Precious moments

Last week, I gave birth to my second daughter, Julia, and I’ve been in my own little baby love bubble ever since.

These feelings of intense love and joy are a far cry from the way I was feeling during the majority of my pregnancy, unfortunately.

To say I wanted it to be over is an understatement. And even while I was experiencing those feelings of never wanting to be pregnant again, I would try to remind myself that it would soon be over and that I should enjoy my pregnancy as much as possible. Besides, there were moments during my pregnancy that were very enjoyable — eating for two; having family, friends, and strangers do nice things for me; and getting to wear yoga pants more than should be allowed.

Now that our little girl is here, and not knowing whether my husband and I will try to have more children in the future, I’m definitely savoring every minute. Being a second-time mom, I remember all too well how fast this special time passes.

With Olivia, I was constantly looking forward to her next milestone and the next phase without truly being in the present. When she was a newborn and slept most of the day, I wanted to be able to play with her. When she started sitting up, I couldn’t wait for her to walk, and when she was running around the house I was hoping she would talk.

Nowadays, her father and I can’t get her to stop talking and we wonder where all that time went. I wish that I had enjoyed that time more. Other parents had warned us, “The days are long but the years are short.”

This time around, I’m enjoying my newborn as much as I can. I’m snapping a lot more pictures, and I’m less concerned with catching up on my sleep, because I know for sure that as soon as I blink, she won’t be a little baby any more.