Unconditional Love

Nothing makes you feel better first thing in the morning than peeking into the crib and seeing a giant smile on your baby's face when she recognizes you. She is so excited to see you, so genuinely happy that you are there to get her and talk to her and give her some attention. All the annoyance of having to go into her room so early in the morning washes away (okay, not completely, but most of it).

I love babies. They are so simple. You smile at them, they smile back. They go where you go and are happy to do it. They don't complain or whine or talk back. They do cry, but it's usually because you have forgotten to do something important like feed them, change their diaper, or give them a nap. They love you so much. I'd like to think it's unconditional love, because who wouldn't want to be loved unconditionally, but it's not. They love you because you feed them and bathe them and change them and take care of them. Yes, they appreciate it, but they wouldn't love you half as much if you didn't do those things. So I understand why Amanda loves me so much.

Andy and Sarah are a different story. They don't do anything for her. They don't hold her or feed her or diaper her or do anything that falls under the label of general care. In Sarah's case, most of the time she isn't even nice to her. Last weekend she tried to smother her with a blanket, gag her with a teether and banged her in the head repeatedly with a rubber ball. Those are just the few I saw. In fact, Sarah isn't even allowed to touch the baby anymore unless we are nearby, and I can't leave them alone in the same room for fear that Sarah will do something to her. Yet, when Amanda sees Sarah, her eyes light up and she gets the biggest smile on her face. Sarah speaks gibberish to Amanda and she can't stop giggling. Sarah laughs and she laughs. They yell back and forth at eachother as if they have their own, crazy language. It's similar with Andy. He does silly dances for her to calm her down or make her giggle. He speaks nonsense to her and she eats it up. She sees him in the back seat of the car and beams.

That is unconditional love. Nothing offered, but so much love given in return. I hope the bond between my children continues to grow, but for right now I'm just delighted to hear them make her giggle.