Letters to Lyla and Lottie

Baby Char, nicknames must be a sign of love because you have a million, baby Char, Lottie, Lottie Lou, Lovey Lou, and others I’m sure.  On the one hand It seems completely impossible that you’ve been with us for half of a year, but on the other it seems that you’ve always been with us.  That’s’ how seamless your existence is in our home.   Having you around is such a pleasure, I quietly thank our creator for every day.  Little moments each day, remind me what a sacred and marvelous thing I get to be apart of….when you smile with the boob half way in your  mouth…when you put on your little whine face when you hear me but haven’t yet seen me enter the room….when you pant in excitement….when you’re so tired you can barely remember that you’re eating….when you fall asleep in my arms and conk your head powerlessly on my shoulder…when you sooth the second I pick you up….when you take something new in for the first time….and those early mornings after a feeding when I let you stay in bed and snuggle with me. 

You are so beautiful, and have the palest, silkiest skin.  Your smile is so beautiful, and big, even your ears smile.  You are such a good natured baby, that at times I wonder if it is too good to be true and that any moment you’re going to become a little monster baby! That’s not to say you haven’t had your moments   Sleep has been hard to come by this month.  I accredit it to teething (for both you and your sister).  You have been waking up every hour and a half most nights, and sometimes at even shorter intervals.  You mostly eat and go back to sleep but sometimes you decide you’re madder than mad and spend an hour or so telling me   For the majority of your life you’ve been a good sleeper, so I won’t complain if you have a little spell.  I also think you must be having a growth spurt too  because you’re eating more during the day too. You’re so fun to interact with these days.  You get excited at toys and want to hold everything.   You develop and progress every day.  This was a big month for milestones, including eating and teeth!  I think you meet your milestones quicker than Lyla because you’re learning from here.  You must be learning about food from her because you’re way too young to want to eat real food!  But you do!  You smell it and get all excited!  I feel badly that you can’t really eat what we are because you whine and cry for it!  I think you’ll be my good eater when you’re able to.  It’s hard to accept that you’re just not my baby anymore, and that not only are you big, but you WANT to be bigger!  I think you’re just itching to eat, run, jump and play.  That’s the design I suppose, but it still makes me sad.  I love you so much my little sweetie!  Stay this way forever…please!!!!

Other things about YOU:

-You experienced your first snow fall!  I put you to the window and showed it to you.  You just blinked, but I think you liked it.  I loved it because it forced me to stay inside all day and snuggle you!

-Like I mentioned, you LOVE LOVE LOVE food.  You smell it and beg for it.  You even get slightly anxious and excited when you smell it.   We call you GG (garbage gut)

-You’re also pretty good about eating baby food.  You had your first baby food on 10.15.11 (exactly 6 months old,,hadn’t had anything since rice cereal at 4 months) and went right to eating it.  You didn’t spit it out or really even seem phased by it, you would even open your mouth up for more.  I loved your little messy grin as you mowed down.  It was sweet potatoes.  You always do the cutest baby bird and open wide for mama when I’m feeding you.  You rarely reject the food or grimace.   You’ve since had carrots

-You also enjoy food in your little mesh teether and make quite the mess! You’ve had peaches, apples, and cantaloupe and liked them all

-You can already self-feed.  I think that’s amazing!  You feed yourself smashed up banana, puffs, and cereal

-You got your first teeth!!!  It was funny, Aunt Jenny was holding you and said “when did she get her first tooth?”.  I whipped around in shock and said “what?!”.  I hadn’t even seen it, but there it was, fully poking out, in all of its tourturous glory.  That was on 10.29.11.  Your second one poked through a few days later, on 11.01.11.  They are your middle bottom teeth and they’re adorable. 

-I try to read to you everyday, but it doesn’t really happen because you prefer to eat the books

-You still have stranger danger and don’t really like anyone to hold you that isn’t mama!

-You get a kick out of peek abo and smile and giggle like it’s the best thing ever when we reappear

-You are SUCH a grabby grabber.  So often I think there’s no way you’ll get ahold of something and then somehow you will! I used to always hold you while doing things like pouring Lyla’s milk.  Forget about it!

-You love to be sung to and will quiet the minute I start a song (guess you’re not that discerning when it comes to musical talent )

-I swear you say Mama.  I swear it!  When you’re sad and want picked up you whine and say “maaaa”.  Love you too babe

-I think your favorite toy currently is any plastic bag

-One night you stayed in bed with dad and I and it was so funny, you scooted and wiggled until you were literally in the small of my back.  You snuggled right in and slept so good.  It was so uncomfortable but I love it all the same

-You want to crawl sooo bad! You get down on all fours, but then get stuck and aren’t sure what to do from there.  You can scoot and reach to just about anything

-You hit me softly while you eat, so cute

-You’ve become a social breast feeder as well.  You think it’s a buffet that you can come and go to like it aint no thang. 

-You giggle at Lyla all the time.  It’s the cutest thing ever.  All she has to do is get close to you and you start giggling.  You’ll also laugh at her in the car, because you can see her from your spot in the car.

-When I get home from work, you will hear me walk in the house and start crying when you were fine minutes before.  You silly girl

-Another favorite toy of yours is our old cell phone car charger.  You LOVE the thing and we pack it around with us

-You like my feet and try to suck on my toes! EWWW!

-At 51/2 months you got a high fever.  Because of your history, the Doc made you have a catheter to rule out UTI.  Jenny did it at the Dr’s office on a sad sunday evening.  The next day Lyla came down with the same thing so we knew it wasn’t that.  I felt sooooo bad baby.  I am so sorry.  Please don’t have PTSD.

