Laila

I am so thankful for my little Laila. As I am sure every mother can agree with, being a mom has been the hardest but best and most rewarding thing I have ever done. I am truly fascinated with the way a child learns and grows and I just love watching Laila develop into her own little person more and more every day. She is so silly, sassy, loving, irritating, funny, stubborn, adorable...well you get the picture. I can't believe how much she can frustrate me one minute and then the next I see her little innocent face and all I can do is kiss her all over.

She has such a strong personality it's crazy. Even since she was a very new baby she has been quite indepenent. She loved being on the floor playing rather than being held. She's making up for list time now, though, and loves to be held a lot. She makes the silliest faces and I just wonder where on earth she comes up with them. She loves dancing around the house, she loves her doggie (although I think the dog may not feel quite the same), she loves being outside and she loves loves loves books. She is my busy little handful and I just love her so much.

This has nothing really to do with Laila herself and really has more to do with me but it's something that I think about quite often. I realized early on that I am probably a different mother than most new mothers now-a-days. There is so much out there that makes you feel like your child has to be this strong independent thing from such an early age. I have read so much saying that you shouldn't get your baby used to being rocked to sleep because they will always want you to rock them to sleep. First of all, is that really such a bad thing? Second of all, I am pretty sure they will eventually learn how to fall asleep on their own. My mom rocked my brothers and I to sleep all the time as babies and young toddlers and as I recall it I grew up just fine and didn't have a dependency on my mom at all. I love rocking Laila to sleep. It's one of the only times that she is still! She's a busy girl all the time and I relish in the time that I get to hold and cuddle her close while she silently sleeps. The truth is that each mother has to do what is best and what works best for the individual family and child and that's all that really matters. As for me, I will continue rocking my Laila to sleep for probably as long as she lets me because I know one day she will be too old and too big for it. I know one day she will want to go right to her bed and I really don't know if I am looking forward to that day or not. I am thankful for her and love being her mom.