bodily functions

Babies have no self awareness. In some ways, it's a beautiful thing...just being yourself and not giving a hoot what anyone thinks about it. She only laughs when actually amused, not just to be polite. She actually yells and cries if she is bored - man, I wish I could do that sometimes! And she farts, burps and goes number two right in front of people. She grunts and squirms and we laugh. We wipe her mouth, her nose and her bum several times daily. And we don't mind. We don't exactly enjoy mopping up digested, pureed sweet potatoes but we gamely oblige.

What is it about that? If I had to wipe anyone else's rear end, even that of someone I really love, it would be traumatic. I would do it, in an emergency - hmmm, having a hard time thinking of an emergency like that. But if there was one, I'd do it. But it would be mind scarring. Although, now that I think about it, there was that one ill-conceived time with me, Bethany and a bikini waxing kit...shudder. But that didn't involve poop so much as an extreme crossing of all normal lines of privacy. It didn't go well. There may have been some blood and a lot of semi-angry name calling.

Anyway, it suffices to say that I think it is strange and kind of amazing that either biologically or spiritually or emotionally, we are wired to stomach a lot when it comes to parenting. Bad smells (one whiff of that diaper pail could knock out a quarter horse), gross substances (that squeezy bulb thing does NOT work on boogers - it's all about the spray), loud noises (a baby that has spied a full bottle that is not currently in her mouth is an earsplitting expereince), extremely reduced sleep quality and quantity (I hate whoever deicded that snaps are better than zippers - I mean, which would you rather do at 3 am in a cloud of horrible poop smell - one zipper or 14 snaps??)

BUt truly, there is nothing more incredible than watching the squirt do something new for the first time. Her latest trick is waving. She only uses her hand and kins of squeezes her fingers in and out - no arm motion yet. But we freak out when she does it, (Go ahead, picture two grown adults squatting down, clapping and screaming "YAY!") And when she smiles....man, you can have the worst day and see that smile and none of it matters.