6 Month Stats

Weight: 15 lbs, 8oz…….18%

Height: 25 1/2 inches……17%

Head Circumference: 17 inches…….52%

------------

Miss Lyla Jane, my big big girl, how have you grown up so well?  I always feel blindsided by your development.  It seems like you go from just starting to do something, to completely mastering it overnight.  This month it has been putting together words.  It seems like instantly you went from saying the occasional word, to putting together short sentences.  It is so fun for me, because I feel like we interact like friends.  You are quite possibly the cutest and most fun child that ever was.  I say this all the time, but I quite desperately wish I could bottle away this little tiny human that you are, and revisit it when I’m old and grey.  Capturing your essence is a task I regularly fail at, because it’s just too wonderful for words.  I asked my mom the other day when the “terrible” part of being two starts because right now you are just SUCH a pleasure.  That’s not to say you haven’t begun testing limits and practicing a little defiance here and there.  It’s not too bad (yet) and seems to me more like learning.  You have such a zeal for life and people.  You live for outings and being around your friends and cousin Addie.  You have so much confidence and take on new things with excitement.  I hope you always hold this characteristic and never let the meanies in life steal that from you.  You are beautiful, lovable, and perfect.  You bring so much joy into Dad and I’s life.  It’s a regular occurrence for dad and I to grin from ear to ear watching you do something.  We spend most of our evening calls just talking about the adorable things you did that day.  I just love getting to re-experience life through your eyes.  Thank you love.  Sometimes we worry that you’ll be adversely impacted by dad’s absence due to his new job.  It’s a fear that just kills you daddy and brings him to tears every time he leaves.  I have peace and know you’ll be okay because you get an attentive, loving dad when he is home.  You have been given the opportunity to observe righteous service from your dada at an early age.  Always remember he loves you.  We love you to the moon and back

Other Lovable Notes:

-You say “awe cute” to so many things, in the most adorable, girlish way

-You call Lottie, “Lottie Lou” and say it almost as a rhyme.  It’s so cute

-As I mentioned, you are testing limits and showing me some defiance! If I ask you to do something, you do the opposite.  Like if I say “stay by mom and hold my hand”, you yank your hand back and run for the street.  I’m learning that these are little power struggles.  So far choosing my battles and telling you what you CAN do, versus what NOT to do it working (but I have a feeling you’re just getting started)

-You have so much confidence.  When you do something, you look at me and animatedly say “I did it!”. 

-You learned the word pumpkin and recognize them.  You get so excited and say “punkin!”

-You have started to pray with me at night.  It’s so cute.  You fold your arms and say “father, thanks”.  So cute

-We have started to little arts and crafts once a week.  I’ve been astonished at how quickly you grasp a concept and go right to using your imagination.  All I have to do is the “invitation” and you self-start.  You love to sift and sort and dump things.  It’s been so much fun doing these things with you.

-You ask to color all the time, but you’re not so much into coloring as you are into a quick scribble and then putting the crayons lined up in the box.  OCD?

- You love to brush my hair…it’s SO fun

-You say “mommy” in the cutest little voice and call for me.  It seriously melts my heart

- Not only can you do all your puzzles, but you can match up the pictures on your own.  I think that’s impressive!

-You already play the big sister role in many ways.  One way that isn’t my fav is that you will steal toys from her and then take something else and give it to her like a consolation price.  I respect your craftiness though

-I’ve mentioned that it’s so fun conversing with you these days.  The other day I wore a new headband with a big flower on it and when you saw me you said “awe, cute!”.  Lol

-The minute I lay Lottie down for a nap you come running and want to be held.  You say “bebe” and want me to hold you like a baby for a minute.  You giggle and then squirm free

-You’ve been sleeping with me a lot more these days because dad is gone and I don’t have the energy to get up with you and Lottie all night.  If you’re in my bed, you wake up a lot less.  You still wake up though.  Something a two year old shouldn’t do baby girl!  At bed time you occasionally say “I wanna seep wif mom”.  How can I say no?!

-Your fav snacks are fruit snacks and you ask for “naks” in twos.  You also love donuts, pizza, toast, mac n’ cheese, hot dogs

-All the sudden you decided you LOVE tv.  You went from very little interest to being able to attend to the TV for almost a whole 30 min show.  I’ve realized that I have to limit it now, and that when we’re doing activities or playing, the TV has to be OFF!

-You play in the cutest ways.  You will grab your keys, put your purse on your shoulder, push you stroller and say “bye, goin shoppin”.  You are such a good mother too.  Every now and again I’ll go to lay Lottie in her carseat and your dolly will be in there taking her nap. 

-When your bum in sore during a change you will ask for “cream”.  LOL

-You like order and want things just so (OCD).  You line things up during play and have specific things you want Lottie and I to do.  You even tell us where to sit. 

-You like to straighten your hair.  LOL

-Now that you understand and recognize cows and horses, you say “cow” or “ho” every time we pass a field.  Even it’s empty

-You have the cutest conversations with dad.  You will bring me the phone and say “talk to dada” and so we call all the time.  You hold the phone on your shoulder and just chatter away.  Not sure dad understands much but he’s a good sport.

-You dig the movie Monster’s and Aliens

-You like to have your back tickled while you fall asleep.  If I stop too soon you say “tick!” in your dictatorish way

-You ask for “Pa” (pizza) every meal

Love you my babies!