The Helmet

Baby Amelia turned 6 months old a few days ago.  She is a sweet, cuddly, talkative, newly rolling, chunky monkey of a baby and such a joy!  The boys absolutely love her and that makes this momma's heart so happy!  So one new thing about this 6 month old is that she recently got fitted for her newest accessory...a helmet!  Yes, boo...my baby has to have a helmet!  I think I lived in denial for the past few months, desperately hoping this flat spot I had noticed on the back of her head would correct itself if I held her more or if I repositioned her constantly throughout her sleeping periods, but after all my hardest efforts, our pediatrician confirmed that she would need a helmet to correct the flatness.  So after many tears from me, I embraced the inevitable and the little lady got her pink helmet!  Considering that she has to wear it for 23 hours a day for the next 3-6 months, she has done amazingly well so far.  I was terrified that she would never sleep again...I mean who really wants to sleep in a hard, clunky helmet.  But I forget that babies are so resilient and that God has had His hand on us as we've adjusted to this new life of living with a helmet baby.  We've had a few short naps, a night or two of some tears from the babe as she couldn't settle from discomfort and a lot of really sweaty days (the poor child sweats profusely in her helmet even when we are sitting in the air conditioning), but overall, when you put it on her head, you would never know if it bothered her...she just keeps smiling.  In all honesty, I think that I have been more bothered by the whole process then she has.  The helmet just makes nursing a little more difficult and I hate that a big, cold, clunky piece of plastic gets in the way of me cuddling and kissing Amelia's sweet head.  Where as she used to rest comfortably in the crevice of my arm, now her helmet gets in the way and she squirms out of discomfort and gets restless if held in that position.  This all makes me sad because I know this time with her as a baby is so fleeting and by the time we are out of the helmet, my little tiny baby will be close to walking and her days of infancy will be coming to a close and the business of toddlerhood will be inching ever closer.  The good news is that one hour a day, we get to take her helmet off to bathe her and clean the helmet.  That means that one whole hour
of each day I get to hold and cuddle and love on this little tiny head and not take the cuddling for granted and for that I am truly thankful! Anyway, here is the little lady sporting her newest accessory -

Our first day home with the helmet -

 Playing in her Johnny Jump -

 Toto and Amelia -

 Sweet little one asleep in the car seat -

 And this is how she sleeps each night -

So thankful for this little one and her sweet spirit!!!!