so, so hard. It is nice to know that there are other women that feel this way. I just make sure I play with her all the time. We get outside with the ball, run, laugh, and squeal. We have dance party almost every day. I just try to enjoy every moment I can. I am so very lucky to have her as my daughter. You sound like a great Mama! Enjoy!

Yeah that one year mark is a tough one. I used to feel sad too. I couldn't beleive my son is getting older, getting to be a big boy. He is now 18 months old and has become even more independent , learnt a lot of new things. Reading your post made M. remeber those days where I would feel sad that he is so grown up already. I don't feel that way these days. Yes , I do see him learn new things and surprise M. everyday these days. And I feel happy,proud. I think - OMG he is growing so fast but I don't feel sad anymore. Maybe the last few months have made M. accept the fact that he is not a little baby anymore. He now tries to communicate with us, repeats words after us, runs around the house -it's really a great stage. I miss his infancy but beleive M. these days are great too. There is really a lot of change in them once they cross their first birthday. I am trying to enjoy these days as much as I can. Thinking about the past , I don't want to miss out on the present. As I said , the 12 month mark is harder. I remember I was so happy when he smiled first time, sat on his own etc. But when he walked on his own , I was both happy and sad. I didn't want to stop breastfeeding, but my husband told M. I can't hold on to him forever ,he is going to stop one day. I somehow have stopped daytime feedings, but still nurse him in the night. But I know one day it will stop. I try to click as many pics as I can. I have so many videos of him , I am sure I am going to treasure them forever. Enjoy time with your little one. They do grow so fast , it makes you cry. Wish we moms could somehow pause time.:)

Something I've learned about feelings is that they are all desirable in their own ways. The heartbreak of a lost first love, that aching nostalgia when we realize our baby (or in my case, my grandson) will never fit into our arms as a newborn again, the joy of watching them grow and develop so uniquely and miraculously – it's all part of the same fabric. And amazingly, even sad feelings can be appreciated as proof of being whole and alive.

You know that sense of release you feel after you sob over a sad story? Or the thrill of terror some of us deliberately seek out in scary movies or dangerous sports (I did this by skydiving when I was 49)? It's all there for us to relish, right along with the joy. It IS relish, the seasoning of the seasons of life. We do ourselves a great kindness if we are able to realize this, take it in, savor it, and maybe remember it in our old age.

Blessings!

I remember wandering around my son's first birthday party wondering why no one warned me first birthdays are depressing, so you are NOT alone!