A few things I forgot about having a newborn

The sweet little sounds they make, from grunting when you change them to squeaking when you nurse them to the sweet little stutter-sighs they breathe when they're falling asleep.

The way they curl up on your chest, against your belly, or in your arms like a tiny little tree frog. Somehow, watching them squash themselves against you that way makes you believe beyond belief that you really did carry them for 39 weeks in your belly.

There's a very short list of things that could possibly be wrong.

Somehow, babies smell fresh. I've heard somewhere that it's because they just left Heaven. I'm not sure I buy that, but they sure do smell sweet.

You feel like a million bucks even though you only manage to snag an hour or two of sleep at a time. Under any other circumstances, you'd feel like poo.

Most everything about them is just. . . well. . . peaceful.

I love the look of recognition they get the first time they realize they're looking at mama.

Any time in the last 40 weeks that I was up in the middle of the night, it was a nuisance. Now? It's a blessing. I love, love, love the special, still, sweet moments in the middle of the night that I get to share with my angel. No interruptions. No audience. Just me and my girl.

My love for others multiplies tenfold. Seeing my husband with our daughter makes me remember a million reasons I fell in love with him that I'd somehow forgotten over the course of the last two years.

The way it feels to be completely, totally, genuinely in love with someone you know nothing about.