The newborn onesie adorned with little hearts stared at me from the pile of clothes needing to be sorted for a mommy consignment sale.
It triggered a flash of memories in my mind: your new soft skin, lots of hair, little dimples in your chubby elbows. You were kicking away in that little heart onesie. One day you were cooing in that very same onesie from your swing, as laughter danced in your eyes. I remember the smell of lavender baby lotion while I dressed you in that same onesie. Days turned into weeks, and suddenly that onesie would no longer snap shut. You had already grown, leaving nothing but memories of you in that precious outfit that was already beginning to show signs of yellow.
How often do we wish the newborn days away quickly for more sleep, less diapers, and fewer colicky “witching” hours? We wish for the days our babies will sit up on their own, crawl, run, talk back to us, tell us what they need. We wish our babies had more hair that we could style or put into a braid. Mothers (and fathers too!) sometimes unintentionally wish away the time to move into the next season.
Before you have a baby, people warn you in the grocery store line, “It goes so fast.” I would roll my eyes in my mind and wish I had a dollar for every time that was said to me.
But then, as I looked at that onesie with a frayed sleeve and little hearts all over it, I didn’t wish for a new phase. I wished for more time. I wished for more memories in that onesie, your little toothless smile staring back at me.
Memories in motherhood are so very bittersweet. Seeing that onesie made my heart ache and tears stung my eyes as all my baby’s milestones flashed before my eyes.
Pack the memories into your mind and hearts forever. Preserve them. Save all the onesies. Frame that onesie with a hospital bracelet and remember. Remember it all. For as soon as you remember, they’ll be pushing your hand away saying “Me do it!”
That onesie reminded me to slow down and be thankful for each memory and every season.
So sweet! ?
What a great topic! We often forget while we’re in the thick of things to remember each of those sweet moments. Thanks for the reminder!
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