Monday, June 7, 2010

The gift of Teagan






Last Thursday Teagan celebrated her 1st birthday. It was a day marked, for me as her mother, in total joy. I can honestly say that in the last year, she has brought our family and our friends simple, unbridled, love and delight. One of my favorite images of Teagan is her, a few weeks old, hardly even 2 feet long, her limbs wobbly and fingers thin not yet chubby. I had just finished putting Tessa to sleep and came out to find Teagan in her dads' arms. I scooped her up, nursed her and then laid her to rest in the crook of my crossed legs as I sat indian sytyle on the bed. There she nuzzled herself into the folds of my ankles and calves and fell asleep. She stayed there for over an hour. Fawn-like and in complete trust of the universe.

A few months back, she reached out for a woman who was standing next to us in the Whole Foods line. The woman noticed her, Teagan smiled and reached her hand toward the woman's face. Teagan smiled even wider. Then she waved and said "hi." The woman, for that moment was entirely captured by Teagan's spark. She then turned to me and said, "Your baby changed me today."

Such is Teagan. A day changer, a moment changer, a life changer.

On the day of her birthday, we played at the pool with some friends, then made our way to Savannah, Ga, where we spent the weekend. My brother graduated from Savannah College of Art and Design. So there, we had more celebrating and Teagan took her first step.

She is so verbal, so many words. Her latest is "Tessa" and the past few days she's been bringing me things from around the house, Tessa's shoes, a diaper, a car... And she looks up at me, holding the item and proudly says, "Tessa?"

The following are some of the past weeks' photographs.