Peas, please...and Mama

July 1, 2010

I'm sitting at the table with Audrey, trying to feed her some peas. I say trying because they haven't been her favorite thing AT ALL. The first time she tried them, which was just a few days ago, she got the funniest expressions on her face. After one particularly gruesome bite, she squinted her eyes and shook her head vigorously, shuddering. She actually shuddered, and acted like she was trying to "shake it off" because the taste was so horrendous to her. Hilarious.

We should have gotten the whole thing on video, but I'm not sure if we did or not. Audrey tends to stop doing whatever cute thing she's doing when the camcorder comes out. And then no one believes that she did it, of course. Whatever, it's not like I'm bitter or anything. ::eye roll::

Anyway, she's grown to like the peas after the initial taste testing. I have to give her credit, since this is the only thing she's tasted besides formula, the occasional medicine, and rice cereal. She's doing pretty darn well, I think.

But this post isn't really about peas. It's about Audrey saying the words I've been wanting to hear for a long time..."ma ma ma ma ma". Like most babies, she started saying "da da da da" a while ago, and it's her favorite sound to make. "Ma ma", though, is a harder sound for the mouth to make. Try it for yourself, you'll see. And don't feel stupid, because everyone who's reading this is doing it with you.

As I was feeding her, I started saying "ma ma ma ma" absently, not even thinking about it. I frequently babble to her; guess that comes from being a SAHM (stay-at-home-mom) or something. Like I've forgotten how to have an adult conversation.

Audrey just stared at my mouth, like she was studying it. Then, wonder of all wonders, she said it. "Ma ma ma ma". I couldn't believe it! I thought it was going to take her a while to say it; I actually thought it would be among the last consonant sounds she made. Nope! She said it.

::side note:: She also said "Mommy" about a week or two ago, but nobody really believes that, either. She only said it once, but I do have a witness in my friend, Taz (not her real name, but since she's constantly whirling around like the Tasmanian devil, it fits).

When those words, those sounds, came out of Audrey's mouth, my heart melted into a puddle on the floor. I knew it would be incredible when she said them, but I didn't know the exact effect it would have on me. It made me feel so proud, that Matt and I have kept this little baby alive for almost 7 months now, and we've actually taught her some things. A very different feeling than I had while in the hospital, when one thought kept coming to my mind, "How can they let us take her home? We don't know what to do with her."

So, even though Audrey probably has no idea who "ma ma ma ma" is, and it was just a bunch of babbling, I don't care. I still feel good, all warm and fuzzy. And when she said "Mom" the next day, it was just about as good. (I don't care if you believe me or not, but Matt was there, so ha).

I don't want her to grow up too fast, or wish her life away, but it's going to be so interesting watching her grow and learn. I don't want to miss any of it.