A few weeks ago, I wrote about the first smile that felt different. At the time, I was still wondering whether she was actually smiling at me or whether I was just giving meaning to another random newborn expression. There is much less doubt now. She sees us. She watches our faces. We talk to her, make a sound or smile and sometimes her entire face lights up. Those are the moments I have started to look forward to.
Trying to Get One More Smile
Once you know you can make your baby smile, you will do almost anything to get another one. I make ridiculous faces. I change my voice. I repeat sounds that would make absolutely no sense to another person. I play with her feet. Sometimes it works. Sometimes she just stares at me as if she is trying to understand why I am behaving that way. But when the smile comes, I usually break out in laughter, or smile. I usually try the exact same thing again. And again. There is something addictive about seeing that reaction.
The Best Ones Need No Effort
My favourite smiles, though, are the ones I do not have to work for. Sometimes I simply walk into her view and she smiles. No funny noises. No strange faces. Nothing. She just sees me and smiles. There is something special about that. For the first few weeks, most of our interactions were about what she needed.
Feeding.
Changing.
Burping.
Sleeping.
Comforting her when she was fussy.
Now there are moments when she does not seem to need anything at all. She is simply awake, looking at us and enjoying the interaction. I am enjoying it just as much.
Not Rushing to the Next Milestone
It is easy to constantly look ahead with babies. When will she laugh? When will she roll over? When will she sit up? When will she say her first word? But I am trying not to rush through this part. Right now, she smiles when she sees us. She watches our faces. She reacts to our voices. For the moment, that is more than enough.
I know there will be bigger milestones. I also know that one day these little smiles will feel like something that happened a long time ago. So for now, I am going to keep making the silly noises. Keep making the ridiculous faces.
And enjoy every smile I can get.
