Hope and Light and Jasper

Today Jasper is just over 2 months old!  He has journeyed 9 weeks plus 2 days into his life.  And he is thriving and happy and amazing and rocking our world.  We are so in love. 

 

 

Today I am deely compelled to not let him out of my sight, to hold him close to my body and breathe the sweet scent of him in long slow breaths.  With gratitude that he came to us, and that he is still here, I feel so lucky to be his mama. 

Today is the day when tragedy struck an elementary school in Connecticut.


Today everyone's heart is heavy.  Everyone talks about holding their children close, about being grateful for every moment together.  There is fear and anger and deep sadness in us.  We pray for the families of the victims and the horrified survivors.  We want better gun control.  We want better access to mental health treatment for those who need it.  At a time when life on earth seems so fragile and vulnerable, we want more than anything to help create a world that is safe and lovely for our children to thrive in.  Forever.  But how?  How?


Today I saw this quote on facebook:  "Don't be discouraged by your incapacity to dispel darkness from the world.  Light your candle and step forward."  ~ Amma


If we do this, will the darkness naturally be dispelled?  I don't know.  But, I have always felt that the children are the bearers of hope for the future of humanity.  They are the bearers of light.  They are our candles.  In their purity and their beauty, they light us up so fully and incredibly.  They have the power to reignite our light.  And we are their teachers.  We show them how to maintain their light.  Each and every one of us, whether we are a parent or not, has the power to do this.  We have the power to teach them to embrace their light and let it shine.  We show them through our own actions how to share their light, how to work through the dark aspects of life in healthy ways (and I think this is KEY), and how to step forward in the world casting their light in all directions.  It is a start anyway.  And perhaps these are things we can remind each other of as well.


And at this moment, I hold a little vulnerable baby snuggled against me as I type.  A bright future in the making, a shining potential willing itself to unfurl, a candle naturally and instinctually burning bright.  I bask in this glow, am warmed by it, and again feel some hope.   

 

 

He is nothing but a bright potential.  He is learning and growing and changing so fast.  His individual personality is beginning to emerge more and more.  He is learning how to use his body and how to explore his world.  He is simply amazing.  I am so grateful that he is the one I get to lead through this life!    I celebrate him, his discoveries, and his developmental strides! 

  
He has amazing muscle tone and always has dirt under his nails.


His new favorite activity is practicing to stand and jump (with a lot of support and assistance, of course).

He loves to stare at our faces, deep into our eyes, and tell us about his day with his increasing cooing and babbling.  "A-GOO!"

 He also loves to stare at the ceiling fans, one of his daddy's didgeridoo's that is nearly pretzel shaped, and the trees when we go for walks outside.

 

 

He holds his head up so well now when we are holding him, and is starting to lift it up off the ground during tummy time.  He is also starting to play with his hands and bring them to his mouth, as well as grasping his toys. 

He spends more and more time awake during the day, and is starting to resist nap time.  Especially when we have company over.  Like last night.  He entertained our guests with his chattering and giggling well past his normal bedtime.  It was awesome. 

 

 

Yes, he loves being social.  He even had his first playdate last week with baby Julius who is 1 month older than Jasper.   Mostly they both slept and nursed.  But they did spend a few minutes laying next to each other, inadvertantly touching hands now and then.  And then one of them started crying and it set the other off crying.  And then they took turns crying and listening to the other cry....their first experience with peer empathy.  :) 

He weighs close to 13 pounds and has grown out of his newborn clothes, now sporting 3-6 month clothes.  He has so many chubby rolls and a beautiful bulging belly.  Chubb-a-wubba-bubba-boo!

 

 

And when he smiles, it is a full embodied smile.  His eyes light up, expressing his joy.  And I feel certain that he understands that when I smile back, we are happy together.  We are lighting each other up and stepping forward together.