So Big!

Yesterday as Amelia was running from one end of the living room to the other in hasty pursuit of her stuffed dog, I saw something new in her; something I hadn't allowed myself to see before. My "baby" was no longer a baby at all, but a full-fledged, bona fide little girl.

When I think back to this time a year ago, I remember a quiet infant who couldn't sit up or feed herself. I remember my tidy house and 2 naps a day worth of free time. Now, at 16 months, she is independent and alive; she's found her voice and she knows how to use it. One of Amelia's new found joys is to remove all the pots and pans from the cupboard and bang on them with a wooden spoon. She loves to dance- with or without music, and when I say to her, "Do you want Mommy to read you a story?," she brings me Little Quack or The Touch Me Book and plops herself down on my lap. She also does a stunning rendition of "Head-Shoulder-Knees and Toes," though she generally leaves out the shoulders and knees part. My household is a noisy, toy-strewn, joyous mess. At least until 7pm when she goes to bed.

The baby days are a fading memory. While I miss certain things of her infancy, Amelia-the-toddler is pretty much the best thing since diet coke in a Styrofoam cup. She is a bright and innocent life and through her, I get to see the world as new all over again.