My baby is 1

Today Noah turned one. In his honor, I decided to write again.

Being a mother has been a wonderful adventure for me so I thought that I should share my stories with you.

This year past by fast; yet, it seems so far away that I was holding a helpless little baby that could fit almost in my hand.

It is still hard for me to forget that day at St David’s hospital when I was enduring atrocious pain. I still remember the pain I felt every 4 minutes for every contraction. I was asking myself I could something so beautiful and natural could be the cause of so much pain. I wished at that time that I was better prepared for this. But I guess you never can fully be ready. I thought to myself that there is no way that I could go through this again. But at the sight of this beautiful baby…how could I not.

The first week and the first months were hard.

Never, ever listen to anyone telling you that you’ll know what to do when you see your baby. No matter what they say…you will NOT know what to do. That is why a elder is often necessary to past down the traditions and the way to care for your baby.

I decided that I was going to breastfeed for 6 months at least…I realized the first few days that I was probably going to fail miserably. Breastfeeding is quite uncomfortable…aside from the fact that you are a complete slave to this little being who wants to feed every second of the day; you don’t feel that your body is your own anymore. You barely have time to eat, sleep or shower.

We were in Texas with my mom, dad, brother, sister in law, cousin Philippe and good friends. We had a wonderful time and the lack of sleep and the other side effects of being mother passed by smoothly. We had a wonderful time with Noah and discovering our son.

Many times we had to leave the Vacuum cleaner on for hours when we realized that it made him sleep.

After a month, we went back to Cote d’Ivoire and Aimann and I had to take care of this precious baby ourselves. It was not always easy but we slowly understood each other and we were able to form strong bonds and a happy family.

Today our baby is one.

He walks, he has 8 teeth, he loves dancing and listening to music, he loves animals and the sound them make, he loves discovering new things, his first word was bye bye. He is a very happy baby. In one year he has left the US to Ivory Cost, traveled to France then Haiti and even visited Morocco. I have no doubt that he will be a world traveler.

Today, I held him tight to me and I cried. I cried because he has blessed me with so many things and I am so grateful for who he is and the happiness that he brings to my life.

I take a moment of silence, for all the parents who will not be celebrating their child’s birthday.