Other peoples' kids

Today I noticed my sweet little angel sitting pretty; finally. He will be eight months old in a week. I saw this seven month old with teeth at a store a couple of months ago, the boy was sitting upright, sporting four teeth and obviously crawling or about to. My aunts' baby was standing at 7 months; my cousins' baby was crawling and cruising furniture by 8 months; all around me I saw babies doing things way faster than mine and I almost let myself fall into the "there's something wrong with my child" trap. Don't get me wrong, I see babies way slower than him but to be the best you've got to compete with the best.

We all know that everyone is an individual, in fact I should know that better than anyone else. I didn't walk until I was a year and ten months old, I sucked my fingers, didn't "cry" (my Mom said she had to deliberately starve me every now and then just so she could convince herself I was OK, lol). I was considered "slow" until my Mom said they realized I could read words without pictures when I was four. Even then, I started growing boobs at 9 (mom was scared again, too early) when girls my age caught up, they began dressing up and wearing make-up. I didn't. It went on and on, I just wasn't doing what I was supposed to be doing when I was supposed to, and did I mention my Mom thought I was going to be an old maid?

I wish I could claim emotional trauma from all the comparisons I suffered and to be truthful; I did feel there was (and is, maybe?) something wrong with me but as I have realised everyone has their self doubt and the greater the genius the greater the doubt so I don't sweat it. I admit that being compared to others and always or mostly falling short is very challenging. So why was I trying to inflict this negative energy on my little prince? I think its because, like the majority of parents before me, I have/had set milestones for my baby. . .

He was to be sitting by 5 months, crawling at 6 months, off the breast at 6 months (here we are breastfeeding 7 months and counting), standing at 9 months, off the feeding bottle at 1, toilet trained at 2 and saying the alphabet and counting to twenty by 2.

But here I am applauding his being able to sit down without support (and he claps too) at 7 months and four weeks, but even though I think we (me and him) have a pretty fair chance of meeting the other milestones, I will honor his process and just let him do things at his own pace (like I have that much of a say in the matter).

This is fast becoming a mommy blog.

PS:- Not beef but my aunts' child who was standing @ 7 months is a year old next month and he's still not walking but she's not losing sleep about it. Don't know what came over me.

I love my mom to pieces, I obviously inherited her paranoia.