The last while I’ve been overwhelmed by this feeling that no one knows our baby. No one truly knows our youngest, Orie, outside of our little bubble. Even our immediate family has not seen her as much as I would like. It’s a bit heartbreaking.
Here’s this amazing, sweet kiddo and she’s growing up in such an odd time. We’re in a time where babies are getting to know faces behind masks. Where so many things are not the same. Not what we expected at all.
I was pregnant before the pandemic officially started. I pretty much went through my entire pregnancy as the pandemic progressed. Pregnancy is already a magical and scary time. Add in the pandemic and it’s all intensified.
Going from not having to wear masks to appointments to my husband not being able to come with me to anything and having to wear a medical-grade face mask at all appointments. Thankfully I didn’t have to deliver with a mask on, I don’t know if I would have handled that well. But, I know others who did have to.
This is all just such an odd time.
Here’s this amazing, sweet little baby that we welcomed who didn’t get to have her older sisters welcome her at the hospital. It wasn’t just her sisters who didn’t get to meet her at the hospital, it was all our family and friends. We had no one there. In a way, it was nice having it be just the three of us, but introducing everyone to your baby over FaceTime was just odd. It didn’t feel right. It wasn’t what we hoped for.
We didn’t get to have delivery photos. Which I so desperately wanted for our last child. I regretted not having that with both of our older kids, it was a huge wish list item for our last. It did not happen. Bless my husband’s heart he tried his darndest to capture photos and be in the moment and I cannot thank him enough for that. He got some beautiful moments captured. But, there’s none of him with the baby and me.
Here we are now, at almost 4 months old. I feel like no one outside of our little crew of 5 truly knows this little human.
Sure, I’m thankful for technology and social media. I can still share photos and videos that give a glimpse of what we are up to. It’s not the same as getting to hold this little person. Seeing her face change from newborn into epic chunky little cheeks. Watch as her eyes go from grey to blue and green and continue to leave us wondering what colour will they be exactly? No one else has watched her personality unfold as she shows us the person she is.
Here we are.
I can’t help but feel like a bit of her childhood is being taken by the pandemic. I’m overwhelmed by odd emotions. In a way, I am okay with staying at home as much as possible and trying to just soak her up. In others, I want to get to see everyone. I want her to get to go out and meet our family and friends who love her so much, but they love her from afar. All these people who have not been able to hold her. Family, stuck across a border where we could pretty much hit their house with a baseball if we chucked it hard enough from our side.
They say it takes a village to raise a child. What happens when your village isn’t able to be there? Please, even if it’s from a distance continue to support the parents of little ones. Even if it is from afar. Their hearts may be heavy right now.
We’re blinking and dare I say it, will she turn one before everyone gets to know her?
The newborn baby smell is fading.
[…] the world last September, right in the middle of pandemic restrictions. As a result, she feels like no one knows their baby. We haven’t had anywhere near the same level of in-person contact with loved ones. No play […]