Growing little girls; clothes will wait

Baby girls come into the world and we adults gather around and watch them watching the world. They gaze at seemingly insignificant things like the curtains blowing in the breeze or the shadow of a maple tree on the living room wall, and it seems they are looking at one of the Seven Ancient Wonders. We study their tiny fingers and kiss their downy heads, and thank heaven for these little girls. Clothes may get stained from holding them snugly to our hearts, but we don't care. These are miracles, these baby girls. Toddler clothes fill their closets: dresses and overalls too big for them now and they can't be wearing little boys clothes. They'd swim in that 2T outfit with the umbrella on the pocket; but we hold them all the closer because we know that someday soon those things will be too small for them. Looking back at their newborn clothing you're reminded how they grow so fast.

These tiny daughters and granddaughters are going to change so quickly. One day they're just tiny infants. The next, it seems, they're grown girls. Toddler clothes, once worn by exploring crawlers and tumbling, giggling wonders, will someday be outfits they put on their bigger dolls; make-up, sleepovers and chemistry sets aren't so far in the future. If only we could stop time and forever breathe in the beauty of these little girls. Clothes, shoes, diaries, soccer balls, building sets, music, long phone conversations, all of this will come, we know. So we hold them, kiss them, sing a lullaby, and enjoy our good luck.