Babies Babies, Everywhere!

The official start of spring is nearly upon us. The time of year when flowers bloom, the air is rich with the scents of thaw and growth, and when farms and forests everywhere witness the birth of ridiculously adorable baby animals.
I notice on Facebook pages of friends, that many, many people I know are celebrating spring with their own ridiculously cute human babies.
I stare into baby-eyes in full screen photos, or squint at thumbnails. I cock my head sideways to try to decipher ultrasound pictures. New baby girls born into families of boys. More baby girls added to families of girls. Baby boys with mischief already sparkling in their new, toothless grins. Babies, babies everywhere!
And, of course all of these new babies are born as we celebrate the spring birthday of S. Five years ago, we welcomed our fuzzy little spring bundle. Round, and soft and smelling sweet. Now, he is all Lego-playing, stitches-requiring, tball-playing boy. There is no baby left.
As I see my smaller baby--my last baby--grow into boy, I have a sense of why some of my friends are having more. That ephemeral sweetness of a baby. The tiny sigh accompanying a full tummy, the tiny fingers clutching mine. All of that is behind us. And some part of me misses that.
But then, THEN, another realization strikes. It's all behind us! The next time I change diapers, it will either be on a grandbaby or myself! No more crappy silicone spoons falling down the garbage disposal. No more rotten sippy cups under the car seats. No more hours of rocking an inconsolable baby in the middle of the night. No more piles of throw-up covered onesies. Aha! Done! Bazinga!
Nostalgia remedies itself.
Sure, I have pangs. Last night, as I scooped a sleeping S out of my bed to return him to his own, I nuzzled his soft cheeks and thought of how cozy it was to snuggle a sleeping child. But I'm over it.
I am so proud of who my boys are and what they can do now. I love watching E read everything he can get his hands on. S swinging a bat vaguely in the direction of the tee is perfect. I am relishing these accomplishments. They are the hints of the full potential these boys can achieve. They are tangible to me in ways that the accomplishments of infants--grinning, crawling, babbling--are not. And while those baby milestones are significant, these new ones are for us all to enjoy together. Even the boys realize the significance of their new found abilities.
Yesterday, S was laying in the floor of the bathroom while M was readying for work. M playfully heaped his towel upon S's resting body, and S responds with: "So this is how it's going to be on my birthday? Covered with wet towels?" And I realize that we truly are shaping this child and his humor and view to life. And I love that there's going to be one more wry person in our family. Another soul who can look at his life, himself, and laugh. I know that S was the perfect spring addition to our family.
But when I recall that first spring with S, that second spring with S, indeed that third spring with S, I know that he is the perfect last addition.
Happy Spring, babies everywhere! Happy Birthday, S! Here's to knowing you'll never be a middle child...