So much of having a baby is about their firsts. First smile, first laugh, first crawl and first step. What we often forget is that with each “first” comes a “last.” The last time your baby will crawl, the last time they will sleep in their crib, the last time they breastfeed. These lasts are usually unexpected and often not even noticed until they’re long gone. Then, you might mourn these little moments that made your baby a baby. These are the lasts I’ll miss the most:
1. Last night in the crib
Just before age two, my kid catapulted herself out of her crib and sprained her wrist. I had been planning on keeping her in her crib until college (or at least three!) because I knew what would lie ahead—night after night of returning her to her bed and lying next to her until she fell asleep. Easy bedtime and quiet nights to ourselves were truly over.
2. Last time crawling
The turbo-charged crawler starts to pull themselves up, and suddenly you need to take childproofing to the next level in your house. The coffee table, shelves and drawers are all fair game. Soon, say goodbye to storing your breakables on table tops and bureaus, not to mention being able to cook on the stove top without worrying someone will be pulling at the pots and pans. There’s also something insanely cute about a crawling baby with their butt up in the air that I’ll miss seeing zoom around the floor.
3. Last time in the high chair
Our kid is truly done with the high chair—even if I’d prefer she wasn’t! It was so much easier having a kid contained with the tray around her to prevent a mess all over the house. Yes, it’s now easier in terms of seating at restaurants, but our house is a disaster of crumbs and fallen pieces of fruit, bread, cheese and unidentifiable half-masticated objects.
4. Last “mama”
Somehow over the past few weeks “mama” has turned into “mom,” often said like this: “Moooooooom” (and with rolled eyes). And she’s not quite three.
5. Last garbled words
She’s been calling strawberries “bubbies” for about a year, and we now call them the same name. Yesterday, she said “strawberry” for the first time and I almost cried. Does this mean I can’t call them “bubbies” anymore, too?
6. Last time changing a diaper
I won’t lie—I’ve been looking forward to this day for years! Not only is it great not to waste so much money every month on diapers, it’s also a big step for our little one in feeling like she’s finally a big girl.
7. Last time in onesies
Of all the baby outfits out there, onesies were my favorite. They go on and off super easy, have snaps to make diaper changes simple and cover the back to keep it warm, I was devastated when my girl outgrew them. Not only did I have to worry about finding bloomers for under her dresses and skirts (and keeping her back warm in cooler weather), but it was a big sign that my baby was no longer a baby.
8. Last mushing-up of food
There’s nothing fun about making multiple meals for every member in the house every day. Now that our kid eats basically the same food as us, it’s cut down my daily personal chef time by 50%. Hooray for a bit of time back!
9. Last nap
As she grew, my little one’s naps slowly dropped from all day, to three, to two and then one. And now…none. I miss naps like nothing else! Those precious quiet hours during the middle of the day have been replaced with entertaining a toddler who wants to keep on playing while you’d prefer to be eating lunch, watching Netflix or doing laundry.
This article first appeared on MommyNearest.com