Nine Months

Nine months.
You've been apart from her for as long as you were a part of her.
How different were your months with her than with me...

Sally Bacchetta - Freelance Writer
Freelance Writer
Parenting
Motherhood

Three Things I Don't Understand

1. The expression, "It's as easy as taking candy from a baby." Must be a heck of a lot easier than taking an uncapped marker, a nail file, a nickel, a Ziploc bag, a bar of soap, a bottle of saline, a computer mouse or a battery from a baby.

2. How my 21 pound 8-month old currently wears clothes labeled Newborn, 0-3 months, 3-6 months and 6-9 months. The weight-based clothing doesn't make any sense either, because she fits comfortably in clothes labeled 8-11 lbs., 9-16 lbs., 12-18 lbs. and 12-26 lbs. (I wish I had clothes that would accomodate a 14 lb. swing!)

3. I bought a board book yesterday that has a sticker on it: Warning. Choking hazard for children under three. What child under three can fit an entire book in her mouth? The only choking hazard I can find is the sticker itself.

Sally Bacchetta - Freelance Writer
Freelance Writer
Parenting
Motherhood

Et tu, Baby?

I thought that we were the exception, you and I.
That our bond, spectacular and incomprehensible, would make a difference.
I see now that it was hubris to expect that you would leap-frog over your preordained curriculum for my benefit.
For in spite of the endless rounds of "You Are My Sunshine",
in spite of the grocery carts I abandoned half-full because you were tired,
in spite of the homemade baby food, the 2,501 faked pratfalls, and the time I went out at 4:00 in the morning (unfit for a dog fight) because you somehow outgrew your diapers in your sleep,
in spite of all the times I let you poke me in the eye to satisfy your curiosity...
Here they are. Your first words. Pure and deliberate...
"Hi, Dadda."

Sally Bacchetta - Freelance Writer
Freelance Writer
Parenting
Motherhood