Perception

As I sat on the floor watching Izzy play last week, I realized that small things make the biggest difference in my perception of my baby.  We spent the morning looking for shoes for Izzy.  This is no small task, because my 16 month old barely fills out a size 2 shoe.  This is especially challenging because she needs shoes meant for walking, not laying in a crib.  After finding a spiffy pair of shoes, we hung out with friends at the mall, at lunch, came home and Izzy took her nap.  When she woke up, I put the new shoes on her to test them out.  We played most of the afternoon and I thought nothing else about the shoes.  At one point she was sitting in her little chair and I was sitting on the floor.  With the biggest, proudest grin she could muster, she stood up and walked over to me.  It wasn't her first steps, she has been taking those for a about a month.  It wasn't even the first time she walked from the chair.  It was the shoes that got me.  There was my baby, wearing her first pair of big girl shoes standing with ease and walking towards me.  At that moment I realized that my baby was disappearing before my eyes.  I have never been sentimental about her growing up.  In fact, I have looked forward to each of her milestones, and watching her become her own little person.  Boy has my perception changed.  Since making this observation, I have been keeping an eye on other things that might make her grow up too fast.  So far, I have outlawed ponytails for at least another 6 months! I'll let you know anything else that makes the banned list!