Dear Baby Wee,
Mommy feels bad that you haven’t gotten a month by month letter like your brother. Then again, she knows that you already have many privileges that he never had, such as a big house to crawl around in! Mommy’s sorry that she’s been so busy, but it doesn’t mean she hasn’t enjoyed every little special thing about you.
What are some of the great things that we love about you? First of all, you are sooo social. You want to laugh along with everyone else, and you respond immediately to someone trying to get a reaction out of you. While you sometimes “zone out” playing with toys, you also show that you are keenly aware of where Mommy is at all times. Your favorite toys at this time are cars. You love them in a way that your brother never did, intently pushing them around and watching the wheels turn. You also love to chew on and throw wooden blocks.
You have two fun games that you like to play with people (that you learned on your own, by the way!). The first, is you stare someone down, then look away, then whip your head back and laugh while looking back at them. You especially love it when someone else joins you in the game. The second game you play is you look up, huge grin on your face, and clap your hands expectantly. The moment somebody claps back, you squeal with the cutest giggle and do it again and again.
You respond very dramatically to music. Any time someone sings to you, you stare at them intently, as though trying to figure out where the sound is coming from. It always always calms you down. When somebody says or sings something, you often hum and try to match the same rhythm and tune! Your favorite song right now is, “This Little Light of Mine”– you laugh hysterically whenever Momma gets to the part about “hiding it under a bushel”. We frequently catch you loudly humming to yourself, especially during church.
You are still a big tanker of a boy! You wear all 18 month clothing (sometimes we can sneak a favorite 12 month outfit in if it STRETCHES!), and you look so similar in size to your older brother that everywhere we go, people are asking if you two are twins! This is also because your hair is getting lighter and lighter. Whereas it used to be dark black-brown, it is now a dirty blonde. Oh well, matches your gorgeous blue eyes! Not to mention your dramatic hair-do/cowlic that we can never seem to brush away in the front of your forehead 🙂
You have been crawling like a maniac since you were 7.5 months old, but you’ve definitely taken it to a while new level lately (how did you get so fast?). You are pulling down baskets and getting into cupboards that seemingly should be well out of reach. For the past 2 months, you’ve been pulling up on everything and trying to cruise around on the furniture. You’ve even tried to stand up on your own from the ground, without any help! Make no mistake though– Mommy’s in no hurry for you to walk. You are much safer crawling, and for that, she’s grateful. 🙂 Within only a week of being at the new house, you also learned how to climb the stairs, cackling with the discovery of it all the whole time.
While you still nurse fulltime (4-6x/day), you also eat at least 3 large meals. You love to hold a banana and chew it to smithereens. You also eat lunch meat, applesauce, eggs, and oatmeal. We give you little bites of whatever we’re eating, and you’re handling it quite well!
For your 9th and 10th month, you were, quite honestly, a terrible sleeper. Part of this isn’t your fault, as our whole family was in transition from one house to another and you slept right next to Mommy and Daddy. Who could blame you, since knowing that Mommy is in the room ALWAYS makes you hungry? But since we moved in to our new house and have your own little room, you’ve suddenly become a MUCH better sleeper. You go to bed around 7-8pm, wake once around 1am to nurse, then again at 6am, then sleep until 9! Not bad! Mommy is definitely seeing this as a huge improvement. Over the next couple weeks, you will start sharing a room with your big brother!
Speaking of your brother, your relationship with him is interesting. He seems to get very possessive and jealous of his toys when you are the one using them, which means that you often get pushed over or knocked in the head with a toy (we’ve found several scratches on your forehead lately– sad!!). When he gives you hugs and kisses, you seem suspicious, as though worried he’s going to bop you at any moment. But if he is laughing at something, you ALWAYS want to join in. When he cries over being put in the car, you ALWAYS join in. When he’s playing with something, you ALWAYS try to be right next to him. Sometimes, he plays peekaboo games with you in church, getting you to belly-laugh during all the quiet times. You guys definitely have a fun relationship, but it will probably get a little bit more “fair” once you can defend yourself and hold your own 😉
Finally in time for your 11th Month Birthday, you got SIX teeth to sprout all at the same time! We’ve known they were coming for a while, as you were a bit crankier than usual. You also had a slight fever over the weekend. Only two of the teeth have officially poked through. The other four are nearly there– any day now! Find the right New Jersey clinic for crowns and bridges for yourself and state-of-the-art pediatric dental care for your baby now!
You also got your first illness this month– a congested runny nose. Mommy still can’t believe it took you 11 months to get sick, especially since Mommy and Daddy are teachers and bring home all sorts of germs.
You still have the saddest face around when you cry. Mommy thinks that this just proves what intense feelings you have, whether it be sadness, frustration, pain, or love. This intensity is just part of what makes you “Anthony”, and we know that you will learn to channel it for good the older you get.
We love you tons!
Love, Mommy
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