Growing Kids

I seem to be surrounded by babies, even if the word is one of the worse insults in my own house.

Two friends had babies in recent weeks. At least three more friends are due in the next three months. Meanwhile, there are no babies in my own house -- much to my own relief.

Atticus, who turns three in less than a month, finds it to be the worst affront if one of uscalls him a baby. He is a big boy, he proclaims. And truthfully, he is -- or at least very nearly so. On Sunday he switched from a rear-facing car seat to his first front-facing one. It was quite momentous, for me if not for him. This is the first time the entire family has faced forward since the day we brought Edith home from the hospital more than five years ago.

Slowly all of the baby gear has left our house. Maybe the first to go, when Atticus truly could still be called a baby, was the swing. Then went baby toys, baby clothes, sippy cups. Just last week I passed on our pack and plays. We still have the crib, but even that's long been converted into a toddler bed.

I like seeing these new little babies. So small, so cute! But I'm happy to have growing kids who can now do things for themselves ... and a full night of sleep.