One Year Ago Today

Exactly one year ago this hour, Lucy was welcomed into this world. As I was driving to work today, I was thinking how different things were a year ago. Lucy seems to have loved drama from the day she was born. After many trips to the hospital for labor on holidays and weekends with no traffic, Lucy decided that for the "real event", Monday morning rush hour traffic on 422 would be a nice ride. Luckily, it was a fairly light traffic day last year and we made it to the hospital with a little more than an hour to spare.

After Max's first couple of rough years, I wasn't sure how ready I was for another baby...part of me was terrified of going through all the illnesses and issues again with another infant. But, in the end, we took the plunge and decided that Max needed a sibling. It was definitely a great decision. Lucy has had minor hiccups this past year, but the joy she brings to our house every day outweighs any slight bump in the road. With Max, I was so focused on just getting through the day in one piece and hoping the next day would be better. I remember sitting with Max and crying right along with him when we had no idea how to help him. With Lucy, I was able to relax a little more and enjoy just being with her.

Before having kids, I always viewed parents as the teachers. Lucy has changed my perceptions of things this past year - Lucy has been the teacher this past year.

A few things I have learned this past year...

*There is always room in your heart to love another child.

*It really is possible to love both of your children equally.

*At the end of the day, if your kids are happy and go to bed with a smile on their face, nothing else seems quite as important.

*Laugh at the little things in life...like your brother making silly faces and having raspberry-blowing contests in the backseat with your brother.

*Giving your children siblings is one of the greatest gifts you can ever provide them.

*Sometimes you just need to take a leap of faith even when you are unsure of the outcome. The end result may be better than you could ever imagine.

*There is always room for more food.

*Geraniums are not lethal when eaten by an 11 month old. And, laptop keyboard keys are very easily removed and eaten by infants.

We are having cupcakes tonight for Lucy, so I will be sure to post pics later of her first encounter with the sweeter side of life!