Thursday, September 04, 2008

A baby no more

Yet another stage is done. Another period of my life is over. That which I had been delaying and finding excuses to avoid has been faced and finished.

I took down Corinne's crib.

I had actually expected to be an emotional wreck. I had expected to sob as I removed every screw for the last time. Thankfully, I was on the phone with an old friend, who was able to distract me while I brainlessly dismantled the last sign my house will ever hold of a baby living here. For there is a baby, no longer...

Excuse me while I cry NOW over that one sentence...

How many times have I assembled and dismantled that crib? I counted. It was set up (by ME!) 5 times. FIVE. Between 3 children and 2 moves, I had gotten to know the in's and out's of that piece of furniture. Each assembly signified a new beginning, filled with hope and expectations. It is a well-loved piece, and will NOT be sold or passed along. I am hoping that one of my children will find the value in it, and use it for my grandchildren someday (that is, if it still meets the standard guidelines by then!).

Corinne was thrilled, initially. A Big Girl Bed! What fun this will be!! Until she saw her beloved crib in pieces and a big empty spot in her room. Then came the toddler tears.

"Honey, you can NOT cry or you'll make Mommy lose it! Ummmm... How about a sucker?"

Seriously. I seriously said that. And she stopped crying, which meant I never did either. So, all in all, a good idea...

Once I lugged my garage sale toddler bed up from the basement and wiped the cobwebs from its corners ("Mommy, why you give me a bed wif spiders in it?!?") she was all grins and giggles. Naptime was a bit tricky but after her coming downstairs 2 times I simply sat on the floor next to the bed, put my own head beside hers with my arm around her waist and she passed out.

I? I am.... ok.... Sad, but not hysterical. It isn't the crib itself, but the notion that yet another stage in my life is over. And you know, it's hard for me to come to terms with that. Can't I just freeze them? Press really hard on their heads and keep them all from changing again? I just got used to THIS phase, I am not ready for a new one. Not just yet...

Shit. Here come the tears...

Welcome to Corinne's palace. Note the sign.

One last picture of my last baby.....
She was so excited to have a pretty container to store her pacifiers in. I hated to tell her that my intention is to wean her off of them by only allowing them in her bed in her room...
Hooray! I like it after all!!
Such a little girl's room, isn't it? My mom is giving her some peel-n-stick Disney fairies for over her bed to go with the fairy/butterfly theme that you can't see in this picture because THAT is where her crib used to be. Waaaaahhh!!!
She's all set and ready to sleep, even though it was a bit early. Getting her paci and getting tucked in...

Yes. I took a picture of my sad and dejected crib in the basement. All alone and cold. No mattress and blankets and stuffed bunnies to keep it company....
But my big girl? She is sound asleep. Hopefully having lovely toddler dreams of magic and fairies, Matchbox cars and babydolls...

21 comments:

Gettysburg Mom said...

Awwww. My sympathies. I don't use ugly words like "toddler" and discourage others from doing so. She's still 1- and that's a baby, right? Right? Congrats and I'm sorry- all rolled into one.

tracey.becker1@gmail.com said...

Honey, mine is almost 3. That is SO not a baby anymore... 2 year olds are still babies in my opinion. Continue calling yours one!

Kat said...

Waaaa!!!! And I'm crying for you! :(

But oh, she looks so cute in that big girl bed!

Mighty Morphin' Mama said...

Awww. Huge transition, she looks pretty cute though. I still haven't moved my Bella, she is over 3 now, time to bite the bullet.

Kamis Khlopchyk said...

We have our crib in the storage space too for the very same reason...

I am sad too for I am in the same place... that stage of being home with little ones is almost over and I am SO not ready.

Laski said...

She will ALWAYS be your baby. ALWAYS.

andria said...

I am trying to talk the husband into moving the crib from old house to new house and setting it up here, but since no one has ever used it, they all deciding to be co-sleepers and all, he won't do it. I want a crib in my house, not my attic, because that means I have a baby. I am suddenly kinda weepy these days about not having anymore babies, so I can relate to this post.

Hannah said...

Aww, I know it's bittersweet.
I felt a little emotional when I took down Tyler's crib, but obviously not too bad since I took photos of it, listed it on Trade Me (our version of E-Bay) and it sold within an hour! Then the people came and picked it up the same afternoon!! Talk about a huge change ... but at least it was gone and I had no choice but to get over it.

She looks darling in her new bed, too.

Kristi said...

What great photos. She looks positively thrilled with her new bed, which hopefully makes things easier for you, but I get it. I totally get the "ending of an era" thing because I'm going through it every day.

Damselfly said...

She is so pretty!

It's hard for me to imagine my boy sleeping in a bed....

Kim said...

I had the same reaction when we moved The Bean to a toddler bed a few months ago.

http://ispeakbeanish.wordpress.com

the dragonfly said...

Aww...

My baby started WALKING yesterday - not just a few steps, but walking all over the place.

And my neighbor is giving her little girl a "big girl bed" (ie twin) for Christmas, and she's giving us her toddler bed. The Little Mister will be 18+ months then. He might actually be ready for it then...he's already trying to climb out of his crib, and that gives me nightmares!

*sigh*

By the way, I know I've said it 1000000 times, but she's beautiful.

:)

Kimberly Vanderhorst said...

We just put our youngest in a toddler bed. Thankfully our crib converts or I probably would've lost it. Especially with the hopes of another baby so continually dashed this summer.

Gucci Mama said...

*Tear*

My mom saved my crib for me to use when I had children, and I'm so glad she did. I love the fact that my baby (big boy) rests his head where I did when I was his age.

We had it checked out to make sure it was safe of course, and it is, so it will continue in service until such a time as I can stand the thought of a big boy bed. Which, I think is coming sooner than I'm ready for, because he's spending nap time not sleeping as much as formulating a plan of escape. Sigh.

SydneyDawn said...

I hear ya. I keep telling my little one to stop growing up so fast! He's nearly seven months already and I'm just not ready for all the stuff he's doing now.

Hey, if you're wanting to wean off the paci, you might want to gather them all up for the "paci fairy" and tell her that the paci fairy will take her pacis and leave her a big-girl present in return. I've not tried it personally, but I've heard stories about how well it worked. Good luck.

Jamie said...

Hey! I've been way out of touch.. but I saw this and thought of you guys
http://www.marthastewart.com/article/pixie-birthday-party?lnc=bc379c7cfa2ee010VgnVCM1000003d370a0aRCRD&rsc=taxonomylist_kids_kids-birthday-party-themes

Also, Great Wolf Lodge is like an hour from my house!

CaraBee said...

The big girl bed is sooo cute! My daughter is only 11 months old and already I agonize about those milestones. And they're YEARS away. As excited as I am for all of her developments, I want her to stay my little bean.

Unknown said...

Happy children...Happy family...Happy life...


Thanks for sharing the pictures.

peace,

TODDLER BED

Sheryl said...

OH what a milestone. And boy did you ever handle it well! Ill have to lean on your experience when I hit that stage.

Michelle said...

What a bittersweet milestone!! But it does look like such a cute little girl's room; and she looked so cute all snuggled in her toddler bed!

Tonya said...

Oh bye bye crib. You did good no tears! Love the new big girl bed and it looks like she does too :)

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