eleven months

Dear Matthew,

The older you get, the stronger your personality becomes, and now, at eleven months, you are not only the happiest baby I've ever known, you're also the most possessive. You love the objects you work so hard to get your hands on, and shriek in frustrated anger if someone takes them away. No doubt you learned this trick from your older brothers, but I suppose this was bound to begin eventually.

You are officially mobile, but not yet very fast. You scoot on your belly across the floor, army style, and can get just about anywhere you want to. You are also now pulling yourself up, though you have yet to figure out how to untwist your legs in order to come to a complete stand. You've also started dancing -- sweet moves that look like something between a bounce, a jiggle, and a twist -- whenever you hear music. It's not dancing, but one of my favorite of your moves is when you lean over to look around someone or something. Adorable, and oh so sweet!

You've developed some strong and unique preferences. You love giraffes, and whenever the Noah's Ark toy is out, you quickly find the two giraffes and, with one in each hand, happily sit and swing them around. You are also a fan of your squeaky Sophie giraffe. Another item you've grown attached to are your burp cloths, which you treat as a comfort object. Whenever you pick one up, your thumb automatically goes into your mouth, and the cloth, which I'm sure to you smells warm and familiar, is brought up and clutched close to your face. If one happens to be in your crib when I tuck you in, you reach over to grab it so you can snuggle with it as you sleep. It's a little odd that you've chosen a burp cloth instead of a blanket, but with how immediately you are comforted by it, I'm not about to deprive you.

You're always up for a game, and your favorite one right now is to find the objects we balance on your head. To play, you slowly, so as not to disturb whatever it was we placed there, bring your hand up to search for it among the soft tufts of your hair, and you giggle happily if it falls off before you can find it. You also like it when your brothers rally to play with you. You love their attention as much as they love the attention you give them in return.

You sprouted two more teeth this month: a next door neighbor for your first one on the bottom, and one on the top. A second top one also looks to make its appearance at any moment. This accomplishment is making it that much easier for you to self-feed, which you've pretty much mastered now, so long as no utensils more complicated than your fingers are involved. The meals are now rare when you let me feed you purees with a spoon. All that hard work cutting teeth, though, brought your defenses down and you spent about a week sniffling, sneezing, and feeling absolutely miserable. Happily, you are now back on top of your world.

I love you, Boo Boo! Only one more month of babyhood for you. Let's make it a good one.

Love,
Mama