I’m getting used to the whole SAHM (Stay at Home Mom) thing. I do have to say it’s been a bit hard being home with a baby during the winter. It’s nice to be inside and not have to bundle her up to take her somewhere, but some days I feel like the walls are caving in on me. It does a soul good just to get out of the house sometimes, ya know? So we’ve been more active lately. Ashley is getting older and I feel more comfortable taking her places. We’ve had a couple of play dates, gone out to lunch with friends, and we went over to a neighbor’s house this morning to visit. Friday we have our first “Bugs” class at The Little Gym. It’s a parent/child class, and this particular one is for 4-10 month olds. I am SO excited to try it out! I think it will be a lot of fun for both of us. There are only 6 other children in the class (and 2 of them are twins). I will let you know how it goes.
I can see how easy it would be for the 2 of us to get so very attached to each other being home all of the time. I already have a hard time leaving her, even if it’s for a few hours. There are only 3 instances when I’ve been away from her all day. One of those was when Van and I went to a baby shower in Greenville about a month ago, and I cried like a baby on the way home because I missed Ashley so much. My parents were babysitting, so deep down I knew she would be fine. But I still worried about her. She’s my little buddy. It’s such a wierd feeling going somewhere without her; like a part of me is left behind. And it’s funny because whenever Van and I do get away for a nice dinner out, just the 2 of us, we spend most of the time talking about Ashley anyway. She is definitely our “world” now.
One of my goals is to make sure I get Ashley out and about, socialized with other children and adults. I want her to experience the world. I am really looking forward to springtime (which couldn’t come soon enough!). This has been a dreadfully long winter. Once the weather is warmer,we will get out more, go for strolls, and maybe more playdates. She can’t really do much yet with other children, but I think it’s good for her to be around them and socialize. After all, much to her surprise, there’s more to the world than just Mommy, Daddy, Toby, Blake and Jimmy.
Oh, and speaking of Daddy. Let me just tell you how cool it is to witness the father/daughter bond! Van doesn’t like me sharing stories to the whole world about him. Guess he’s afraid it might impact his “mach-o-ness”. So I’ll just tell you this one quick story 
. I overheard him singing to her Sunday morning. It melted my heart! Van was watching Ashley downstairs while I took a shower upstairs. When I got out of the shower, I heard him singing “When the Sun Goes Down” and Ashley was squeeling with glee. You can’t tell me he’s not wrapped around her lil’ finger!
Niki Murray