Dear Carolyn,
This last month has brought so many little changes it’s hard to know where to begin. You are turning into a regular little monkey. Not only are you able to climb onto the dining room chairs, but from there you can actually climb up onto the dining room table. I really think we should buy you a helmet. Or a padded bubble!
You now shake your head “no”. When I ask “can Mommy have a kiss?” you shake your head no. Although occasionally you do give kisses: the big, open-mouth slobbery kind, right on the lips. In fact, just this morning you gave Murphy a hug (the dog has the patience of a saint) and then gave him a kiss on his muzzle. I wished I had the camera – it was simultaneously the cutest and yuckiest thing I’ve ever witnessed. And it must have tasted funny to kiss his fur like that because you kept touching your tongue afterwards.
Your new signs this month are “eat”, “baby”, “down”, “duck”, “daddy”, “cat”, “book”, “pear”, “cereal”, “potty”, “hot”, “ice cream”, “bird”, “thirsty”, “light”, “yes”, “cold” and “happy”. Honestly, there may be more but I can’t keep up – you’re learning them so quickly and you surprise me all the time with ones that I’ve never signed with you before that you’ve picked up from our videos. You’re now up to 52 (or more) signs.
Sometimes you’re like a little old lady, all set in your ways. If some of the bedtime steps happen a little out of order, it throws you off a bit – and heaven forbid we actually skip a step! However, if we can stick to your routines for the most part you’re pretty easy-going about the rest. You are starting to become a little more cautious about who else might be in the room besides Mommy and Daddy, but you still charm the pants off of most people you meet. (Except for the grumpy ones, but they don’t count anyway.)
Every day I feel like we’re getting closer to something big. You are so interactive with your environment and everyone around you now, and your communication abilities and understanding are expanding so rapidly I’m pretty sure it’s all going to hit critical mass very, very soon and you’ll all of a sudden be…well, someone even more exciting than you are now. I’ve stopped trying to fight with time to slow down and I am instead abandoning myself to this exhilarating ride you started dragging me along on the day you took your first step into toddlerhood. Wheeeee!
Love, Mommy