Mommyhood

Happy Mother's Day!  This was my first, and I'm so happy to finally be a part of this club.  Yesterday, we had the perfect little outing...just the three of us.  Since the weather was so great, we packed up Millie (plus the large amount of supplies it now takes to go anywhere) and we spent a couple of hours on the Crystal Bridges Museum grounds.  John has taken Mills up there to walk the outdoor trails a few times without me, so this was my first trip to the trails.  It was absolutely gorgeous.  There are multiple trails and plenty of room so that it doesn't feel crowded, and they have done a wonderful job planting flowers, trees, and other native plants.  Unfortunately, Millie wasn't feeling very well, which we didn't realize until we got home; I don't think she enjoyed the outing as much as I did.  She's doing better today with a slightly less runny nose and just a low-grade temperature. 

I loved this field of wild flowers

Someone offered to take our picture from a very awkward angle, but you can't say no, right?!  This picture shows that little miss bear got her dad's skin tone.  JKK tans beautifully and is pretty much freckle and mole-free...I'm so so happy to report that she didn't take after me in this area. ;)

 you can tell she isn't feeling great in this pic...it's in the eyes

 and here she sort of looks comatose...makes me feel bad for dragging her around all day

After some trail-walking, we had a treat indoors while we fed Millie lunch

poor millabean was ready for nap time

It was a great way to celebrate Mother's day.  Of course, I missed getting to see my own mom, but the good news is that we fly up to Denver to see her, my brother, sister-in-law, nephew, and niece in less than two weeks!

Back in September, I wrote the following blog post when Camilla was 2 months old.  I never published it; not really sure why...however, I'm thrilled to say that I still surprise myself daily with how much I love being a mother to sweet baby Millie.  This mommy business is the best!

I sort of knew what mommyhood would be like, but really I had no idea how great it would be.  This is what I have found to be the most surprising aspect of being a parent...the awesomeness of it.  When you don't have kids, people tell you you won't have any idea what you're missing until you have them (big eyeroll here).  But it's true!  It's the absolute best thing I've ever experienced.  I was a little worried about myself and how I would handle sleep deprivation.  I need 8 hours, and even when I get a full 8, I still cannot be classified as a morning person.  Yet somehow at 2 in the morning when she wakes up hungry, I'm still gentle and loving and calm.  I want to make her happy and make her feel safe and loved.  I'm not in denial; John will tell you that I can definitely be crankypants in the morning after a long night with Millie.  But the important thing is that I'm not mad at her for it, and it sort of surprises me.  Not that I thought I would be a mean mom who blamed her infant for not sleeping through the night, but I did sort of wonder how I would feel towards the baby when I'm feeling sleep-deprived and cranky.  So I'm happy to report that I've pleasantly surprised myself (and possibly John) and our baby is not being made to feel guilty for mommy's dark undereye circles (or kangaroo pouch, but that's a whole other topic).

Baby Millie - 2 Months Old