There’s something about unpacking them from the boxes of all the clothes special enough… clean enough to save.
There’s something about holding them to your face, smelling them.
Remembering.
Remembering the last time you put a baby in these pajamas.
Remembering how his chubby legs filled out his pants, and how his round belly poured out the top.
Remembering how big you thought he was then.
Realizing how big he is now.
There’s something about a great hand-me-down.
There’s something about putting them on another baby.
Noticing how they’re a little baggy.
Knowing they’ll be a little too small too soon. Knowing they’ll only fit for a small window of time.
Knowing you’ll be packing them away again in the blink of an eye.
The beauty of a great hand-me-down is that, despite the fading and the tatters, or perhaps because of them, we are reminded how temporary phases and stages, favorite toys and clothes and things are in our children’s lives.
All the while, they make us remember what it was like to love a baby in that fleeting moment, and magnify our heart’s ability to grow infinitely to make room to love another who will fill out those pajamas… again… and again.
Kendall is 3 years 5 months, Leyna is 9.5 months old, and we are madly in love with the “space jams” around here.