Wow! What an amazing blur the last 10 days have been! When I walked into our home office this morning I laughed when I saw the calendar we keep on the wall. It was like time stopped on the 17th when I went into labor. We simply had not crossed out another day since our "big event" began, and every moment since has been busy learning about our little man.
This is the last photo of me pregnant, from the morning of the 17th when Papou Jim and I posed. Hard to believe that later that day the pregnancy would (begin to) wind down, and the parenting chapter would begin.
Starting that night, the next days were very much what the term suggests, "labor." The beautiful thing about it is that in hindsight it is all a blur. I have already been asked if I would do it again, the answer - unquestionably YES! With the amazing support of Michael, Angela, and our wonderful midwife "the journey" was a rewarding one. And look what I have to show for it! This is a picture I took of Miles on Christmas Eve, he was five days old.
As much as I love to document, it has been impossible to record all of the precious moments of the last ten days. I have these extremely vivid little memories that I feel will always be burned into my mind. For example I will never forget Miles meeting his Yia Yia's when he was just a few hours old. They came into the room and the sunlight was filtering through the blinds, their red hair was glowing in the light in contrast to the green plants, and it was just a soft sweet moment that will always be cherished. Then later that evening my parents arrived and I will always remember them marching down the hallway towards the bedroom trailing blue balloons, flowers, and wine! It was like a parade for Miles! I am so excited to watch them fall into their role as grandparents and so very thankful for all the food and support they have supplied lately.
The flowers came in a little red wagon and they are still looking pretty on the kitchen table. They make me think of this Spring, and I really can't wait until Miles can begin planting a garden with us at home, and also helping Paw Paw Laughter with his garden in Ada.Another sweet moment when we loaded Miles into his car seat for the first time... can you believe we were ever that tiny! Just look at those little feet!
I also love this image of four day old Miles trying on the hat we bought for him from a wonderful little knitting shop in Muizenberg. We kind of had an idea when we traveled to South Africa that it would not be too long before we set off into the adventure of parenting.
Sally,
ReplyDeleteIt's been a few years now that I've wondered where you were and what you are up to...imagine my surprise when you found me! (or at least my Dad all splayed out while trying to throw out the garbage. Thank you so much for your help with that :)) It's such a pleasure to see you and Mike together as parents and artists and generally cool people like you always were. Congrats on the home birth and cloth diapers - that's been our route with our daughter (#2). Enjoy the rest of your summer.
All the best,
Jenny Goldsmith