Milestone

It's official. At 13.5 months, Truman has taken his first steps!! Sure, it's only about 5-6 in a row at this point. He definitely prefers to crawl as his primary mode of locomotion. And really, he only does his new walking trick when the mood hits him just right. But no matter what, this is a HUGE milestone to hit for any baby and it deserves it's own post right now.

On Monday, we noticed that Truman was doing a great job with his balance as he walked between the ottoman and couches. For a few weeks now he would get to the point where he'd want to let go of one surface to make the trek across the room to the other. But he was scared and cautious and always preferred to hold our hands, and we happily obliged. Then on Monday we noticed he would make the journey without our hands and better yet---he wouldn't even fall forward, face planting into the couch! I whipped out the iPhone for some video action feeling like although this milestone felt a little ambiguous, not carved out in stone for an exact date, it seemed like he was taking his first steps.



And then tonight, on Tuesday, we noticed that he was REALLY into making these little trips between furniture. And just within one day he has already doubled the distance he can tackle. To say that we are proud first time parents is a huge understatement, obviously.



Truman has never been a fan of walking with rolling toys, it's just not his thing. But at the end of that clip you'll see we tried it out again and he apparently loves to pull the thing backwards, at least!

While I was filming all of these videos it started to hit me: "My baby boy is walking!" I immediately got choked up as I stared at my growing son, realizing he is just working so hard at becoming a big boy now. I mean, how awesome is it that he is trying his hardest to walk? It just boggles my mind how fast they change and how every baby is so different and yet, so similar. Of course I knew he'd start walking one day but we didn't want to make it a big deal. And now we are here, on the verge of having a true toddler, and I just can't take the sense of pride. Do you see how proud he is of himself in those videos? Heartwarming.

Tonight after he did his walking tricks over and over again, we got ready for bed as always. Bath, jammies, books, bottle. I laid him down to sleep and instead of hearing him talk for a few minutes then passing out I heard him start to cry. The REAL cry. Like, 'Something is wrong' cry. Nate and I sort of looked at each other and wondered what was wrong, since Truman hasn't done this sort of thing in ages.

So I went back in his room armed with more milk, thinking maybe he was still hungry. He didn't want the milk and I was sort of at a loss. So I just picked him up, carried him to the rocker, and sat there as he laid his head on my chest. His little cheek against my collar bone, his left arm holding onto Monkey for dear life while his right arm wrapped around my left arm. He was cuddling with me, simply breathing in and out while resting on his mama, and it was the most precious thing I've experienced in many months. I rocked with him, humming him a tune, trying not to cry AGAIN, as I wondered how in the world I ever got so lucky to be this child's mother.

We rocked and he snuggled into me some more, turning his head every now and then to readjust himself. After awhile he started to perk up again, although I thought he had gone to sleep. He pulled his head off my chest and stared up at me with those big hazel eyes as if to say, 'Oh, hi, Mom!'. Then he started to laugh with the biggest grin ever. He kept laying his head back down then lifting it up again to laugh, over and over again. Is it possible that this child knew I was feeling sad about my baby boy growing up before my very eyes? Maybe he knew I needed some cuddle time, to reassure me that I am still needed and he still loves his mama. And after the giggles came the best part ever: he lifted his head off my skin, tilted his head back, opened his mouth a bit, and requested a genuine kiss from me. Not once, but about five times. I can't remember the last time he offered a kiss without me begging for it and of course I soaked in that moment with every ounce of my being.

I'd love to say that after our special moment together he drifted off to sleep in my arms. But instead, he woke back up and got squirmy so I decided to try laying him down again. After a little bit of rebellion he did finally fall asleep and I am left with the sweetest memory of my big baby boy, working so hard during the day to be a toddler, and then showing his mommy that he can still cuddle with the best of them.

I am so blessed it really hurts my heart sometimes. Thank you, God, for this gift of motherhood. It's moments like these that are worth every single second of the hard times.