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If I could sum up the challenges of parenting in one sentence, it would be this:

This, too, shall pass.  And if it’s not this, it will be something else.  (ok, two sentences)

The greatest encouragement in the midst of the hardest trial is that the current problem will not last forever.  In fact, for babies, it will probably only last for a few weeks or a few months.  I remember the days surrounding Christmas when the GI specialist at Children’s Mercy told us to feed Hannah a special type of formula every three hours on the dot, even in the middle of the night to see if it would make a difference in her digestive system.  Even though she had started sleeping for 5-6 hour stretches at night, I had to revert back to setting an alarm and dragging  myself out of bed to wake up a sleeping baby in order to feed her.  I was absolutely exhausted.  And yet I barely remember those weeks now.  There were the hours of crying that lasted every evening from around 5pm until 10 or 11 at night.  There were the 5 outfit changes, 100+ spit-ups and 1-2 baths per day.  There were the ear-piercing screams every time the bottle was taken out of her mouth.  There were the few weeks of 6am wake up calls after months of her sleeping in until 8am.  And yet as quickly as each new challenge presented itself, another one was beginning to fade.  Stepping back, taking a deep breath, and gaining some perspective is absolutely essential for me as a new mom.

We’re starting to see the same lesson emerge but on the flip side of the coin.  As Hannah develops little habits and quirks that we just can’t get enough of, we find ourselves wishing that time would stand still.  And yet as soon as one mannerism or new skill starts to fade, another begins.  We find ourselves missing the endless raspberries she used to blow last week but loving the non-stop chatter that she is offering to us this week.

All to say, I’m experiencing the tension of wishing Hannah was older so that she could communicate why she is upset about something and simultaneously wishing time would stand still so that she would never outgrow that little cheesy toothy grin she makes when she crawls around the corner and sees you smiling at her.  Time is precious and unique and complicated and I’m learning to just enjoy today for what it’s worth and all that it offers.  Because if it’s not this, it’ll inevitably be something else.

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