It’s been quite the ride already and the adventure has just started… what a week “week one” has been!
I was told that one is never truly prepared to be a parent, but for most, you would have had nine months and then so many more to prepare for what we’ve just experience in our first days of parenthood!
When our little bundle of joy arrived on the last Friday of May, we were told – crawling is on point, sleeps 12 hours (but has a couple night terrors before midnight) and eats purées (but is ready to transition). We were ready for a baby – we had the crib, the diapers, the car seat, the favorite Gerber cereals, puffs and cookies, as well as the same bowls, shampoo and toys baby had had at its last house to help with the transition… what we were not ready for was an Olympic runner, who knows no danger, on an all-night/multi-night Camilia bender caused by a growth spur (teeth), refusing any help (hates teethers), absolutely famished almost teenager! Ok ok… I’m exaggerating… BUT man!!! Couldn’t I have started with a little being that just slept, peed and pooed?! 😉
We QUICKLY adapted.
From the instructions of “baby love all foods, just put it in the food processor” to not eating anything at all except milk for 2 days, to enjoying purées, to devouring everything in sight including mom’s sticky rice and beef, avocado chunks, polenta, chunky abricots, BBQed sausages and more WITH ITS OWN SPOON!!! All in one week…
From the instructions of “baby crawls nicely and stands on its own” to crawling faster than a Formula 1 racer, to standing up, pulling up, squatting up and holding itself straight up, to walking while holding onto our fingers, to easily walking with a walker and then taking baby’s first steps!!! All in seven days…
From the instructions of “baby is weary of water; especially the shower head” to our first easy-peasy bath time, our first wading pool adventure, our first big pool swim without floaters (in uncle Chrystian’s arms) and to baby putting its head under water!!! All in 168 hours…
From the doctor’s appointment to meeting with the biological parents, to sniffing bums and dealing with messy cleanups, to mommy groups and YouTube tutorials and to walking out of Toys’R’Us with the baby but without our purchases (at least we had the baby)!!! All in 10,080 minutes…
From arriving at a stranger’s house, to wondering where the previous caregiver was, to kissing us good night and hugging us good morning!!! All in 604,800 seconds…
It’s true what you all say – time flies! It’s hard to believe that our cutie patootie only arrived a week ago!
Alex is trying very hard to keep a clean and tidy house. My mom gave him a day. He lasted the week, but I am definitely seeing signs of him giving up! The 6-foot by 4-foot playpen (aka football field that is now part of our dining room) helps! Is Sesame Street no longer free on PBS? No tv yet, but there’s been a number of instruments and Alex feels like he’s found the future drummer to his band and even, potentially, singer (I hear screaming is music to some). I’ve become the purée queen – filling up little reusable pouches for on-the-go snacks, yet I forget them when we leave the house!
Our lives have been turned upside down but we are a great team – Stanley Cup worthy (we made sure baby cheers when we say Go Habs Go!). We are tired. We are dirty. We are finding things that we had thought lost forever (that little item under a cupboard that can so easily be chewed on) and, to the dog’s content, we seem to be washing our floors with purée and not purel!
One week… 7 days… 168 hours… 10,080 minutes… 604,800 seconds… so little time for us to realize that we are truly parents and that we will be here for an eternity more!
TO BE CONTINUED…
In Kim’s Head 
Despite what everyone says, having a baby is a lot of work. Sometime joyous, other times it can be hair pulling time. But it is the good times that make it all so worthwhile. You and your partner, Kim can do it. The goodness of your heart will sustain you as you made a brave choice.
I read your blog. All that happened in just one week means one thing : that baby was ready to fly and you guys are his wings ! Congratulations !