Ten Months or Five Years???

Squirrely-Butt!!!

You are a riotous, nut-bomb of wildly rough and tumble FUN! 10 months is treating you, and us, really kind. You kind of seem like a 5 year old. Like maybe you will start speaking, or running or eating a sandwich at any given second? You are just growing so fast and you are so big, we joke you're in Kindergarten. Our days are action packed with you speed crawling, playing, banging your toys, shrieking with delight, head-butting furniture and parent-parts and speaking baby language. You are now saying "mama" which tickles me to no end. You also say (what we have decided is) "baby," "hi" and "hello."


Changing your diaper is an Olympic sport. You squirm, scream and pretty much avoid cooperating at all costs. I've taken to throwing my leg over your chest to hold you in place--you are that wiggly, fast and strong. You don't like any part of it, so I'm serious contemplating potty training you--maybe you'll like that better than diaper changes? Haha, we'll see.

It's been a wild month starting with your Dad going to work in Portland for 2 weeks! The thought of wrangling my sweet you by myself was definitely daunting. But. We rocked it. After a few days we got into a nice rhythm, and as long as I prepared for meals, bath, naps and bed in advance, everything went pretty smoothly. But I was EXHAUSTED by the time your Dad came home. I have so much respect for the mamas and papas that raise babies on their own without help. Your Dad was proud of us, and he really enjoyed Portland and working on Grimm. The show is a little mature, so it might be a long time before you see his episode. 

We got to vote together! We voted to re-elect President Obama, and the sweet volunteer let you "cast" our ballot in the scan-tron. Then she gave  you the ballot receipt, which you ate. We don't normally let you watch TV, but I thought letting you watch Obama's acceptance speech, a beautiful piece of history, was worth breaking the rules.

We had a great trip to DC! You travelled so well, and I thank you for making it easy on me. We had some quality time with Titi C. You got to play with your cousins CJ, Jazzy, Titi Ri and you finally got to meet the beautiful baby Brooklyn! You guys raged it up in the playroom of the Carpenter basement, you had never seen so many awesome toys! After a night of bonding with your Tio Chris and Tio Spencer we did the 5K with Aunt Jo. You slept most of the time, but I was happy we got to honor Aunt Jo and your Abuelo Cliff. We got so much support and good vibes from our family and friends and I want you to know that that is what community is. We are blessed to have such generous, loving souls in our lives.



You are living in and loving the new house! And we are so proud of how you handled the transitition. You go to sleep  in your crib in your room like such a big boy! We are still reading "You Are My Little Cupcake" every night at bedtime. Multiple times. Your Dad cracks me up because he always reads the title aloud, as if we haven't figured out which book it is :) and its author, Amy E. Sklansky, as if you care. He does it just to be funny. It works. Your Dad and Ruby did such a great job painting and decorating your room--it is stylin! I still have a couple projects left... Maybe I'll finish them before you go to college ;)

You've been trying all kinds of new food although you still just chew on most things with your gums (sometimes your 4 teeth), then spit it all out. Violet enjoys your mealtimes very much, and you can imagine why. You tried your Dad's amazing deep-fried turkey on Thanksgiving. It was the best one yet.

Speaking of Thanksgiving, we had a really nice time celebrating at the new house with your Auntie Aim, Titi Rix, Auntie Lauren, Uncle Brandon and Kyle! He hasn't come up with a baby name for himself yet. It was pretty intense trying to prepare a big meal and watch you at the same time, so the Ergo came in handy. I strapped your big toddler butt to my back and made it happen. Auntie Aimee also helped tremendously by coming over early, entertaining you AND cooking! She is a special lady. You also played a ton with your Titi Rix, Lauren, Mary and Elena. Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday because it's about gratitude and grub. I hope that we can spend our days together cooking, eating and reflecting on all the blessings in our lives.

Lovin you big time,
Mama