The first time Mira saw Ellowyn, we were still at the birth center. And while Mira was completely enraptured by Ellowyn, I don't think she really understood that she was ours. The second time Mira saw Ellowyn, it was at home and the first thing Mira did was to walk up to the baby, hold out her arms, and say "Hold." (She wanted to hold the baby.) So we put her up on the sofa, and with Brian helping provide support, we put Ellowyn in Mira's lap. Mira watched Ellowyn, studied her, and then gently leaned down, wrapped her arms around her and gave her the sweetest little hug. Then Mira put her hand to her mouth, kissed it, and then put it up to Ellowyn's mouth, "blowing" Ellowyn a kiss. It was enough to bring tears to a hormonal mommy's eyes.
Mira loves to do all kinds of things with Ellowyn. She likes to help change her diaper; I think she finds it fascinating to see all of Ellowyn's little body parts: her feet, her belly, etc... She'll bring me the diaper supplies, watch me change her and point out Ellowyn's body parts, and when we're done she'll throw the dirty diaper away for me. She likes to watch while I nurse Ellowyn, getting up in my lap for a closer look at what's going on. And she talks about it: "baby eat mommy's milk" (although she still pronounces "milk" like "nupk"). She likes to take off Ellowyn's hat and brush her hair, and I actually feel comfortable letting her because she is soooo gentle. And one time, she decided that she wanted to read a book to Ellowyn. Here are some pics from that.
I've been really impressed by how well Mira is taking it: having to share Mommy. Maybe it's because Brian is home from work and is able to give Mira a lot of attention right now. But at least so far, Mira seems to be fine with the idea that Mommy has to spend a majority of her time holding the baby. I have been trying to preemptively give Mira extra attention in order to prevent any jealous feelings on Mira's part. When Mira comes home or enters the room, I greet her really warmly, offering hugs and asking about what she's been up to. I talk to her a lot, especially while I'm nursing Ellowyn. And I put Ellowyn down when at all possible in order to be able to more fully engage with Mira. And so far, Mira has occasionally shown an immediate need for some Mommy love, but usually seems content to share Mommy with her sister.
I have also been amazed at Mira's compassion and empathy. The first time Mira heard Ellowyn crying, she looked at me with TEARS in her eyes and said in the saddest little voice "baby cryyyy" and she nearly started crying herself. Since then, we've talked about the reasons why babies cry and how crying is their only way to communicate. And now she's less sensitive to it. Now when the baby cries, she comes to me and says matter-of-factly "baby hungry".
No comments:
Post a Comment