Perfect 10

Sugar Darlin',  You are 10 months.  You are endearing.  You make me laugh with your jokes.  You are a socialite.  You are still loud.  You are still teething.  You are just so precious I could squeeze your little roly poly leggies all the live long day.

Oh my sweet how do I describe how you've grown?  You have progressed to verbal, mostly coherent, words that you will breath out in a raspy voice in between loud, yelling 'BAH!'s of expression.  You have learned 'Ball' (first word, I kid you not), Pass, Mama, Dada, Bite, Bye-Bye, Baby, Hi, Book, Sis, Yay & Up. Most of these in the last two weeks.  Sometimes you will bust out with two or three new words all in one day .  You are well on your way to speaking in full sentences, which will thrill Lillian to no end.  She asks me daily what you are saying and we have had a fun time guessing at what your squaks and babbles have meant, but I am so looking forward to knowing what you think about things.  Although as I think of it now you are quite efficient at communicating your displeasure, approval, or various demands...very, very efficient.

I love how sweetly you love on those around you.  You charm with chubby armed 'hugs' and plump cheeks snuggled against another face. You have started 'kissing', lovin' it.  Our bedtime routine goes something like this: after a bit of local milk...very, very local milk, you will tuck your little head into my neck and coo sweetly. Once standing over your crib you attempt to throw yourself onto the mattress, and I lovingly lay my wiggly little 10 month old octopus into your bed, snuggle in a lamb and wrap you in your blanket.  You pull one side up and snuggle it to your face before turning to smile at me through a paci.  I bounce your mattress and you smile more.  I give you eskimo kisses and you laugh.  And then you are ready for sleep.  Darling girl.

You are my roly-poly baby.  I will set you on the carpet and you quickly 'go on roll-about' to explore every nook and cranny in the room.  Balls across the floor are no longer protected by the space between, and you quickly close the distance to any and every sphere shaped object in a split-second.  Why crawl when you already have an incredible effective mode of transportation?  You must have very strong obliques.

You are lean, despite the delightfully squishy rolls in your legs and belly, and oh so strong.  I have marveled at how toned my arms look from wrestle-holding you.  You are my low weight-high rep workout every day. You do not reach, and only occasionally give me the luxury of pointing at what you want; opting rather to lunge with the full force of a surprisingly agile and weighted 17 lbs at the object, be it the afore mentioned ball, or the stove, or Mercy. It is with this same strength that you adeptly refuse anything coming into your perimeter that hasn't been cleared with your approval. Oatmeal?  Not a chance.  Iron-rich rice Cereal that experts say a baby 'MUST HAVE' in order to be healthy and any well-to-do and loving mother would provide for a child she found in her affection? Laughable. Tomato's? Yes, please. Come on in, stay and have tea.  Invite all your tomato friends and stay for supper. You have your preferences.  I often comply.

I have said for months that my Good Lord gave you several extra drops of absolute sweetness to compensate for the noise that your tiny self deems necessary.  I am thankful for all of the things He has made you.  You love to cuddle, I love to allow it.  You love to eat veggies and proteins, I love to allow it.  You hate being handled and will pull away or lock your jaw, I love to be your mother and decide what will go in your mouth and what stickers or bird seeds I will take out of it (which is all of them, by the way). You chew on your paci like it's a cigar, I love to enjoy your sense of humor.  You seem determined to grow up faster than I'm ready for, I have no choice but to accept it.  Sugar Sweetie Pie, You are already 10 months, and I love you to the doctor and back... which is where we are going tomorrow, for shots, because you are 10 months.