Still, a pretty good year

It's the year-end, celebrity-filled, blow-out, extravaganza!!!! Not really, I've never really been the type who needs to go to a giant New Year's "event", and this year, with the boy, is no exception. We are at my parents house for a New Year's smellebration. Literally, in a few hours this house will be full of delicious aromas that haunt my dreams. And we will dance to the records from my youth, songs that even today bring a smile to my face no matter where I am or what I'm doing.
So I guess it's appropriate for a look back, I promise it'll be a quick one, Domingo is about to wake up from his nap...

It was a year of things lost: I miss my waist, I miss sleeping, I miss being able to go to a movie (last night I tried to leave Domi at my parents' and go to my sister's to see a scary movie on DVD, but he woke up and was crying inconsolably, so I came running back, yeah the crying it out thing, not happening ANY time soon),
and a year of things gained (and not just weight): a new perspective on so many things, my relationships with family members have changed and become richer, my love and need for my little family has grown more than I could have imagined, my confidence in myself as a parent keeps increasing as the days go by and my son gets bigger, more active, and we continue to learn from one another.

And, Oh My God, did I mention that I'm now a PARENT!!! Who thought THAT was a good idea? It was almost exactly a year ago that we found out that we'd be having a little visitor come by for the duration. Several ups and downs later throughout the pregnancy, this miracle of a little boy emerged. It seemed like the longest year ever from seeing him for the first time as a tiny black bean on a screen, until the doctor said it was once again safe to run around and shake that baby out!
This year, in his (almost) four short months, Domingo has already grown and changed so much from the tiny little frog baby with the long skinny legs, curled up to his chin because mommy's torso is only three inches long, to the giant monster baby with the chubby little limbs and huge round belly that stretches out in all his long torsoed glory when he's asleep.

I have to admit, I, like all parents, was concerned about bringing another human being into this world, with all of its uncertainties and problems. Would I be a good parent, would I be able to provide for him, what kind of future will this child have? I would be responsible for another life, entirely dependent on me, am I capable of handling this?

But I know that this little being will be a force for good in the world, and that is the whole purpose of being alive isn't it? I'm looking forward to the coming year to see how much we all change and are made better by his being here. Already since his birth the democrats have regained Congress and the Cubs have signed Alfonso Soriano, so that's something right?
Happy New Year!!!