Bye Bye Baby Gear

Vivienne turns one in a few days. Umm what? Excuse me? That can't be right. I just squeezed that wailing little lemon head first into this crazy world...
In celebration of this milestone, (and also because we needed to wedge a Christmas tree in the living room) we packed up and donated all our baby gear to a local charity. Lamb swing, lamb bouncy seat, jump-a-roo, co-sleeper...all gone. We're left with a pack n' play and a used breast pump.

We're pretty sure we're done having babies, and we have no storage space for such large items. I considered hanging on to them, but I hated the thought of letting everything rot in our damp basement just in case...so off they went. Of course, we're taunting the universe with such a bold move, so we'll probably be blessed with triplets next year.
It was sad watching Eric load everything in the back of his truck. It's just stuff, and I usually have no problem getting rid of things I no longer use. But these things rocked and cuddled and bounced my girls. Sob. Mah babies!!
I remember how exciting it was to set up all those items for the first time. That jump-a-roo seemed so foreign. A spaceship might as well have landed in our living room. The swing was bought in desperation during the height of Maddie's colic. It changed our lives!
It was just as exciting to set them up again last year as we waited for Vivi's arrival. Madeline would put her dolls in the seats, and we'd wonder what it would be like to welcome a little sister to the family. Vivi napped in that swing or bouncy seat for the first six months of her life.
But as exciting as it was to set all that equipment up for the first time, it was also liberating taking them apart. Baby stuff takes up a lot of space. Our tiny house suddenly feels so spacious.
And in a way, it feels good to set that stage of our lives in the past. We're ready for the next part.
I know from our experiences with Madeline that it only gets better. Each age is more interesting, more challenging, more fun than the last. So, while I'm mourning the end of our baby days, I'm more excited to watch our girls grow, grow, grow.