As I catch up on writing, Elida is 11 months old and rounding into a year soon. She is full of personality and opinions and unique developing characteristics. Her first words have come spilling out with her favorites being "dad" and "bird". She went right from crawling to starting to walk. Elida has strong opinions about what she likes and doesn't like (no vegetables, only cheese please), and will express those opinions often and freely. All these changes have happened within the last few months; a mom can barely keep up!
One of my biggest observations lately is my recognition about how we operate differently. I can learn a lot from her. Now, there are obvious things that tell me she is definitely my child. Beyond the opinions (I have a few of those), she has my ease of laughter and smiles, my pinchable cheeks and my stubborn nature. BUT, here's a few areas where I have noticed I differ a bit:1) She is not afraid. She will dive head first off the couch in exploration. She will take bold steps in an unfamiliar place. She will try new foods (at least once). I can learn from this bravery.
2) She is really really friendly to strangers. Elida has perfected the wave. Picture her wave as somewhere in between the queen's wave and turning an imaginary door knob. Elida waves and smiles at everyone, no matter where we are. People are so responsive! They wave and smile back while we wait in lines and go for walks. Elida even waves at the birds at the feeders, and I feel like they appreciate it too. Because of Elida's waving, I find myself interacting with people more too. Why didn't I engage as much before I had this little person with me?
3) She has a voice. Obviously, babies are all about needs. But again I feel like this is a lesson I can learn from my sweet daughter. When she needs something, she will let me know, sometimes very loudly. She communicates and I know there is something she wants or needs or could be different. How simple! Why can't communication with all people be as simple as that?
4) Playing comes first. For me, this seems to be rarely be the order of things. With Elida in my life, I play more, observe more and think about what fun could be had first. The work has to come later.
5) Getting more sleep makes you happier. You would think I would have figured this out by now- when I get more sleep, I am a better person. Elida lives this every day. When she is rested and fed, there is no stopping this little one in the area of joy. I think that is probably true for me too. I definitely need to get more sleep...So, as our beautiful daughter continues to grow, I look forward to learning more and more. She is brave, friendly, opinionated, eats well, plays hard, has positive and healthy relationships and she gets enough sleep to make her happy each and every day. If she had the words to say so, I am sure she would encourage you all to take some notes and wave and smile to a stranger tomorrow...
