Laowai

Bea is soon going to be 11 months old. I thought it was time to make a list of what she’s up to lately.

– She seems really close to walking. She’s really good at walking sideways, supported by the couch, the kitchen cupboards, the coffee table, etc. Her little steps are adorable – she gingerly kicks her foot out like there is a helium balloon attached to it.

– She doesn’t let anything go unnoticed. I can hardly do anything in the kitchen when she’s around. As soon as I open the fridge or dishwasher she high tails it over to investigate. The other day when I was trying to make some cookies I let her root around in the fridge for oh maybe 5 minutes so I could get the dang cookies in the oven. Was that wrong?

– She’s also gotten to the stage where she will wrap her arms around my legs and look up at me asking to be picked up. So I end up trying to get something done in the kitchen while planted like a tree – reaching my arms out as far as I can. Luckily our kitchen is fairly small so this sometimes works when she is in her “must eat now” mode.

– She’s been making this “PBL PBL PBL” sound by waggling her fingers over her lips. I should try to get it on video. At least twice a day she entices me to make the sound too and we sit there smiling and being goofy.

– She’s into everything. It used to be our bedroom and bathroom was a pretty good space to let her roam free. But now she wanders into the closet and starts unloading the drawers. Throwing Brian’s t-shirts over her shoulder with a certain zest is her favorite way to amuse herself. It’s probably more exciting because she knows she is doing something she shouldn’t be doing and soon I will run over and put an end to her fun. But no worries she will move onto another recent discovery – the toilet paper. Yes, if you come to our house you’ll be treated to that telltale lumpy, uneven roll of toilet paper. She unrolls the toilet paper with as much fervor as she unloads daddy’s t-shirt drawer. I come upon her with a big grin on her face and her arm wildly and rhythmically hitting the roll.

– We still have sleep issues. Is this normal or do I (as I suspect) have a problem sleeper on my hands. About once or twice a week she refuses to sleep after around midnight or 3:00 a.m. She insists on crying out about every 5 minutes. And this just seems to go on and on and on. Brian and I find ourselves cursing in the dark because we can’t figure out why she is still awake. We try everything and sometimes just to get some sleep, even if it’s crappy sleep, I grab her and lay down on the couch with her. At least Brian and the neighbor that shares her bedroom wall get some sleep.

– Of course the strange thing when you have a horrible night is she acts like nothing happened in the morning and she is her cute and entertaining self bright and early. While Brian and I mope around with a slight feeling of resentment because we can’t begrudge her for her behavior. Mornings like this we refer to her as our little Beast.

– She’s getting into blanket love. She likes to pick up her blanket and play peek-a-boo with me (it’s the cutest thing ever). When it’s close to nap time she’ll pause and burry her face in her blanket. And when I put her down in her crib she puts her blanket against her cheek.

– She does the Bea-bop. It’s when she bops up and down to music or just because she’s excited. Another thing I must get a video of.

– She has seven teeth and her hair is filling in. She likes cottage cheese for breakfast. She’s weighed a whopping 22 pounds 7 ounces at her last check up. She has a ticklish spot on her side. She loves sitting in the high chair at restaurants like a big girl.

– As Dooce said “she makes me feel like my veins have been injected with glitter”

OK now I must go sweep the floor.