This guest post is part of our Month of Mothering. We’re featuring the words of women (and a few men!) from a variety of walks of life. In recognition that all mothers want what’s best for their baby, and knowing we all have different ways of achieving that, we welcome commentaries and experiences from mothers of all different philosophies and practices. Please note that the opinions expressed and baby care techniques used are reflective of the individual posters only, and do not imply endorsement or recommendation of the Other Baby Book.
Welcome, Alicia Clare! Alicia is our PR Director and Product Coordinator. She is a stay at home mama to Emily, 18 months. She resides in Boston and is expecting a baby boy in July.
When Emily was a newborn, our 9 year old dog Bert could still see. Every visitor that came by to cuddle Emily had to deal with Bert watching their every move. He didn’t let Emily out of his sight, not for one minute. Whereever my husband Christian or I went, if Emily was with us, Bert followed. Bert would gaze at her as if he were in love. I think he could feel how precious she was to us. And she was just as special to him.
Sometimes I think Bert understands what mothering is as much as I do. Every time Emily cries, Bert cries too. He looks up to the sky like a wolf and howls. I never heard him do it before Emily was born, and the only time he ever does is if our little girl is crying. Sometimes she is so thrown off by his cries, that it stops her in her tracks! Mind you, this little pug of a dog is 9 years old and has since gone blind.
Mothering means loving.
It means taking this precious little thing that was carved out of the love you and your partner have for each other, and showing her all the light and beauty in the world around her.
It means showing her that she is the light and beauty reflecting upon the world around her.
Mothering means quiet cuddles at 4am when she can’t sleep and you are dead tired.
It means not following other people’s advice even if they think you are crazy or wrong. It’s following your own intuition.
Mothering means listening more than talking. It means dancing and playing pretend and reading books when you’d rather be sleeping or resting or emailing. Mothering means following your little girl around like a mama lion protecting her young.
And sometimes, mothering means crying when your baby girl cries.
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