SIX

Six month ago today, I pushed a baby out of an unmentionable place.

Which is a lot more notable than saying, “Six months ago I ate an entire pizza by myself”or, “Six months ago I discovered an aversion to black.”

I mean, six months ago I became a mother, which forever altered my life.

(Which is more than I can say about the pizza, though had I eaten one I might still be bloated. And I do have a lifelong love/hate relationship with black, but get your own post, you drab but slenderizing hue!)

There are so many things I’ve learned in the last six months that I didn’t know before I joined the mommy ranks.

Like, the fact that – warning: men may want to avert their eyes – there are multiple holes for milk distribution.

And that you have to use Tucks to take the edge off an episiotomy.

And that your own child’s poo is way less revolting than a stranger's poo, but still gross in its own way. (Especially, once she starts solids!)

I’ve figured out the right combination of milk and rice cereal – 65/35.

I’ve mastered an indestructible swaddle, complete with some duct tape. (Which I was surprised to find didn’t make me feel like an abusive mother, despite what you are all thinking right now. And, no, you can’t have my address.)

And I’ve discovered that I actually care more about Miss Dub’s wardrobe than my own. (Though having both up to date is a dream scenario.)

I’ve realized I don’t hate pink and can’t deny my daughter the chance to wear insane amounts of it.

I’ve given up my hope to only allow her minimalist toys in muted colors and bought things with “rainforest” and “aquarium” in the title.

And I’ve discovered that Baby Einstein is a mother’s salvation.

Miss Dub hasn’t done too bad for herself either. At six months, she now weighs a whoppin’ 17.9 pounds and measures 27 inches long. In six months, she’s learned to hold her head up, smile, coo, screech, squeal and laugh. She’s learned to roll over front to back and back to front. She’s learned to move objects from one hand to another. She’s learned to sit up. She’s learned to hold a bottle and a sippy cup all by herself. And that’s just a sampling of her many new skills.

So we’ve both learned a lot.

But probably the greatest epiphany of all is how much we love each other.

How my baby is also my best friend.

How my heart melts every day when I see her smiling face.

How I can’t stop saying, “She’s so cute,” or, “She’s so smart,” or, “She’s so perfect.”

How I still can’t believe it, even after six months, when I say, “She’s mine.”

Happy ½ -birthday, lil’ Miss.

Here’s to the next six!

p.s. What have you learned since becoming a mommy? Or, if you're not one yet, what do you hope to learn?