They think they're people!

So today I went to my OB for my annual visit and I was delighted to find out that Dr. Kamaljeet Murthy is pregnant with her second son and due in June. This of course brought on talk of when and if Mark and I are going to have a second child. I told the Doc that I'd like to have another sooner rather than later so that they are close in age. I then said "That of course won't be that easy on me in the beginning, but I think it will be best for the kids and in the long run." And Doc said "That's true - but the hard part is over before you know it."

But it seems the hard part IS over before you know it. When I was pregnant I heard "the first three months are the hardest" a GAZILLION times. And BOY were they right. Now Noah seems like a piece of cake in comparison. And I'm sure it will be even more daunting to be going through the first three months with a new infant while tending to a toddler. But you get through it because as hard as it is, it's also a joy and it's worth it in the long run.

Of course it would be easiest if baby number two were a carbon copy of baby number one. But those crazy babies are born as different as people. Grown people that is. They're born with different likes and dislikes and you can bet that what Noah liked won't provide much guidance for us on baby number two. Last night Mark and I had the pleasure of babysitting Ms. Bella so that Patrice and Sean could attend a screening at the film fest. We were only double babying it for an hour since Mr. Noah is a morning person (up between 4 and 6 am) and was in bed by 7:30 pm and Ms. Bella is a night owl (sleeps in) who wanted to hang out. This was perfect for last night -but can you imagine how hard it is if your two kids had totally different sleep preferences? It means you would be up late with one and up early with the other. No time for sleep! That sounds nightmarish - but it happens and parents get through.

The developmental differences and preferences between Noah and Bella are astounding considering they were born only four days apart. While Noah is a rolling fool that can barely sit up even when propped, Bella loves to sit and hates to roll. Noah eats ANYTHING like a champ but Bella is far advanced with raspberries and consonant sounds galore. Noah likes to hang out in the Bjorn but hates being strapped in the stroller while Bella is a stroller fan who puts the kibosh on the baby sling. So you see you never know what you're going to get because these silly babies are actually born with personalities. They think they're people! And don't let any book or parent tell you that your child is late or wrong because they aren't doing what another kid of the same age is doing. You certainly can't assume there's a problem. Growing and learning are really personal things that can't be judged too strictly on a universal time scale. Hell, it took me forever to learn to knit and I still suck at it - that doesn't mean I'm a slow learner or that I have a problem. At least not that I'm willing to admit to.

So in the not too distant future we might be up for a second one. And if we're lucky enough to conceive and deliver he/she will offer new challenges and the two of them will run me ragged. There will be nights when I'm so tired I won't be able to see straight and times when I wonder "what in hell was I thinking" but the hard part will be over before I know it. And later it will seem that the tender childhood years were gone in a flash and I'll want to relive them all - even the hard parts.