This is Life

Last night as I rocked Gwyneth before placing her in her crib, I watched her eyelids grow heavy and felt her body relax. Her little body no longer easily fits on my lap, but instead her growing legs overflow, dangling off of mine. She was so tired and needy of rest. I was praying a prayer of a thankful heart as I gazed at her. Who knew that a baby could fill the chest with such overwhelming warmth and gratitude? There is such a depth of connection between a parent and a child. Although a child brings a person to a new level of exhaustion, there is a love that is daily renewed to a point of overflowing if the time is taken to watch your child sleep.

On a note aside from the emotions of it all, Gwyneth is changing everyday. She seems so tiny (although percentage based, she’s not a small baby) to be making such strides. She doesn’t look like she should be saying “uh-oh” yet, or standing by a bookshelf pulling off all the books with gusto, or feeding herself chopped veggies (cooked of course) and bananas, tugging on our pant legs to ask for a hug, or veering away from something when we tell her “no” when she crawls toward something off limits. I look at her and think that she should still be sleeping endlessly in our arms, not yet in a constant state of motion. I hear that this state just gets more frenetic.

On Sunday, we got a walk behind toy for her that converts to a ride on toy. She’s shown that she’s not quite coordinated enough yet to walk behind it (not a surprise based on my lack of coordination). She instead keeps her feet planted and pushes it forward, which if not supervised with a supporting hand, she could potentially end up bashing her only two teeth right out of her mouth. That would definitely defeat the purpose of the new toy, as there would be no fun in that. So, we popped it into ride on toy mode and pushed her around on it. She was so proud of her new wheels and sat so tall with a gushing smile on her face. When we’re not available to push her around, she enjoys playing with the extra “spinnies” on her toy and tipping it over to spin the wheels. I think this new toy may provide just as much joy to her as it does to us. It’s fun.

Now, aside from Gwyneth, whom for the moment, our lives do at least partially revolve around hers, we have some other exciting news. My paperwork for British citizenship has gone through without a hitch. I am now ready to be sworn in as a British citizen (yes, I get to keep my US citizenship at the same time). On November 7th, at 10AM, I will be at the British Consulate in Chicago, pledging allegiance beyond just our Stars and Stripes, but to the Union Jack as well. This is a huge step forward in our plans to move to Northern Ireland. With my citizenship, Wes will be able to apply for a settlement visa, which will allow him to work in the UK and eventually apply for citizenship himself. I will also have a right to work in the UK without any problems, along with access to the socialized healthcare and even voting rights!

Our lives continue to move at “warp-speed.”