Losing babyhood

Sometimes, changes creep up on me, and sometimes they shock me with how sudden they are.  Sometimes, they manage to do both.    Sometime in the last week, a little brother who has so devotedly called after his  "Aid-ee" has started asking for his Aidan.  It hurts my heart, a little, hearing the grown-up changes to his speech, as I want to hold on to his baby-ness just a little while longer.  Then, the moments where he can hold snippets of conversation- about what he did at church, what we saw at the zoo- take away the sting of losing babyhood by shining a light on the sweetness of 'kid.'