Growing Up In Oz

I came to a heartbreaking realization the other day.

You guys don’t know Hannah. At least not in the way you knew Madison throughout her first year and a half of life. I wrote about Madison’s every move, several times a week, for well over a year. I know, I know… imagine that- I had much more time to write when I was a stay at home mom of one child. What a shocker. And yet there is no excuse for not sharing with you the joy that Hannah brings into our lives.

And our Hannah is just that… pure joy. Not a talker by nature she is much more expressive than her older sister. The stories she tells through her facial expressions and gestures keep me laughing constantly. She almost doesn’t need to talk because the comedic timing with which she can shoot you a glance and be on with her next move is one of her best qualities.

Forget catching a picture of her that isn’t blurry. She’s always on the move.

She is a lover of hugs and sitting on our laps. Don’t ever expect to sit on the floor without having Hannah run up to you, turn around and plop her chubby little butt right in the middle of your criss-cross applesauce. This is always followed by a head tilt the side and a loving glance from those deep blue eyes to let you know that sitting with you is her favorite place in the world.

Her adoration for her big sister knows no bounds. She follows Madison around like it’s her job, often to the dismay of big sister who would prefer a few minutes of play time without a little pipsqueak all up in her business. Her favorite is when Madison sings “I’m bringing home a baby bumblebee.” She may not talk, but she can squish up that baby bumblebee with her hands like a boss.

Speaking of songs. Hannah can pick up the melody of any song you sing after the first time. All you have to do is sing it to her once and she’ll walk around the house mumbling jibberish lyrics to the correct melody all day long. She also does a mean booty shake whenever a great beat comes on and the mood strikes her. I had forgotten the magic of watching a baby with no inhibitions the minute you put on a song with a great beat.  Watching her immediate knee bend bop along with  arms moving up and down to the music is my favorite thing to do in the evenings. Nightly dance parties are a ritual in our house.

Bath time is one of her favorite activities. In fact, if she hears the bath running before you have a chance to strip her down she will immediately start screaming and it will not end until the moment her feet touch the water. She’s recently discovered standing up and letting the water run through her hands as it fills up the bath tub. Actually, she’s recently discovered that standing up in the bathtub makes Mommy’s heart skip a beat so she makes it her job to do it 1,390 times every bath. She’ll stand up, look over at me & smile, shake her head “no” in anticipation of me saying it and then laugh as she plops back down in the water. This game is only slightly amusing because as anyone with two kids can tell you… if one of them is doing something, the other has to be doing it to. This means that even though Madison is the older sister, she HAS to stand up in the tub like Hannah and well, trying to explain all of the reasons you can’t stand up in the tub to a 3 year old & a 15 month old is like trying to get me to understand geometry….. totally pointless & a waste of time.

To know Hannah is to know unadulterated happiness. Her existence makes my world a better place. I ache for her when I’m not around. She embodies so much of the person I want to be:

Fearless, Determined, an Adventurer.

Sassy and defiant.

Spontaneous and smart.

Loving and affectionate.

Weird and Unique.

I really wish all of you could meet her because she’s absolute perfection.