joyous Sleep.

One of my absolute favorite things in the world lately is when my daughter falls asleep on me. In my arms, on my shoulder or even flopped across one of my arms, it doesn't matter, I just love when she falls asleep on me. Sure, all the books and blogs and whatever else may say to let her fall asleep in her crib or on her own lest she end up needing to fall asleep on me or my husband, but these are the beautiful moments I love and I'm not trading them, period. It is, as you can imagine, incredibly hard to put her down once she's fallen asleep on me. Sure, there's laundry I could do, dishes to be done, dinner to be made, but none of that seems to compare to what it is like to hold a sleeping baby - your very own sleeping baby - in your arms. The days are already flying by and she's growing before my very eyes, so why would I put her down for the sake of doing something so...ordinary? I'd rather soak up the moments of sweetness, listen to each little random noise she makes, watch her face and enjoy those sleepy smiles while I can. These days won't always be here. She'll grow up and run around, and probably run away from dear ole Mommy when I come for nap time. The dishes and the laundry will always be there, but she won't always be this size and she won't always be here, either. She'll get big and move out and be on her own, so why not cherish the little moments? I also love that there's something inexplicably intimate about my daughter falling asleep on me. It says that she trusts me, that she feels safe in my arms, that she's calm and relaxed and can rest in my presence. Think about it - who do you fall asleep next to? Only the people you trust the most, anyone else would be difficult to slumber next to. But she rests soundly in my arms and that reality lets me know the depth of her love and trust in me, and that is beautiful. Read up all you want on sleep patterns of babies, but as for me and my baby, she can sleep in my arms and I'll snuggle her because the days are short and she'll grow up fast so I'm going to soak it up while I can.