This is a photo of Celeste when she was 3 days old. She didn't open her eyes very often and you could still see the stump of the cord that kept us connected while she was growing inside of me. Her body was often curled up as if she was still inside of me. We took this photo on a hot, humid July afternoon a couple of hours after we had brought her home from the hospital. She was propped on a pillow on our kitchen table in our apartment in Pittsburgh. We had 10 days to move and we couldn't believe that we had a baby.
When we left the hospital with our new baby, we were in a complete daze. We knew that everything would be different but we didn't know how. We wanted everything to be perfect for her but we were scared that it wouldn't be. I remember squinting into the bright sun outside of the hospital as I was wheeled to our car in a wheelchair. We struggled with Celeste's car seat and drove slowly, carefully home to our apartment.
Without thinking about it, we've all grown and changed. Life is totally different.
We took Celeste to the doctor for her four month well visit yesterday, and her changes were startling and obvious. She has become a citizen of the world, aware of and interested in the people around her. She cooed and gurgled with the doctor, she smiled and screeched with the nurse, she kicked and squacked on the examination table. She has also grown physically. She shot up into the 95th percentile for height and weight. Her chubby thighs and arms looked impressive in the examination room's clinical lighting.
We have also grown. Taking care of our little Celeste has made us so connected to her and to each other. Peter bounced her and rocked her and got her to giggle. Although I dreaded the shot she was scheduled to receive, I didn't even feel tempted to cry. We have all adjusted ourselves around this amazing little person. Happy four months to Celeste!
