Dear Coraline: Month 10

Dear Coraline,

As of 1AM this morning, you turned 10 months old. You went to the doctor yesterday (day 302) for a weight recheck (he wanted to make sure you were OK after losing weight during your ear infection) and weighed in at a healthy 18.6 pounds. Dr. J was thrilled with your weight gain (more than a pound since your last visit) and said for us to “keep on keepin’ on” what we’re doing. Of course, I could’ve told him you’d gained weight — your little arm rolls and your awesome thighs and your adorable round belly are filling in nicely. You’re still in size 3 diapers but are now fitting into clothes sized 9 months to 12 months (your poppa and I went clothes shopping recently and picked up some nice new outfits for you).

Growing GirlThe first day of this month (day 274) was our third day without power thanks to the Great Power Outage of 2011. That Friday night we packed up and went to stay at your honorary grandparents’, Fran and Don’s, house nearby. You had a blast there, playing with their grandson Thomas and enjoying your first dip in a pool (day 275). We bought a little float just for the occasion, so you could sit in it while your poppa and I took turns pulling you through the water. The only downside to staying there was that it was hard for you to get to sleep since you were in a pack ‘n’ play and not your crib. Having your beloved seahorse there helped some, though. The upside — for me, at least — was that I finally got you to snuggle with me in bed; we spooned and slept together two mornings in a row (days 275 and 276). I loved every second of it, too. The power came back on that Saturday night, so your poppa went home to sleep so he could take care of the dogs. He picked us up the following morning and took us home, and we both noticed you seemed particularly happy to be playing with all of your toys in your play yard that day. You took turns playing with every single toy, something you rarely do. You also had a great welcome home nap in your crib.

Sleeping With Seahorse

Swim BabyYou’re quite the little explorer now and extremely determined when you want something. Whether it’s going after your poppa’s Blackberry (day 276), exploring every inch of your bedroom (day 278), climbing up onto the fireplace and on your play yard giraffe (day 279), or attacking your favorite books by your bedroom chair (day 286), you go after everything with gusto. By far your favorite new thing to do is walk, though. We bought you the Stride-to-Ride Dino (day 282), and just like that your cruising became full-on walking, with you proudly holding on to your dinosaur’s handles as you walked tippytoed across the basement floor. You’ve improved every single day, walking faster and further than the day before. You finally walked all the way across the basement with it the night your Auntie T was over (day 295); we think you were showing off for her. I have no doubt that soon you’ll figure out how to get out of corners and turn around on your own, instead of waiting for your poppa or I to help you out.

Blackberry Thief

Told you I'd get a picture of you rolling your tongue

Tippytoe WalkerYour sense of humor continues to develop, with you laughing back at people when they laugh, like you did with your Auntie T, and you finding things incredibly funny when you play with your toys at home or in the car. And one day, when I changed your diaper and let slip the word “poop,” you laughed your head off (day 279). I spent the next five minutes saying “poop” just to get you to laugh like that; I laughed so hard at your giggles I was almost crying. Of course, later when I tried to catch you laughing at the word on video, you played it cool. But I at least have that really fun memory (of the laughing, not the diaper that triggered it).

Dino RiderYou continue to try new foods, from little stuff like veggie Lil’ Crunchers (a win) and peach-flavored Puffs (day 278) — which you weren’t crazy about — to pizza crust (day 282), watermelon (day 283), oranges (day 291, courtesy of your abuelo), and mushrooms (day 303), all of which you liked. You’re fond of drinking water from water bottles, although we finally hit on a sippy cup you like and can use, one that has a straw. Now you enjoy chugging water after working up a thirst from zipping around with your dinosaur.

You have enjoyed being babysat with your cousin Stephen and visits with your grandparents. When you saw your grandparents on day 283, you kept holding your left arm up over your head. Turns out you were practicing, since you waved for the first time the very next day, to our friend’s mother-in-law. Your cousin Elliott used you as a human notepad (day 287), writing blue squiggles on your left arm, and then played sweetly with you the next day; that was also the day he held you around the neck when I asked him to hold you for a camera phone photo (he did much better when I asked him to hold you around the tummy for the next photo). The same day you wore a barrette for the first time was the day your cousin Elliott and his family moved to Alabama (day 289). I’m sure you miss each other, but it’ll be nice when you get to see each other again, hopefully soon.

Choked

Cousin HugYou proved once again what a good baby you are when your poppa and I took you car shopping (day 290). We spent more than five hours at the car dealership, and you didn’t fuss once. You finally passed out from exhaustion after about four hours, while I was holding you as we signed the last of the paperwork. Having played on a little slide and with a balloon for the first time helped keep you entertained during that very long afternoon, as did you and I exploring every inch of every car in the showroom. The salesman working with us even commented on what a mild-mannered, mellow baby you are. We were so proud of how well you behaved that day, especially since your poppa and I were on the verge of melting down, the process took so long.

With MommyIt’s hard to pick a favorite new behavior/milestone of yours. We love watching you dance, like the day you stopped mid-crawl to dance on all fours to your dinosaur’s music (day 292). And last night (day 302) your poppa saw you stand on your own for a few seconds on our bed; I saw you stand on your own for a few seconds tonight in your living room pack ‘n’ play. I can say with certainty it’s not your new habit of biting; I still have a tiny bruise on my upper-left arm where you got me the other day (day 300). I’m leaning toward your new habit of doling out kisses. You kissed me on the mouth three times in a row the other day (day 292), which made your poppa jealous (you later kissed him, too, and all was forgiven). I got another kiss from you the next morning when you kissed me right after you finished your breakfast bottle (later that day your new friend Tori was born; we’ll get to meet her in the near future). And now I get kisses from you almost — but not quite — every time I ask for one.

Kiss

Trying to get the hang of kissing

As I write this, you’re sleeping soundly in your crib despite a thunderstorm. We had a fun, exciting day today (day 303): We went to a friend’s birthday party where you went swimming for the second time. I didn’t go swimming, so it was just you and your poppa. You squealed with delight as he pulled you around, kicking your legs behind you and wearing a huge smile on your face. Everyone there agreed that you seem to be a water baby, so get ready for swimming lessons in a few years. Just don’t grow up on me too fast — month 11 and all its adventures will be here soon enough.

Cutelove,

Mommy

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