Saturday, June 12, 2010

Dear William (10 months)

Dear William,

Book worm

Today you are 10 months old. You are such a very busy little person. You reach and grab for everything. You love to bang two things together (like a spoon and a bowl). You are always engrossed in some activity-- generally involving trying to shove things into your mouth. You babble constantly. You giggle uproariously if I blow a puff of air into your face or if I tickle your tummy or toes or if I lift you up high into the air and say "Wheee!" You still love peek-a-boo. You still love the book That's Not My Monkey that your Great Auntie Marj gave you for Christmas. There are times when you still cry a lot too.

You got a new tooth this month. Your top left incisor. It was a doozy coming in. It took about 2 weeks of hard work. You had a runny nose and were fussier than normal and you would wake up in the night. I was hoping that both upper incisors would come in at the same time, but no luck. That other one is working you over right now. This one is even more of a doozy. Your sleeping (and mine as a result) have suffered tremendously. I wish that this tooth would just come through already and be done with. We could both use some rest.

Check out these teeth

Speaking of rest, there was definitely a bright spot this month. You started taking naps in your crib again. Ever since March, you have refused to sleep in the daytime unless I am holding you or walking with you in the stroller. Then one day this month, I cautiously put you in your bed and you slept for an hour and a half. It was wonderful. It is hit and miss though. Some days you scream the instant I try to put you down. Other days you sleep like a pro. I don't mind holding you while you nap, but sometimes, William, there are other things that need to be done. I can't help but think how much easier this whole motherhood thing would be if you were the kind of baby that took reliable, predictable naps in your crib every day. Do babies like that really exist? I don't know.

You scoot around a lot. You haven't quite figured out how to go forward yet, but you rotate in circles and you can kind of move backward. You get very frustrated when you are on your tummy and I put a toy out in front of you and you end up pushing yourself farther away from it instead of closer. Most of the time when you get up in the morning, you are 180 degrees rotated from the direction I had lain you down in. More often than not, you are clutching your That's Not My Monkey book, which I put at the foot of your crib when we get done reading it at night.

Book worm

You started the month as a voracious eater, but lately you have been quite stand-offish when it comes to food. Here is a list (near as I can remember) of the new things you have eaten this month: bits of crackers, potato (made you puke), Christmas bean (made you puke), aprium, oat cereal (store bought), bits of various hummus sandwiches I have been eating, toast/bread (you love bread!), grated raw carrot, Nico and Fito's guacamole, spinach, cantelope (made you puke), garbanzo bean, black bean, strawberries, grapes (you didn't like), whole wheat pita, naan, a bit of pea-sprouts from my sandwich, a couple bites of platano, and a few kinds of store bought baby food while we were traveling (more on that later) including peas and rice, lentils and rice, peach/oat/banana and pear/mango.

You went swimming this month for the first time. I had thought you would love swimming, because you thoroughly enjoy splashing in the bath. Your first swim did not go as well as I expected though, I think because you were tired and needed a nap.

Happy day

William, we are spending your 10th-month birthday in San Francisco. It's your first trip to California. Lucky duck! I didn't go to California until I was 28. You have been kind of overwhelmed with jet-lag and teething. You do not care for the crib that the hotel provided. For most of the week, you have slept in the big bed with your dad and me. You do your usual nighttime rotations. The other morning (well, 4:30am, which was when you chose to get up), your head was pressed against the small of my back and your feet were in your dad's face. I thought it was hilarious, but I guess your father got the raw end of the deal. You breathe very loudly when you sleep. It is hard to believe that such a noise comes out of such a little person.

I took you swimming again in the hotel pool in San Francisco. This time you loved it. No more messing around with baby pools for you. You loved to kick and kick your legs. In general whenever you are on your stomach, you kick your legs very much like a frog would (I should know, my first job out of college was a frog and tadpole care-taker). You frog kicked in the pool as I supported you, and it was hilarious.

You have done many new and exciting things since we've been in San Francisco. You've been to Golden Gate Park, the Presidio, Ocean Beach, Chinatown, Fisherman's Wharf, Coit Tower, the Castro, and Haight-Ashbury. You've had a picnic lunches at Union Square, St. Mary's Square (in Chinatown) and Baker Beach (who would have known clothing was optional there). You've ridden a cable car. You make friends wherever you go because you are always looking at people and smiling at them, which makes them smile back at you, and then they tell me what a beautiful little baby I have.

WindmillPicnic in Union Square
Ride

The most exciting part of our San Francisco trip (to me at least) was that I got to take you to the ocean. My whole life I have loved the ocean, William. The one thing I wanted to be sure to do on this trip was to take you to see it. You cried on the long bus ride to Ocean Beach, and then you fell asleep just before we got there. It was just as well; it was cold and windy and even misting a little bit, not really the best day to go to the beach. The dampness of the air made your hair curl. You slept through the whole thing, only waking up just as we left.

Beach walk

Ragfields

Ragfields

We took you back to the ocean today, to Baker Beach. We hiked there from Golden Gate Bridge. It was lovely, but you cried because you were tired, and eventually you fell asleep while we were still hiking. You had yourself a nice little nap, and when you woke up, you were at the ocean again. I hope someday that you can visit the ocean when you are not so tired.

William, it has been quite a month. It just keeps getting better and better.

Love,

Your mom

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

ahhhhhhh, william, the places YOU WILL GO, keeping up with mama and daddy!!!!!!! I just hope TRAVELING by car, bus, plane or train, does NOT make you ' MOTION SICK ' like it did/DOES for your mama!!!!!!! BUT, she was ALWAYS a TROOPER, and HELD her CHOKE bowl as we traveled down the highways!!!!!!! Wonder where the NEXT adventure will take the three of you?????? SO MUCH FUN for you....... Love the photos that keep us following along with you.... luv you and hugs to all of you, grama nan