This is it.

I didn't think, as a childless girl, that I would be so overcome with the "goos" and "gahs" of an infant. I surely didn't suspect that I could play for hours with a babe of only mere months, perfectly enthralled with each new finding, each smile, each twinkle. But here I am, completely in love, almost mystified that this sort of joy exists. It is a unique joy, one that I have never experienced before, and one that fills me to such extents that it brings tears to my eyes. I have such a beautiful daughter. This little bean, this little girl that I once called "cashew-y" when she was in my womb can do so many tricks. She can babble and laugh, she can roll over, she can grab at things, she puts everything in her mouth. She can see you, from across the room, and her whole countenance will change. She'll open up with the biggest grin and suddenly my heart feels like its too small for my body. And I realize that THIS is the joy of parenting. THIS is that sacred, sacred relationship between a child and their parent. And I feel honored, humbled and mostly... I feel ready. I am a mother, and nothing ever felt so right.