Letters to Serene: 10 months

My dear Serene Joy,

You're 10 months old today! How in the world did we arrive at this day so quickly? You're entering the double digits of babyhood. Before I can catch my breath, you'll be a full-fledged adult! A part of me is wistful you're almost one. You are insistent on growing up. You transitioned to size 3 diapers this month. You wear size 6-12 month clothing, some 3 month leggings, and 3-6 month shirts.  You're still sporting a couple pairs of your size 2 shoes, and your size 3 shoes are still a bit big but wearable. Not sure how much you weigh now since your doctor's appointment is tomorrow, but I'm guessing almost 18 pounds. You were 17 lbs 7 oz in the middle of this past month. The only part of you that doesn't seem to be growing as quickly is your hair ;) Your growing personality more than compensates for that. I want to bottle your sweetness all up. But since I can't do that, I shall try my best to articulate how heart-wrenchingly precious of a gift you are from our gracious God. If I could describe your personality this month in three words, they would be: joyful, adventurous, and loyal.

Joyful. Though you've had a cheerful disposition for ages, I'm convinced your zest for life increases each month as you become more aware of the people and objects in your life. You're especially fond of bouncy balls, other babies, and puppies. You babble a constant stream of vowels and consonants. Your favorite words are still "mama" and "a-duh." You throw your head back and utter wide-mouthed giggles when you see us. Especially when we play peek-a-boo with you or when your daddy throws you in the air. You bestow upon us slobbery kisses when we snuggle with you in the mornings after you wake up. Your beautiful smile lights up our entire home, all the time. This month, you learned to open and close your hands to say hi. You sign hi on command. Which is pretty much the most adorable trick ever, because it is always accompanied by your gummy grin. You're also a clap-happy baby now. Particularly when upbeat music plays. We've been waving hi and clapping a ton around here these days.

Adventurous. You are astoundingly agile on all fours. You love to crawl and do so with such finesse and speed that we are amazed you're not sore from crawling around all day. Even though you can pull yourself up and cruise a few steps at a time, you don't love to (yet?). You're not fond of the imminent consequence: falling on your bottom. You only pull yourself up to stand when something or someone desperately desirable is within reach. Usually, that's your daddy or me, our phones, or our laptops. You're extremely familiar with our home's layout now. You know where to find me if I'm not in sight - usually in the kitchen. You know to crawl to your room to locate your preferred toy of the month: a stuffed sheep. You're figuring out how things work. You flip pages of books. You pry open plastic containers. You flip open wipes packets and pull out wipes by the handful. You open drawers to pull out clothes. You drum on empty containers. You're so adventurous that a couple of times a day, you tolerate being confined in your pack n' play for a mere 10-15 minutes while I'm making a meal or in the shower. No matter how unfamiliar the place, you venture out on all fours to tour your surroundings. You have a particular affinity for wide open greenery, specifically, tree-lined parks. Nonetheless, you're willing to tread on everything, touch everything, and taste everything.

Speaking of tasting everything, you no longer eat purees. You turn your head away from them and only want what we're eating, as long as you get to feed yourself. Very rarely will you let me feed you. This month, you tried mango, orange, papaya, sautéed spinach, Rainier cherries, Asian chicken dumpling, edamame, avocado toast, sautéed zucchini, sautéed sugar snap peas, blueberries, boiled wonton wrappers, roasted seaweed, and plain egg and rice noodles. You like them all, but you love Rainier cherries most of all. It is my favorite fruit too, so naturally, we devoured three boxes of Rainier cherries within four days this month. You and I also really enjoy avocado on whole wheat toast for breakfast. That, and some eggs, comprise our usual breakfast these days. I'm content that we're at the stage where we eat the same foods. It is much more efficient than preparing purees. It's so fun for us all as you enjoy new foods and find our favorites just as tasty as we do. In fact, you scarf your food down with passion. You snatch food with both hands, stuff it into your mouth, and grab more, even if you're not finished swallowing or even if there is still food in your hands. Food flies everywhere, and never in my life have I meticululously wiped the table, chairs, and floor three times a day like I do now. You happen to find my being on all fours, scrubbing the floor, rather entertaining. I affectionately call you Babyzilla when it comes to food. You eat like you have a mouth full of teeth, but at 10 months, you're still toothless. Not a single pearly white in plain view, but we can spot them hiding shyly beneath your swollen gums. The nursing side of me is relieved about your lack of teeth. You still nurse several times a day: in the morning when you wake up, before your morning and afternoon naps, at bedtime, and averaging once during the early morning before you wake up for the day. Though I cherish the bond we have via nursing, I'm resolved to commence weaning in these next two months, as we are hoping you'll be off breastmilk by the time you're one.

Loyal. Your daddy and I are your best friends, although no one can comfort you like your mama can. You get distraught when you catch one of us walking out of the room. You stop what you're doing and lunge at us with desperation in your eyes. When an admirer holds you, you tend to push them away when you see one of us in efforts to jump into our arms. You're also partial to your routine. Your world ends when you're off your schedule for too long. You're so accustomed to regular naptimes at home that when we're out and about, you're too distracted to nap, unless we're driving around. Another time this month that threw us all off was when you got sick for the first time in your life (besides jaundice during your first few days of life). You had roseola, where you had a high fever for three days and then a rash that spread over your entire body. We were so sad and felt so helpless to see you so miserable. Thankful the Lord watches over you and cares for  you more than we ever can. So grateful for how He has sustained and grown you these past 10 months. And I get to witness it all. Especially now that I am blessed to be able to spend so much time with you as a stay-at-home-mama. Your daddy keeps saying how much happier we all are, and it really is all because of God's kindness to us. We're praying you'll one day comprehend His great love for you in Christ. Until then, we pray to disciple you well in His ways so that you would see that He is more satisfying than anything that the world can offer.


Love you so,
Mommy

P.S. Serene Joy at 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9 months.