A Boy and his Penguin

This post is not sponsored by Toys R' Us, but it should be. Let's talk.

Leif and I are overwhelmed by how many people have so generously given him and I presents recently. Many friends have dropped off yummy meals and treats for our family. We have had two showers, where lots of friends and family have come out to help us celebrate Leif's birth, and gifts are continually rolling in on a daily basis. Thank you, everyone. We truly appreciate it.

As much as we love all of our gifts and as useful as all of them have been, the one gift that stands out the most is a tiny, penguin nightlight that my aunt, Marjorie and cousin, Laina, gave to me. I had scanned this nightlight when Emily and I were registering for our baby showers at Toys R' Us for no good reason other than I thought it was adorable. Well, as cute as the  penguin is, it has quickly become our favourite night time accessory. First of all, the penguin is tiny and operates on batteries, so I can move it to where ever I need it at night. Secondly, it operates on a timer, so if I happen to fall asleep before turning it off, it turns itself off after twenty to thirty minutes. I use it to give me a faint light when I am trying to get Leif to latch on for nursing, I use it as a flashlight when I am changing his diaper in the middle of the night, and most recently, it has become Leif's little buddy while I am changing his bum and trying to settle him down.

You see, not  only is the penguin nightlight the cutest and most portable nightlight ever, but it is also highly entertaining because the light can changes colours in a very slow succession if you hold onto the button for a moment or two. Avery discovered this trick, and I must say it is very cool. So, the other night Leif was particularly being impatient while I was trying to change his diaper. That boy wanted to nurse, and he wanted to do it that very moment; however, he had just let off an explosion in his pants and I really did not want to give it time to seep out onto his cutesy, tootsy jammies. Feeling desperate, I turned the penguin's light show on, and Leif immediately settled down. This was the first time he had noticed something other than our faces, and he was quite interested. He calmed right down, and began cooing at the penguin. It was too precious! Needless to say, the penguin light show has become a regular event here at Shenanigans inc every evening around 1:30 am.

Then, two nights ago, the penguin helped Leif achieve a monumental accomplishment. As the two of them were in the midst of a deep, philosophical discussion, one that could only be understood by a plastic, inanimate penguin and a newborn baby boy, Leif managed to muster up all the control his tiny body is capable of and very slowly and consciously stretched his right arm out to touch his new black and white buddy on the belly. I froze. In the blink of an eye, I witnessed my baby boy growing up. My heart rejoiced for him, and then it broke a little. Babies grow up way too fast! Thankfully, almost on cue, Leif became his spastic, attention-deficit newborn self again, flailed his body away from the penguin and settled his attention back on me.

There's my baby boy!

I scooped him back up into my arms and gobbled up his chubby cheeks.

No matter how big you get or how many cool tricks you can do, you will always be my baby boy, Leif . . . 

and mama will always love you!