Tuesday, January 25, 2011

3 Months (ish)

Dear Tiny,
Well, I suppose this time I'm only one week late, as opposed to 3. But I figured I had just written about you, and yada yada, excuses excuses. At least you're learning early in your life that even mommy isn't perfect.

You have just been so so much fun this month. You are oh so smiley and giggly all. the. time. My favorite times are when you are just waking up, and I go to peek in at you in your pack 'n play. When you see me, you give me this huge smile, as though you're saying, "Thanks for coming to get me, Mommy! I'm ready to play!" This is your same reaction every time Daddy walks in the door after work - if you're eating, you immediately stop and look up excitedly at the first sound of the door. We're glad you adore us as much as we adore you.

Speaking of, you've gotten infinitely more interactive this month. While you're still not particularly interested in playing with things, you love playing with people. You adore singing songs and reading books, and love dancing and flying. You've gotten a lot better at dealing with tummy time, and now will happily lift your head for minutes at a time - a big improvement from before.

This month brought the change of me returning to school full-time. Fortunately, full-time means that I'm only gone for a few hours in the mornings Monday-Thursday, and what it really means is that you have plenty of time to bond with your grandma, which she and you both love. The first week, your other grandma, or Dad's mom, was in town taking care of you, and you both had a ball. I'd come home every day to lots of giggles and smiles, and that's just continued with your other grandma. It is so fun for us to watch you get to know and love your family.

This has meant, however, that you've had to take a bottle of pumped milk on occasion. Or rather, not take it, as the case may be. Much as we've tried, you still most often flat-out refuse the bottle entirely. Instead, you just sort of lick it - I think you think it's some sort of toy. I suppose I should take it as a compliment, but buddy? It would be seriously helpful if you could take a little. I promise it's still food.
You've also gotten particularly chatty this month. When awake, you are constantly "talking" - you love telling us stories and hearing our voices as we respond. I love having these little conversations with you. You've also started drooling and putting your hands in your mouth constantly, even when you've just eaten. You'll be happy to know that you've helped me overcome my aversion to saliva.


The most exciting event of the month was your baby blessing and cradle ceremony. This was such a special day, in which your Daddy was able to give you a blessing straight from your Heavenly Father. One of the things that struck me most was that you are already a comfort to all those around you; you really do bring a calm and joyous peace with you wherever you are. This was a wonderful time when both sides of your family could come witness this blessing, and during which Mommy got to speak in church about families; it could not have been more perfect. Afterward, we all headed over to your grandparents' home for another special blessing and cradle ceremony, performed by your grandma. We were overwhelmed by all the friends and family who came; you sure are loved, little guy.


The next day, we were taking some pictures of you with all your grandparents. Almost always, people look for themselves first whenever they see a picture. However, after taking these, your grandparents all looked for you. You have a gift for helping people to look beyond themselves, and for bringing joy and love to those around you.


Tiny, it is amazing to me that three months ago, I hadn’t yet met you in person. Today, I feel like I’ve known you forever, and know that I have. I love you, little man.

love,
mama

(Pictures to come.) (Updated with pictures.)

Friday, January 7, 2011

2 Months, 3 Weeks

Dear Tiny Pup,
As your two-month anniversary of life happened to fall 6 days before Christmas and 2 days before we flew to Salt Lake for the holidays, Mommy neglected to write you a two-month letter. Hopefully the fun plane ride, the opportunity to have your picture taken in the cockpit, and getting your first airplane wings pin made up for it.


I know I should have anticipated it, but you are just getting more and more fun each day. You are constantly smiling and cooing now, and love to be social with everyone around you. In fact, if you are ever getting a bit fussy (for instance, if it has been more than 2 hours since your last nap...you really don't seem to like being awake for too much longer than that), we just have to introduce you to some cute girls and you are all smiles again. This happened on multiple occasions in Utah, with several of your aunts' friends. We better watch out in a few years, you little flirt, you.


You also had the time of your life bonding with your paternal grandparents, great-grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. Such fun was had! There was constantly someone to hold you, sing songs to you, and play other fun games with you. You particularly enjoyed flying around with Grandpa and learning about apricot trees and body parts via music from Grandma. You were so tuckered out each night that I was often concerned about you still being asleep well into the morning, even after 12+ hours of sleep. It seems that even with all that rest, you managed to pick up a slight cold. Fortunately, you managed to kick it relatively quickly - and far faster than I did. I'm convinced all those nursing antibodies came to the rescue!


It was so fun spending Christmas with you, and remembering about Jesus as a baby. I'm grateful you helped us to remember that that is way more important than any gifts or stresses of the holiday season.


Tiny, we are so grateful to have you in our lives. More and more, I just can't imagine life without you, and I love having you near. Your smiles just make my day. Your daddy and I were talking about how much we love you, and how special you make us feel. Really, even if we were just playing with you a few minutes before, oftentimes you'll look over at us and give us this huge grin that lights up your whole face - like, "Hey, Mommy is here! And Daddy, too!! Wow!" Those grins make us feel like the luckiest people in the world.

love,
mama