Every stage of babyhood and toddlerhood is amazing in itself when you are literally watching your child grow every day. I’ve been so fortunate that I had a long (by U.S. standards) maternity leave and have a flexible schedule that allows me a good amount of time with Pookster. Watching her little changes day to day has always fascinated me. And I love seeing the things that she really gets into that seems to change week to week.

While we were in our Santiago hotel, one thing I would do is open my arms wide from about 5-10 feet away from her, and she’d get excited, start giggling, and run at full speed into my arms. Usually, it would be quite an impact, so part of me might even fall back a little, and I’d yell out a little “oomph!” as she dug her face into my chest and neck. But that would just add to the effect and her excitement, as she’d want to do it again and again. If I don’t initiate it and Pookster wants to do it, she’d say, “I wanna hug.” And that would be a cue for me to back up, open my arms wide, and wait for her to run into me. She also has taken a liking to smushing her face into mine and even biting my lips. Pookster can get quite aggressive sometimes with the face smushing. I just hope I don’t get a black eye with all this affection.

Sometimes when we are doing little activities like this, I get a little sad, thinking that one day, she will not be this easily amused, want to hug or kiss me, or even want to be anywhere near me. She may want to spend all her time with her friends and little to no time at all with me. But it’s just a reminder to me to soak up all the cuddles now when I can and she allows me to; to continue trying my best to create a safe space for her to be herself, voice her thoughts and opinions, and let her be who she wants to be. Every now and then, I look back at older photos and videos of her, and as trite as it sounds, I just can’t believe how quickly she is growing; even just 3-4 months ago, she had chubbier cheeks that I loved to pinch and hold. And now we’re getting into the next “big kid” phase of potty training, which is another reminder to me that every day, as much as it makes me sad, my baby is less of a baby, and far more of a growing big kid.

And hopefully with these intentions, Pooks will still want to cuddle and kiss me, even when she’s 10, 20, 30, or 40-plus years old.