Thursday, January 24, 2008

Baby Love

I got to talk to my sister-in-law for a long time today. She lives in Los Angeles, and four months ago, she gave birth to my niece Aden, who was so excited to join our family, she wanted to come 12 weeks early. Aden stayed at the NICU in Cedars Sinai, so my family was there when Dennis Quaid's kids were overdosed, and my sister-in-law frequently saw celebs going in and out (she bumped into Matt Damon!).

Aden is home now- with her mommy and daddy, and it was the coolest thing to chat with them today. There's something so special about bringing home your first child.... not only is everything new to them- but to you as well. It's so innocent- those first few months you are a mom. And it was refreshing to hear my sister-in-law ask me the same questions I wondered about, and have the same fears that used to keep me up at night. In the background, I could hear my niece cooing- and I finally said to her "isn't is so cool--- now that you guys are a family?"

Then we joked about what it's like to bring home baby number two. Gone are the days of the pristine nursery, the brand new toys and clothes- and the 2 anxious, adoring parents hovering over every move. One of my girlfriends does a wicked impersonation of me- post-partum with Lucy. She pretends she has a baby hanging off of one breast, and then slaps her knees and sings an off kilter tune of "She'll Be Coming Round The Mountain."

Because, folks- that was me. Lucy liked to chomp on the boobs 24-7, and Annie was not yet 2 and freaking out- and the only thing that calmed her down were Dolly Parton lullabies. Add in a visual image of boobs that looked like deflated tube socks, and another inner tube around my middle, and bags so big under my eyes that they wouldn't fit in the overhead compartment and it would serve as serious birth control for anyone thinking of having another kid. Ah yes, those were the days.

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