My big boy

Little Samuel is determined to grow up on me. He's been working really hard at standing up without holding onto anything, and now he's trying to take a few steps here and there. I'm so not ready for this! Why is it that with your first baby you can't wait for them to grow and change and do "something" and it seems like it takes forever for them to sit up, crawl, and walk. (even though looking back it went in a flash!) Then with your second, third, and I'm guessing any that come after, you know how fast it goes by so you just want to beg them to stay babies, to stay small, to stay still, yet they seem to take off in record speed? The baby stuff is slowly seeping out of our house. The cosleeper is long gone, along with the infant bathtub and the swing. Newborn clothes are packed up, some have been sold. Maternity clothes are sacked up and ready to get rid of. (anyone know of anyone that needs size small maternity clothes? They're way cute!) Recently the pack-n-play has been taken down b/c Sam hates it and won't sleep in it, and the mobile has been removed from the crib b/c he can reach it now and pulls it down. Things like burp rags, baby washclothes, and recieving blankets are also out of the house. A soft newborn cloth can no longer tackle the messes this little guy makes! Spit up breastmilk on his chin has been replaced with mashed up bananas, green beans, and cheerios. We no longer lay a quilt down on the ground outside for him to lay or sit on... why bother? He won't stay on it. A blanket under him for a diaper change? Nah, he's alright. Our 30minute long nursing sessions, that would conclude with him falling asleep soundly in my arms, have been replaced with 2 minute long sessions that end with him biting me with his new teeth and him squirming to get down.. he's got things to do. Someone fed him a piece of a chocolate doughnut at church yesterday and instead of cringing (like I would have with my first two) I laughed at how delighted it made him and wondered how he managed to get THAT messy from one piece of dougnut. So, things are rapidly changing around here! It's a shame that you wait for so long to hold your precious baby in your arms, and as soon as they get placed there they immediately start trying to grow up. They definitely become more fun, and easier, as they grow up... but a part of me always longs for that little newborn. I'm cherishing every single bit of my little man. Trying to hold a piece of how he is at each age somewhere in my mind. Knowing that, no matter how hard I try, years from now I'll watch an old family video and wonder how it is that I forgot him at "that" age. How can I be here for EVERY minute of his life and still forget them?