21 months

3.25.10

My dear baby (?) Noah~

You are 21 months old today and turning into a boy before my eyes. You are sound asleep on my shoulder as I write this, wrapping your arms around me-- but now, instead of fitting into a little ball on my chest that ends before my lap, your feet are actually almost to my knees. And tonight, for the very first time in your life, you did not want to nurse before falling asleep. You actually shook your head no and signed “all done”, pulled down my shirt and snuggled into my arm. Instead, you feel asleep staring into my eyes as I whispered “Goodnight Moon” from memory and you filled in the “hush” at the appropriate time in your sweet little whisper. I think that your mouth hurts and that you are getting your 2 year molars... I can’t imagine that you’re actually “all done“ having ”ooh-ee’s“-- but maybe, just maybe, you are???

There simply are not words to describe the intensity of my love for you... it bubbles out from my heart and bursts from my every pore. I squeeze you and kiss you and constantly tell you I love you, and still, it is not enough-- it doesn’t come close. You are wonder and joy, sweet love, and devilish mischief. You are sunshine and starlight, and the raging ocean during a fierce wind. You are thunder and lightening and a million butterflies. You are absolutely, mind-blowingly brilliant, and fearless-- and I just know you will always test boundaries, push limits, and walk on the edge-- but you will always come back, full of warmth, laughter, with kisses and hugs to spare. You are gregarious, energetic, and spirited. You are going to take the world by storm.

You don’t stop. All. day. long. Our own little “energizer monkey”. You constantly climb, and continue to take great joy in dancing on tables, especially when we try to stop you. You have been talking, talking, talking-- the words you have are already far too many to count. You repeat back to us just about anything we say, but you are also putting together sentences like “Daddy, open it, please” and “Whatcha’ doin’?” And you *sing*. Spontaneously and on your own. You’ll just be toddling around, playing with toys and suddenly burst out with “Dinka Dinka Lidda Dow, Hawa Wanda Whadda Ow...” which might be hard to understand on the page, but when sung with perfect pitch to the tune of twinkle, twinkle little star it is unmistakable. You are starting to count and sing the alphabet, recognizing colors and pointing them out to us without prompting-- and amazing us in a million other ways every day of your life. You gleefully jump in puddles and run from one to the next. You stop in your tracks for every airplane you hear and never miss an opportunity to get kissed by a dog. You went through a brief period of being stingy with your kisses and hugs, but now you are giving them freely again-- in fact, insisting on it-- and you make sure no one gets left out. “Mama diss, Daddy diss, Wee-bye diss, Buh-wy-uh diss...” and of course, “Mammie” and “Mammaw”, “Bee” and “Bella” too-- and then you follow them up with a “biiig* hug”. You are simply priceless.

Once again, I am left feeling like I wish I could write more, explain it better somehow-- actually *capture* more glimpses of our life that seems to be zooming past-- but I know I am doing all I can to soak in the moments as they come. It’s hard to fully live them when you’re busy taking photos or jotting notes. So I’ll continue to try to do a bit of both and hope that somehow I’ll never forget what you were like in the spring of 2010 and how much joy I find searching for “lellow dowers” and kitties with you as you run from one puddle to the next.

Your ever-lovin’,
Mama