Things I want to remember

The way his arms go flying up over his head as he stretches in the morning. Or the special grin on his face when he sees Ben walking into the room. The way he falls asleep in the crook of my left arm, like he has done since he was three days old. His chubby little legs kicking excitedly. Or just his precious, happy, smiling face exactly as it was yesterday, exactly as it is now, and even as different as it will be tomorrow. 

Life is slower, simpler and quieter since Ari came along, and at the same time more chaotic and messy – which doesn’t leave much time to reflect. Some weeks blur together in a sea of feeds and endless replacing of sodden bibs. On others, I’m amazed at what I have managed to accomplish in a day. Was that batch of email answering and clothes washing this morning?

And with each day, this little boy grows, learns and changes faster than we ever imagined possible. 

I thought I would take advantage of some rare computer time (in between staring at the baby monitor) to share a little bit about where we’re at since becoming parents, as much for me as for anything else.

Ari, at three four five months (that’s how fast time is moving) is an utter joy. I love the way he starts each day: those slow morning blinks giving way to a wide, happy smile. His positivity is infectious, and encourages us to also approach the day smiling.

Here’s a little recap of what he’s been up to.

Ari at 3 months

We’re really noticing him making a big effort with movement now; tummy time isn’t as tiring as it once was, he can hold his head (and a bit of his chest up), taking in his surroundings, beaming proudly and gurgling contentedly (for a few minutes, at least). And yes, the gurgles!

He’s full of the chats – I love peeking in the door during a nappy change and hearing him engaging in back and forths with Ben, mimicking each other’s sounds. Sometimes I wonder if instead of him learning English we’ll just learn to speak Ari 😉

Ari at 4 months

His chubby little hands, once tight little buds, have opened up and are grasping now; you can see the concentration on his face as he tries to reach out for things and, towards the end of the month, he found his feet.

He loves when we sing to him, when Ben does comical dances, and delights in  any kind of face-to-face contact, beaming at bus drivers and giving gummy grins to waiters.

We spent his first Christmas in Dublin, with my mum, her partner, my sister and her four excited kiddos. Ari adored spending time with his cousins over Christmas, and full on belly laughed as they entertained him.

At 5 months

He’s grabbing anything and everything in his vicinity, including our faces. He laughs and giggles when you talk to him and watches intently when we’re talking to each other.

When Ben wears him in the wrap, he throws his head back and grins up at him, cooing contentedly as a Ben hums to him (while I melt watching).

He’s also gone from tolerating tummy time to completely hating it – all he wants to do is sit up and look around, sticking his chubby arms out for support. 

In a few weeks, there’ll be food and, after that, crawling – but as much as I nerd out planning for the future, nothing keeps me more in the moment (or on my toes!) than this guy.

That’s obviously just the tip of the iceberg of what we’ve been marvelling at – it really is incredible how quickly these tiny humans grow and learn. We still stare at him in wonder on a regular basis, still can’t believe how lucky we are that someone so wonderful is a part of our lives.