Down the Rabbit Hole

Some Enchanted Evening...

My little girl has been sick, a common cold with all the common symptoms, runny nose, sneezing, watery eyes and a barking cough that has interrupted everyone's sleep for three nights running. Her father and I have taken shifts sitting up with her and as a result, are both pretty exhausted. It is hard to see our normally bright and sunny child reduced to whining and whimpering, and following a particularly aggressive bout of coughing, outright wailing. The good news, she's growing just fine. At 13 months, she's just about 75% for height and weight and her skills seems to be developing at or slightly ahead of schedule. Watching her this morning, sitting in her father's lap waiting for the doctor, I was struck by how her face has changed so much in the last few weeks, the rounded, baby face giving way to thinner, more little girl-like qualities. While her features are still very much mine or her father's, her face is becoming a uniquely beautiful one. Coupled with her ever-emerging personality, Jaden's individuality is beginning to shine. Her father once said to me, "I can't take my eyes off her." I find that I am often thinking the same thing. I watch her pawing through her books or contemplating some task she is about to tackle and the quiet determination in her gorgeous little face leaves me with in a state of breathless wonderment. And when she shouts at me and lets loose a stream of obviously urgent but as of yet, unintelligible baby babble, I am delighted and charmed beyond words. All the things that are special and amazing about Jaden are only dampened by her sickness, they are still there waiting to bubble to the surface the very second her ailments abate. After a sleepless night, her morning smiles and hugs can recharge our spirits in a way nothing else can. As parents, we may well be exhausted now for the better part of our lives but everything, every moment is so worth it.